Horror writer Stephen King, when not spewing far left argle-bargle (a word I learned long ago from reading one of his novels) on Twitter, may exhibit a bit of common sense.

He once said, “The trust of the innocent is the liar's most useful tool.”

Was he referring to those innocent souls who trusted Christine or Cujo? Or to innocent Americans who foolishly listen to the ruling class liars, believing in truth, justice, and the American way?

Do Americans still trust elections, whether local, state, or national?

In 16 months, America “elects” a president. I would say a new president, but the top two contenders, at least at this early date will be a former and an incumbent president.

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We know how recent past elections turned out. Were they an election or a selection? A quote attributed to Joseph Stalin or his henchman, Lavrentiy Beria, sums it up: “Those who vote decide nothing. Those who count the votes decide everything.”

Were the votes counted honestly or accurately?

Remember how Fox News called Arizona for Biden with only a few percent of the votes tabulated. And how several swing states immediately thereafter stopped counting votes on election evening with Trump leading, only to resume the next day, Biden now ahead.

All delayed counting gave votes to Biden, not to Trump. What are the odds of that? This Twitter thread by Tom Elliott chronicles multiple episodes of election corruption and interference at the hands of the federal government in collusion with big tech and social media giants.

Aside from ballot-counting irregularities and voting machines connected to the internet, federal intelligence and law enforcement agencies influenced past elections by spying on one candidate and ignoring potential crimes of another candidate, both in 2016 and 2020. They had the willing and eager cooperation of corporate media, big tech, and social media to push or suppress news beneficial or detrimental to their favored candidate.

Can we trust our election results? You can surmise what I think but what do voters think?

Rasmussen Reports asked if cheating, “is likely to affect the outcome of the next presidential election.” Among likely U.S. voters, 54% thought it would, including 30% who think it’s very likely.

Going further they found that 54% of voters, “believe it is likely that state and federal officials are ignoring evidence of widespread election fraud.” Congress has shown no interest in investigating election integrity. Courts at the local, federal, and even the U.S. Supreme Court mostly refuse to hear election cases citing “jurisdiction,” “timing,” or “standing.”

What happens when a majority of voters believe elections are corrupt?

The January 6 “insurrection” supported by congressional leadership and the FBI, was, as Sundance described, a bipartisan parliamentary slick trick forcing immediate congressional election certification under the guise of “safety,” preventing any legitimate and lawful challenges or queries into election integrity.

If the system is broken, who will fix it? How can voters feel confident that their votes on or before election day are anything more than a pointless charade leading to a predetermined outcome?

Are Republicans sore losers? Or do Democrats also not trust election integrity? Rasmussen Reports asked and in a recent survey, “43% of Republicans think it’s very likely last year’s midterm election outcomes were affected by cheating, only 23% of Democrats and 24% of unaffiliated voters share that opinion.”

It is notable that one in four Democrats believe our elections are rigged. Perhaps electoral fraud is not a “right wing conspiracy theory” as the media suggests. You can bet that if Trump wins in 2024, the Democrats will be apoplectic over election integrity with their own “stop the steal” campaign.

If Trump and Biden reversed roles in November 2020, with Biden winning on election night only to have Trump declared winner a few days post-election, Democrats would be screaming, as they were even when Trump won solidly in 2016.

Donald Trump must be aware of this skepticism, especially amongst his supporters, over election integrity. If the MAGA coalition believes the system is rigged and that their votes don’t matter, many will stay home on election day.

If behind the scenes Trump hasn’t taken measures, either directly or indirectly, rectifying election shenanigans, he can expect a similar outcome, regardless of his eventual opponent or current poll support. The “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me” saying applies here.

Does President Biden look worried? Anyone asking about Joe and his family receiving millions from foreign governments for unspecified favors is met with a laugh or sneer from Joe.

He has not a care in the world. The candidate who could only draw a few dozen to campaign events is confident that regardless of his current job performance, he will receive 81 million votes, more if necessary, to secure reelection.

Who is standing in Trump’s way to the GOP nomination and what do voters say about his primary opponents? Rasmussen Reports asked likely U.S. voters what they thought of the current GOP field. Chris Christie? Not likely. Nikki Haley? Little chance. Tim Scott? Ditto. Mike Pence? Likewise. Ron DeSantis? “GOP voters favor Trump over DeSantis nearly 2-1.”

16 months out, Trump is the likely nominee, but much can change. Between a hostile, hyper-partisan media and an activist, weaponized Department of Justice and FBI, Trump could find himself in court or prison rather than in the White House.

Assuming Americans can still choose their leaders, Rasmussen Reports observed that Trump leads Biden 45% to 39% among likely US voters. And this poll was after the Feds indicted Trump over supposed classified document possession in his Secret Service protected home, while giving Biden, who had no declassification authority, a partisan pass despite having classified materials in unsecured homes, offices, and garages in several states.

Virtually every other country announces election results shortly after the polls close on election day. Yet in America, it can take days, weeks, or months to certify elections. Mega lottery winners are announced immediately as are the winners of television talent shows like American Idol.

Lottery officials even know where the winning ticket was purchased after the winner is announced. The premier law enforcement agency in the world, the FBI, still can’t identify the January 5 pipe bomber, now two plus years later.

Interestingly more votes are cast for American Idol than the US President, 178 million for the last season of Idol, and 155 million in the 2020 presidential election. No delays, controversy, or chicanery alleged in the Idol election with results available immediately. It’s embarrassing that American elections are so dysfunctional, eroding trust in the process.

One of the cornerstones of our constitutional republic is the free and fair election of our representatives, at local, state, and national levels. Rather than pejoratively smearing skeptics as “conspiracy theorists,” “deniers,” or “kooks,” why are not government officials properly investigating election irregularities to either fix the problems or convince most U.S. voters who believe cheating is the norm?

A Gallup poll last year found, “The majority of Americans lack trust in all three branches of the federal government.”

That is a sad, yet not surprising, state of affairs.

When our supposed democratic system falls apart and people lose faith and trust in the processes, how do the States of America remain United?

Brian C. Joondeph, M.D., is a physician and writer. Follow me on Twitter @retinaldoctor, Substack Dr. Brian’s Substack, Truth Social @BrianJoondeph, and LinkedIn @Brian Joondeph.