From xxxxxx <[email protected]>
Subject Hold The Line: A Guide to Defending Democracy
Date September 20, 2020 12:05 AM
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[If you’re reading this, you are likely concerned about how this
years election is taking place.This guide is designed to help people
from all walks of life take action to ensure that we have a successful
election in November 2020. ] [[link removed]]

HOLD THE LINE: A GUIDE TO DEFENDING DEMOCRACY  
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Hardy Merriman, Ankur Asthana, Marium Navid, Kifah Shah
September 1, 2020
Hold the Line [[link removed]]

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_ If you’re reading this, you are likely concerned about how this
year's election is taking place.This guide is designed to help people
from all walks of life take action to ensure that we have a successful
election in November 2020. _

,

 

On June 1, 2020, President Trump ordered members of the military to
repress nonviolent demonstrators in Washington, DC. Seeing this as a
severe abuse of power—and an indication of the lengths Trump might
go to try to stay in office—the four of us got together and produced
this guide over the course of several months. We are an interracial,
intergenerational group with experience in U.S. activism, organizing,
and training (in the U.S. and abroad), as well as expertise in
pro-democracy movements around the world.

All of us contributed to this work, and all of us stand by the words
in this guide. One note is that Hardy Merriman is credited for sole
authoring Part IV. We are grateful for the feedback and encouragement
we received from the reviewers we consulted.

Work on this guide was in our independent capacities. The views
expressed here are solely personal to the authors and do not represent
the views of any employer or other organization with which we may be
affiliated.

_OVERVIEW:_

If you’re reading this, you are likely concerned about how this
year's election is taking place. This guide is designed to help people
from all walks of life—political newcomers as well as experienced
activists—take action to ensure that we have a successful election
in November 2020. A successful election is one that is:

* FREE, in which all eligible voters are able to vote without
hindrance, interference, or intimidation.
* FAIR, in which all votes are counted transparently, non-partisan
rules and laws are followed, and any disputes are resolved without
bias towards any particular candidate.
* RESPECTED, by which the loser of the election accepts the results,
concedes, and engages in a good faith transition process to the
election’s winner. 
* SAFE, in which risks of COVID-19 transmission and political
violence are minimized.

The United States has hundreds of years of experience in election
administration, so you would think we would have a robust process and
institutions to ensure our elections are successful. However, we face
a long list of real and potential challenges in the upcoming November
election that demand a heightened level of civic awareness and
engagement.

Some of these challenges come from the COVID-19 crisis, which is
leading to a significant shortage of poll workers. Fewer poll workers
means fewer polling places will be open. This shortage alone is an
issue that would impact any election, but in 2020 our problems are
exacerbated by other political and infrastructural challenges. These
include cuts to the U.S. Postal Service that may delay delivery of
mail-in ballots; malfunctioning voting equipment; deliberate voter
suppression and misinformation; possible voter intimidation at the
polls; possible violence among political supporters; and the President
improperly using the powers of the executive branch and communicating
that he may refuse to accept defeat.

You may have read about some of these problems already, or experienced
or witnessed them firsthand at some point. They can seem overwhelming,
and sometimes popular media focuses more on chaotic scenarios for the
election than on possible solutions. Fortunately, there’s A
LOT that each of us can do to help. Everyone has a role they can play
to ensure that VOTING IS ACCESSIBLE AND SAFE; that PEOPLE TURN OUT TO
VOTE; that THE RULES ARE APPLIED FAIRLY; and that THE RESULTS ARE
RESPECTED.

We conceive of these efforts in two stages:

STAGE 1: FROM NOW UNTIL ELECTION DAY (NOV. 3, 2020)

STAGE 2: FROM ELECTION DAY TO INAUGURATION DAY (JAN. 20, 2021)

This guide focuses primarily on Stage 2, covering the period of time
starting from Election day and continuing through to Inauguration day.
It attempts to answer the question of how to prepare and what to do in
case attempts are made to subvert the election results. At the same
time, we recognize that Stage 1 is critically important as well, and
deeply related to Stage 2, so we begin by dedicating some attention to
Stage 1, before diving more deeply into Stage 2. 

We’ve divided the guide into the following four parts:

Part I
[[link removed]] focuses
on critical actions people can take FROM NOW UNTIL ELECTION DAY (NOV.
3, 2020) to ensure a successful election.

Part II
[[link removed]] gives
background on potential scenarios that could play out between ELECTION
DAY TO INAUGURATION DAY (JAN. 20, 2021).

Part III
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a four-step process to start an election protection group in your
community, and to begin planning actions to protect democracy in case
they are needed.

Part IV
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an in-depth analysis and model of change drawn from the field of
nonviolent civil resistance, which informs our thinking about how to
respond if there are attempts to subvert the election results. We draw
lessons about how ordinary people have advanced democracy and won
against authoritarian-style rulers in other parts of the world, and
apply these lessons to the current situation in the United States.

This guide is designed to be read in whatever order makes most sense
to you. We recommend Part I
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a good place for everyone to start, because the election protection
efforts outlined in Parts II, III, and IV will be significantly more
powerful if we use time now to ensure the November election is as
successful as possible.

Then, if you want more background information about possible scenarios
that could play out on Election day and beyond, read 
[[link removed]]Part
II
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If you are already familiar with potential post-election scenarios and
want to jump straight into organizing a neighborhood election
protection group, you can start with 
[[link removed]]Part
III
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If you want a deeper sense of a model of change for how other
societies have won rights, freedom, and justice against unaccountable
rulers, and how those lessons could apply to the United States, read 
[[link removed]]Part
IV
[[link removed]].


_TABLE OF CONTENTS_

_PART I:_

HOW TO ENSURE A SUCCESSFUL ELECTION
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_Learn_ _three of the most important things you can do right now to
help ensure a successful election.

_PART II:_

PLANNING FOR ELECTION DAY ONWARD
[[link removed]]_:_ Get
up to speed on why we are facing a threat to democracy in this
election.

POSSIBLE SCENARIOS AND THE RED LINES
[[link removed]]_:_ Know
the Red Lines that President Trump and other political officials at
the state or local level may try to cross between Election day (Nov.
3, 2020) and Inauguration day (Jan 20, 2021).

STRATEGIES TO RESPOND
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_If and when those Red Lines are crossed, we need a strategy that
generates power, unity, and discipline. Learn how we can instill
election protection efforts with these attributes.

_PART III:_

OVERVIEW — HOW TO TAKE ACTION
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can take action to protect democracy in our country. All it takes is a
group of people ready to commit to organizing and nonviolent action.
We’ll walk you through the first steps you can take to Hold the
Line.

STEP 1 — CREATE A ‘HOLD THE LINE’ TEAM
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by hosting a call or virtual meeting for a small, core group of
committed people. This step will give you what you need to invite
people to join you and commit to the team.

STEP 2 — DEVELOP A RESPONSE PLAN
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fight to protect democracy does not just happen at the federal level,
but also at the state and local level with officials who could act to
undermine the election. Learn how to identify who holds these
important positions, monitor what is happening, and mobilize if
needed.

STEP 3 — IDENTIFY ROLES AND RECRUIT SUPPORT
[[link removed]]_:__ _If
President Trump or other government officials cross any of our Red
Lines, we’ll need to respond fast. This chapter will help you define
clear roles so that everyone knows what they need to do.

STEP 4 — REVIEW AND PREPARE TO EXECUTE YOUR PLAN
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Election day, review your plan with your team. This will help you and
your group be ready to go if the time comes.

_PART IV:_

MODEL OF CHANGE
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how our model of change draws from the field of nonviolent civil
resistance, how ordinary people have advanced democracy against
authoritarian rule worldwide, and relevant lessons for the United
States.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
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additional resources to help you make change and dig deeper into the
history and theory used to inform this guide.

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