No more elections? Candidate Trump said it in 2024 — is he trying to make it come true in 2026?
When Donald Trump was campaigning to regain the White House, he famously told an audience of Christian nationalists that they would never need to vote again, if they would just unite and re-elect him in 2024.
Since America prides itself on its vibrant democracy, with the ability to ”throw the bums out” in congressional elections every two years and presidential elections every four years, this was a startling statement.
Recent political developments suggest that Trump may have been only half-kidding. Texas just held its primary election, with Sen. John Cornyn and longtime, scandal-plagued Attorney General Ken Paxton headed for a runoff on the Republican side while a bright newcomer, state Rep. James Talarico, won the Democratic nomination.
Cornyn is a traditional conservative Republican who has been part of his party’s Senate leadership, while Paxton is an ardent MAGA warrior who was impeached for corruption, but not convicted, and was subsequently re-elected.
Trump stayed neutral during their primary battle, which also featured Rep. Wesley Hunt, but has indicated that an endorsement is imminent in the runoff. Furthermore, Trump has said that the candidate who does not get his endorsement should withdraw from the race and allow the Republican Party to unite behind his choice.
Paxton, who was badly outspent by Cornyn but nonetheless ran almost even with the incumbent senator, quickly clarified that he will not drop out of the contest, even if the president he strongly supports decides to endorse his opponent.
Trump’s immediate response was “Well, that’s bad for him to say.”
We are left to wonder what consequence Paxton will face, if Trump goes ahead and endorses Cornyn and the attorney general persists with his pesky campaign.
Meanwhile, in our neighboring state of Montana, Republican Sen. Steve Daines is 63 years old and finishing his second term in what used to be termed the world’s greatest deliberative body. He had announced his candidacy for a third term, and his re-election appeared to be in the bag. But just minutes before the candidate filing deadline, Daines withdrew from the race and bestowed his support on Montana’s U.S. attorney, Kurt Alme, who had not previously indicated an interest in seeking elective office.
By the time other ambitious Montana Republicans learned that Daines had handed his Senate seat off to a chosen successor, it was too late to file. A fairly strong independent candidate, former University of Montana President Seth Bodnar, is also seeking the seat, with the support of former Sen. Jon Tester, a Democratic rancher who has indicated that the Democratic party label is now poison in Montana. There are also several Democrats seeking the seat, but the odds would certainly favor Alme at this point, since he is unopposed for the Republican nomination.
Trump has asserted his prerogative to appoint, or at least approve, the leadership choices of independent countries such as Venezuela and Iran, both leading oil producers that have been the target of recent American military aggression. Trump certainly does not appreciate any Republican candidate for state or congressional office who has not kissed his ring and earned his support.
A different type of drama surrounds the Senate election in Nebraska. There, Sen. Pete Ricketts, a multi-millionaire former governor, is seeking a full term after winning a special election two years ago. His opponent is a blue-collar independent candidate, Dan Osborn, who sought Nebraska's other Senate seat two years ago, losing to Sen. Deb Fischer by a surprisingly close 54-46% margin.
Nebraska Democratic Party Chair Jane Kleeb has supported Osborn, who says he won’t caucus with either party if he is elected. The state party kept the Democratic line blank in 2024 to give Osborn a clean shot at the Republican incumbent.
Kleeb planned to do the same in this year’s Senate race, but now two Democrats have filed for Ricketts’ seat. Apparently one of those candidates is an Osborn supporter who plans to drop out of the race after winning the primary, while the other may have been inspired by Ricketts, in hopes of splitting the vote in November and guaranteeing the incumbent a win.
We are Americans. We don’t want to believe that elections are obsolete. In fact, despite the specious claims that Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election was stolen, we want to believe that our elections are fair and honest. When an election for a major office, such as a U.S. Senate seat, is essentially cancelled, that is a disturbing development.
Jay Davis of Rapid City is a retired lawyer and regular contributor to The South Dakota Standard.
Photo: Trump campaigning in 2024, public domain, wikimedia commons
The South Dakota Standard is offered freely and is supported by our readers. We have no political or commercial sponsorship. If you'd like to help us continue our mission to advance independent political and social commentary, you can do so by clicking on the "Donate" button that's on the sidebar to your right.
Follow us and comment on X and Bluesky
