In my reading of Minnesota and South Dakota news and opinion, it's rare to come across a convergence of parts as that came across the stream this week from the South Dakota News Watch site and the Republican blog, SD War College.
In its most recent dispatch, the News Watch's Bart Pfankuch reports in Democracy and elections in doubt: South Dakota poll:
A new statewide poll has exposed deep concerns among South Dakota voters that the U.S. democratic system of government is at risk and also revealed that almost half of voters agree that violence is an acceptable method of protecting the democracy.
Political science professor Shane Nordyke of the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, S.D., is not surprised, although she is somewhat dismayed, by the new statewide poll results generally showing that many South Dakota voters question the integrity of elections and that a vast majority believe that American democracy is currently under threat.
As the director of the Chiesman Center for Democracy at USD, Nordyke has seen consistent polling in recent years showing that South Dakota voters are concerned about the security of elections, have doubts about the stability of democracy and are worried that civility in the country is on the wane.
The poll, commissioned jointly by South Dakota News Watch and the Chiesman center, generally shows a continuation of those trends.
"I don't know that any of this is a surprise necessarily," Nordyke said in an interview. "This seems to be the one universal thing that we all agree upon, that these democratic norms we’ve been accustomed to are being eroded and it seems like the system hasn’t worked appropriately." . . .
Furthermore, about 42% of all respondents said then are “not confident “or “not too confident” that election results in America reflect the will of the people (56% are very or somewhat confident). Doubts about election integrity were highest among Republicans (49.2% not confident) followed by Independents/NPA (44.6% not confident) and then Democrats (23.8% not confident.) .. . .
Concerns over the integrity of elections is an issue that seems unlikely to fade.
Just as Trump continues to question election results and decry the integrity of the system, Minnehaha County Auditor Leah Anderson recently questioned the accuracy of voting systems used by county voters.
USD political science professor emeritus Michael Card said the lack of faith in government began decades ago, when trust in government peaked with the passage of the American Civil Rights Act in 1965. “Trust in government then was at 80% and we’re at the lowest point ever now,” he said.
In more recent times, the devastation and isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic challenged the sense of security held by many Americans and may have fed a new level of distrust in government, elected officials and American institutions, Card said.
'Confirmation bias' opens door to manipulation
Constant questioning of the 2020 presidential election results, and doubts expressed by election officials such as Anderson, have further fueled that distrust and angst and could ultimately lead to greater lawlessness, he said.
That crucible of divisiveness can open the door for people with an agenda or a strong personal view to readily influence others, not unlike how Minnesota election denier Rick Weible has come to South Dakota to sow distrust in elections, as reported by News Watch in November.
“I think it’s a real problem because if we don’t trust the government, what will that do to our compliance with the laws of our country?” Card asked. “If we don’t trust a police officer to fairly execute traffic laws, for example, I’m much more likely to speed or be on my cellphone while driving.” . . .
There's much more at the News Watch.
That story brought to mind the War College January 2 post, SDWC Top Ten Political stories of 2023 (Part 3 – The top two) top story:
1. Rise of the election truthers/populists.
Yes, I know this is inside baseball. But, on my list, I don’t think anything has affected the landscape of South Dakota politics more than the “election truthers/populists.” And maybe that’s a catch-all phrase that doesn’t adequately encompass the movement of what we might otherwise term a group of activists whose politics seem to be driven more by what they read on facebook than their knowledge of government or a sense of civic duty. It is populism run amok as the group is less about supporting Republican or Democrat candidates as much as they are against Government doing anything than dismantling itself.
The small clusters of people along this vein have been happy to co-opt various Republican organizations to serve their needs, without actually supporting the Republican party, and they are just as quick to abandon them as they are to claim them.
Secretary of State Monae Johnson can attest to this.
Johnson rode the wave into office in 2022, yet in 2023 as she attempted to govern, she found that the election truthers who had propelled her into office turned on her as and labeled her a swamp dweller, and at this point are in an active state of war against her as their activists attack her in word, and their officeholders use their position to actively sabotage the Secretary of State’s office.
The truthers/populists seem more intent on burning everything down in pursuit of their own goals as opposed to serving the needs of their community.
If a debate were to come up to find a solution to how to fund our highway repairs, and for example, the future of the gas tax was that it would not generate sufficient revenue because of an influx of electric vehicles, they wouldn’t debate replacement income through a wheel tax or tolls to pay for road upkeep – it would devolve into a debate of the federal government subsidizing electric vehicles, and how we shouldn’t accept federal funding of our highways.. and the potholes in our roads would remain in disrepair.
It’s all well and good to debate ideology ad nauseum, but the average South Dakotan doesn’t subscribe to the same intense reliance on dogma. They just want their damn road fixed, because it ruined their second tire rim, and someone should be fixing the road. The truthers/populist can whip people up on select targeted issues, but they quickly lose interest in participating in the debate when the long-term societal effects set in.
These groups successfully took over a handful of Republican County organizations in late 2022/early 2023, and their handiwork has been evident since that time. The Yankton County GOP fell to their minions, and now instead of hearing from candidates at their annual events, their GOP faithful is subjected to 45 minute power-point presentations on election conspiracies from SD Canvassing.
The largest county republican organization, Minnehaha County, had the same happen. And they find themselves with a leadership team who finds more value with garage sales than meeting a quarter million voters. A leadership team that they now find themselves facing having to pry out of office like a stubborn engorged deer tick. And those are just a couple of quick examples.
These groups are more interested in self-aggrandizing than getting people elected. And their eagerness to upset the applecart is going to come to fruition this year. The end result of these groups means that there could quickly be a shift in the balance in the state’s next election cycle, as increasingly competitive Democrats find themselves facing off in elections against some weak and disorganized Republican county organizations who let them steal the limelight because the public at large isn’t buying the bag of crazy that the facebook adherents are attempting to sell.
To me, the rise of the truther/populist groups is the biggest political story of the year, as if they have their way, what they are going to accomplish is to swing the pendulum back from Republican leadership, and give Democrats the leg up in state politics that they have been unable to achieve on their own over the last several election cycles.
Bluestem doubts South Dakota's Democrats --or South Dakota as a state--will benefit from the rise of the election truther, but I figured readers in Minnesota would appreciate seeing how far Minnesota refugee Rick Weible has come--and the fragment of popular opinion he and his cohort ride.
Photo: Rick Weible addressed the Sherburne County Board of Commissioners in Elk River on July 12,2022. He said the group he founded, “Midwest Swamp Watch,” has talked with 25 Minnesota counties and claimed their voting equipment is either insecure or improperly upgraded. Creator: Elizabeth Flores | Credit: Star Tribune. From ‘FEELS LIKE IT’S A WHACK-A-MOLE’ Minnesota election officials on misinformation front lines.
Related posts:
- Former small-town Minnesota mayor Rick Weible is behind the rise of electoral activism in South Dakota. He's just getting started
- Rick Weible includes SD Secretary of State Monae Johnson as swamp dweller
- Election deniers appointed to Minnesota House Elections Finance & Policy committee
- SD Searchlight: Incoming Secretary of State looks to hand-count ballots, audit each election
- Crockett and crew share curious definition of "common sense" at Pine Island rally
- The big lie goes on tour in Minnesota [Minnesota Reformer]
- Ben Davis, Master of Ceremonies for Dec 2021 'Searching For Truth' event, GOP endorsed in 6A
- Westrom wouldn't talk to local reporter about why he attended sketchy election fraud event
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