Continuing GOP skepticism over Biden's win worries 'students of democracy'
"It doesn't make sense," said Bonebrake, a handyman from nearby
National polls show large numbers of
"We are meant to have an adversarial system of government. But the fights are supposed to be about policy: the size and cost of government, the reach of social programs, how to protect public health," said
Minta was one of nearly 200 "students of American democracy," mostly political science and law professors, who signed onto a recent "Statement of Concern" warning that the
What that means, they argue, is that "our entire democracy is now at risk."
Aftershocks from Trump's attempts to dispute his loss continue to jolt national politics. But aside from Bonebrake, few in the crowd gathered for
"I don't do politics," said
Last year was a tough one, Bastian said. Her family moved back to her husband's hometown of
Bastian said she voted for Trump in 2016 and that she liked his style as president. "Our family, we're gun people, so that's a big reason too," she said. But she didn't vote last year: The challenges of distance learning with six kids in a new home were all-consuming, she said.
"Biden's doing OK. Mostly I hate Trump," said
The theme of
It's not a state election year, so politics was a near nonpresence in the parade, except for a small cadre of local
"I hear lots of questions about election integrity," said Erickson, a retired English teacher and one of the longest-serving
She's instead focused on education funding and policy issues at the statehouse this year, she said. Those calls and e-mails about the election were more frequent around the time Biden took office and have fallen off since, she said.
Mathews, a federal caseworker and pastor, said he "definitely has concerns" about how the presidential election went down but not enough to pronounce the outcome unfair. He was more interested in criticizing the Biden administration's management of the
That includes the four
"I don't want to go about after an election and prove it was wrong," said Sen.
Asked whether she believes the last election produced a fair outcome in the presidential race, Kiffmeyer, a former
Republican legislatures and governors in more than a dozen states have passed or are considering laws that include curbing absentee and early voting, reducing the number of polling places for in-person voting and setting new eligibility requirements for voting, and would shift oversight of ballot counting and election certification from nonpartisan appointees to partisan elected officials.
"They're getting into the business of changing the rules so that it disincentivizes people from participating in the process," said
Bonebrake said his own doubts about the last election have him questioning whether voting is even worthwhile. "What good is it doing you if it ain't counting?" he asked.
His wife,
"I would definitely vote again," she said. She said she agrees with her husband on most issues, but Mary showed a flash of annoyance as he continued to rant about Biden and Trump, about the COVID vaccine and Gov.
"Stop. Stop," she whispered at him. "Stop."
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