Kerby Anderson

Today is Election Day, and two important questions might or might not be resolved tonight. The first question is: Who will win the election? Given our experience four years ago, the answer might not be obvious. The second question is: How peaceful will be our transition of power? Again, our experience four years ago is reason to be concerned about that.

In 1960, there were questions about whether John F. Kennedy won the presidency fairly. Rumors quickly spread that voting in Illinois and Texas had been manipulated. Perhaps the narrow margin of victory (112,000 votes) indicated that the vote total should be challenged. Richard Nixon conceded the election because he said, “our country cannot afford the agony of a constitutional crisis.”

In 2000, George W. Bush led Al Gore in Florida after the first results were tallied. Because the vote was so close, a statewide recount was implemented. The machine count was even closer, so a legal battle developed.

Those of you who are older probably remember the debate over the “hanging chads.” The case finally reached the Supreme Court which ruled the hand recounts unconstitutional and essentially declared Bush the winner. Al Gore then conceded by saying, “While I strongly disagree with the Court’s decision, I accept it.”

In 2016, Donald Trump won three swing states by a mere 77,744 votes. In 2020, Joe Biden won three swing states by 42,844 votes. Controversy surrounded both elections. If the voting is close again, the election results may go into overtime.

Will we have a clear winner, or will we have to wait days or even weeks to find out? And will there be controversy over this election? We will know in a few hours.