[[link removed]]Dear John,

It is no understatement to say it feels like the fate of our country (and honestly, our planet too) is on the line this week. The most important election of our lifetimes is well underway, and it is unlike any other. We have an authoritarian President blatantly working to undermine the results of the election, a GOP that pushed through a Supreme Court nomination in record time to side with them if the election goes to the courts, and a deadly pandemic adding new barriers to voting and new challenges for ballot counting.

A big part of our anxiety comes from the uncertainty. Will Trump concede in the face of a decisive Biden victory, or will he rally his supporters to undermine the legitimacy of the election? Will the results be close, allowing for days, weeks, or even months of waiting for the final count? We can endlessly refresh the polls. But the truth is that we just don't know.

But there are a few things we do know that are important to keep in mind:

*
We
have
6
days
left
to
Get
Out
the
Vote.
Text
your
friends
and
family,
especially
those
in
swing
states.
Join
us
tonight
for
our
final
weekly
phonebank
[[link removed]]
–
this
time
for
Jaime
Harrison
in
South
Carolina.
And
check
out
this
excellent
calendar
of
recommended
GOTV
events
[[link removed]]
throughout
this
weekend,
organized
by
friends
and
partners
(with
big
thanks
to
our
team
for
compiling
it).


*
There
will
be
(and
has,
of
course,
long
already
been)
voter
suppression.
We’ve
already
seen
long
lines,
threatened
ballot
drop
boxes,
voter
intimidation
at
the
polls,
and
aggressive
efforts
to
reject
absentee
ballots
cast
in
good
faith.
Join
Election
Defenders
[[link removed]]
to
help
ensure
that
everyone
has
access
to
the
polls.


*
The
Election
Night
tallies
will
not
tell
the
whole
story.
With
so
many
more
people
voting
by
mail
this
year
due
to
the
pandemic,
and
rules
in
some
states
(including
New
York)
that
do
not
allow
for
counting
of
mail
in
ballots
until
election
day
or
after,
the
vote
totals
we
see
on
Election
Day
will
not
be
final.
President
Trump
may
claim
on
election
night
that
he
won.
It
will
be
up
to
all
of
us
to
dispel
that
falsehood
and
spread
the
message
that
we
need
to
wait
for
the
full
results.
Watch
this
video
[[link removed]]
for
a
quick
refresher
on
which
states
to
watch
and
when
to
expect
results.


*
We
must
Protect
the
Results.
A
national
coalition
of
organizations
is
preparing
to
take
to
the
streets
and
put
pressure
on
state
decision
makers
who
have
a
role
to
play
in
the
electoral
college
process
in
key
states
if
Trump
refuses
to
accept
the
results
of
the
election.
Sign
up
to
get
updates
from
Protect
the
Results
[[link removed]]
(and
we’ll
be
sharing
opportunities
to
take
action
as
needed
in
the
coming
weeks
too).


*
In
any
outcome,
we
must
keep
organizing.
More
on
this
below,
but
in
short,
join
us
on
Thursday,
November
5
at
6
PM
to
debrief
and
start
planning
for
what
comes
next.
[[link removed]]



Earlier this year, a group of bipartisan election experts and political strategists mapped out several possible ways that things could go after November 3rd. The Transition Integrity Project’s results [[link removed]] were worrisome, with nearly every scenario other than a Biden blowout leading to some amount of instability, conflict, or even physical violence. The prospect of Trump refusing to concede and pushing forward with efforts to challenge Biden’s win in the electoral college process is entirely possible, and extremely dangerous.

Chris Hayes’s interview [[link removed]] with elections expert Edward Foley does a good job of explaining the steps in that process (including a meeting of electors in December, a vote of the new Congress in January) and how that might play out with multiple candidates claiming victory. That hasn’t happened since the election of 1876, which offers a sobering example of what is at stake now. In the 1876 election both Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel Tilden claimed victory and state legislators supportive of Tilden sent a rival set of electors to the electoral college. The conflict went on until almost Inauguration Day, only resolved when Tilden agreed to concede in exchange for the withdrawal of the federal troops who had been enforcing racial equality in the South, ending Reconstruction and setting the stage for another 85+ years of second class status for Black people in the South. We know, too well, that elections -- including what happens after the voters are cast -- really do have consequences.

We also know that a Trump reelection victory is a direct threat to the lives of millions, as the pandemic surges on, the window to mitigate climate disaster closes, and racialized violence at the hands of vigilantes, law enforcement, or federal policy continues on. But the chaos of an unresolved or contested election for weeks or even months is deeply dangerous too. Here is a good overview [[link removed]] of various post election scenarios and organizations to plug in to.

No matter what happens, we will come together to process, take care of each other, and get organized for whatever needs to happen next.

After the 2016 election, thousands of us came together to create Get Organized BK to mobilize against attacks on women, immigrants and others under the Trump administration. However this election goes, we will need to keep organizing with others who share a vision of fundamental equality, human rights, and genuine democracy.

If the election is close and uncertain, we will need to organize to protect the results. If (I don’t even want to say it) Trump wins an electoral college majority despite a massive popular vote loss, we will be called upon to elevate to a new level of civil resistance. And if, as we so urgently hope, Biden wins and Democrats take control of the Senate, then we will need to work with grassroots groups, progressive labor unions, and millions around the country to put pressure on a Biden administration to abolish the filibuster and enact a bold progressive agenda. (Our friend and neighbor Bob Master wrote a great article in Dissent [[link removed]] on what history teaches about what that could look like).

RSVP now to join us for a post-election debrief and organizing meeting on Thursday November 5 at 6 PM. [[link removed]] Whatever the outcome, we’ll process together and start getting ready for the organizing we’ll need to do next (along with some visionary organizers and leaders). We will take care of each other and continue the fight for a more just future.

Sending strength to you and yours as this last week of the election season wraps up. We’re going to need it.

Brad

Lander for NYC
456 Fifth Avenue, 3rd Floor, Suite 2
Brooklyn, NY 11215
[email protected]

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