We the People Have Spoken

Thoughts about the election results. 

So I voted three weeks ago and there was only one guy on the ballot for Chesapeake Sheriff.

Wallace Chadwick beat out Dave Rosado, a classic, centrist Republican and the current sheriff, during the primary election. No Democrats ran. 

However, after his primary loss Dave Rosado started running a campaign to write him in on the ballot (which I did). He's appealing to the Democrats and the centrists, helping them to see that, despite appearances, Wallace Chadwick is not the only choice on the ballot. That blank space, a place to write another name, is also a choice.

On the day I voted, Sheriff Rosado was there shaking hands and talking to people. And on the other side this big Chadwick campaign guy stood there saying things like, "Wallace Chadwick is the only one on the ballot for a reason." 

I’ll be honest, I had to pat myself on the back for not responding with something like, “Yes, Sir, like every other well-functioning democracy with only one name on the ballot,” or, “Yes, the 10% of registered voters who chose him in the primary have a right to dictate what the other 90% of us choose.” But I was good and just wished him well.

I had been hopeful that the Rosado campaign pulls it off. Wouldn't that be great, if the people decided to pick something other than the choice presented to them? If we found another option, another way through?

Unfortunately, write-in campaigns don’t usually end well for the write-in candidate.

I admit that this post will not be the normal well-polished and breathtaking stuff I usually write lol, and it will certainly not be a great political commentary by a great political mind. I am just a guy with passing thoughts and an internet connection. You’re stuck with whatever comes out of my head that does not require verification or fact checking. And also whatever does not put me at risk, because it seems these days that speech is not free, and I don't need to put myself on the radar of the thought police.

There were many interesting races, but I’ll stick with the ones most relevant to me.

They say Virginia is the bellwether, reflecting the national mood since its gubernatorial elections tend to fall outside federal election years. With all the merciless firing of federal workers, so many of whom live in Virginia, I didn't see how the state could stay red. So I was particularly looking for how badly the red side loses. 

And in Virginia they lost pretty bad. Early reports are calling it a blue wave, as the Democratic party swept executive branch races and increased the majority in the House of Delegates to at least 60 of 100 seats.

And my city, Chesapeake, tends red in most elections. I figured that if there’s a blue-shift here, that would speak volumes about the national mood. 

And there was. Voter turnout here was 51%, not bad in an off-cycle election. The governor took Chesapeake by an 11% margin, Lieutenant Governor by 8%, and the Attorney General by 5%. Here, those margins are huge. I wonder what those margins would have been if we had 60% or 75% voter turnout.

By the way, Sheriff Rosado lost his re-election bid. But it is significant that about 34,000 people – nearly 40% of the vote – went with him as a write-in candidate. That is the people speaking.

Across the country – New Jersey, New York City, California, Pennsylvania – there was the same message. 

I don't think people voted on the state or local issues. In my opinion, they voted as a referendum on this administration's policies: slashing the federal workforce, rule by executive order, stopping foreign aid, ending federal support of public media, whitewashing history through public museums, curating art at the Kennedy Center, militarizing law enforcement, blackmailing universities, bypassing due process, suppressing free speech through intimidation.

These results tell me people are beginning to realize that their system of government, if used wisely, can protect them from internal threats, that elections still work, and that they still have power. 

Of course, Democrats will need to follow through and provide that protection and resistance without becoming the tyrants themselves. As I’ve said before, it’s easy to let our anger or righteousness drive us down the path of vengeance. That’s when the good guys become the bad guys.

Independence and aloneness

It seems so many policies coming from the right are sold to us as ending government overreach, getting the government out of our daily lives. The pitch is about retaking our freedom and independence.

Independence is a good thing. Being able to make decisions and exercise our rights is something I think we all want. But the actual policies coming out – rolling back social safety nets, downsizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency, cutting back on education funding, casting doubt on science at Health and Human Services – these don't make us independent. They make us alone.

The difference is that with independence you have the freedom to choose what's best for you. But when the shit hits the fan – disability, hurricane, pandemic – your government, funded by and accountable to you, will create conditions that help you get through it. 

Being alone looks the same in good times, but it looks like “good luck” in bad times. When we are alone, our friends, family, and community may be there. But they will not be able to provide food, water, medicine, and other necessities. They will not be able to pool resources from across the country. They will not rebuild your home. And they will likely be suffering the same problems that affect you, so their ability to help will be as limited as yours.

The people currently in power tell you that you have independence, but really you have aloneness. They take the credit when things are good and leave you screwed when things are not. 

I think people are just tired of it.

Maybe this election shows there is some consciousness growing that we can change the story about independence. That we can have freedom without being left completely on our own. And maybe we can create conditions that fight aloneness by building community, coming together to make change that no single one of us could make.

Happy Wednesday, everyone, and God bless America.

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