Right-Sizing Fears About the Midterm Elections
Be vigilant but don't panic. Trump and MAGA won't be able to steal them.
Donald Trump will not be able to steal this November’s midterm elections. He and his allies will keep trying to manipulate the midterms in their favor, which Democrats, pro-democracy activists, and all Americans who care about our constitutional system should keep working to counter. But he won’t succeed: No matter how much Team Trump disregards norms and laws, there’s no mechanism for taking over state elections, reversing losses, or preventing newly elected members of Congress from sitting, especially if Republicans lose by substantial margins. Vigilance is warranted, but excessive fear plays into the authoritarians’ hands.
This is not a call for complacency. Backsliding from democracy into authoritarianism is greased by people saying Calm down, it’ll be fine, the institutions will handle it, he doesn’t mean it, someone will stop him. I’m not doing that.1
But I think it’s important to right-size worries. To focus on what could realistically happen rather than lose time and expend attention and resources worrying about what can’t.
Authoritarianism is…
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Thanks for your piece about being diligent but not fearing election shenanigans in November. Another concern which may or may not be significant, is threats to polling places. In NJ in November 2025 there was a series of bomb threats that interfered with the election. How should we prepare for this possibility?
Note that I am a poll worker in NJ and am aware of the laws in NJ concerning law enforcement at polling places.
https://www.nj.gov/state/press-2025-1104.shtml
https://abcnews.com/US/credible-bomb-threats-temporarily-halt-voting-northern-new/story?id=127168655