The state of our country is ridden with uproar resulting from the 2020 presidential election in the United States. The citizens of the US are worried about the legitimacy of the election due to the mail-in voting ballots and President Trump’s coop to our democracy. The Washington Post states that “President Trump demanded the Supreme Court step in and halt vote-counting in several swing states — even though he has no power to command the court to do so.” On November 4th, 2020 Trump demanded that the Supreme Court interfere with the voting count in the swing states in order to win the election. The Supreme Court denied President Donald Trump’s request on the grounds that he does not obtain the legal power to demand that action take place during an election. On Thursday, November 5, 2020 (2 days after the election) according to the New York Post, Donald Trump publicly tweeted “STOP THE COUNT” and hours later he declared “ANY VOTE THAT CAME IN AFTER ELECTION DAY WILL NOT BE COUNTED!” The lies that Trump has been spreading concerning the state of the election and counting of votes poses a threat to democracy. 

The citizens of the United State’s fundamental constitutional rights of the 15th Amendment, Right of Citizens to Vote states “Section. 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Section. 2. Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.” In the United States systems, the justice system indirectly violates Section 15, Right of Citizens to Vote due to the high rates of false imprisonment of people of color. The incarceration rate of black males in the United States is greater than 1 to 4, while white males are 1 in 23. The high incarceration rates of minorities in conjunction with the statistic of people incarcerated in prison is 38% black people make up 13.4% of the population and white people make up 57.7% of inmates making up 76.3% of the population in the United States. The systemic racism in the United States affects the voter turnout of minorities shifting the US Senate, House of Representatives, and the president not reflecting ideals of the population. In the election, the unrest of the population lives in the policies that have been presented recently by positions, specifically Amy Coney Barret. The progress of women’s rights is now called into question by Amy Coney Barrett’s appointment into the Supreme Court. The Supreme court is now 2-6, Democrats to Republicans. Donald Trump appointed Barrett as a member of the Supreme Court due to her willingness to sign acts and ratify laws to reverse the impact of Roe v. Wade which President Trump promised to his Republican supporters. Women’s rights in the United States have recently been put at risk by politicians, driving women to the polls. The election has the power to change the lives of millions of Americans, enraging people of every age, creed, and color, uniting both Democrats and Republicans to protest in the streets. 

Citations:

https://nypost.com/2020/11/05/trump-tweets-stop-the-count-as-election-results-still-being-tallied/

https://nypost.com/2020/11/04/can-trump-actually-halt-vote-counting-through-the-supreme-court/

https://constitution.findlaw.com/amendments.html

https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/Llgsfp.pdf

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US

https://www.bop.gov/about/statistics/statistics_inmate_race.jsp