OPINION: Think there will still be elections? Wake up!

September 3, 2025 | By John Bossange

Many Americans are counting on the 2026 midterm elections to bring a change of power to the political scene in Washington, D.C. Wake up! That’s not likely to happen unless there is massive resistance to prevent President Trump from postponing or eliminating elections.

Today, the MAGA party is in control and will remain there for as long as they can remain unified as the dominant party in America, control key state legislatures while maintaining those loyal state governor positions, and continue to have the support of the courts.

Since the Supreme Court ruled that Section 5 was unconstitutional in the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the Shelby v. Holder decision now allows states to organize their state, county and local elections without submitting a Preclearance Plan to the federal government. This ruling allows states to administer their own voting rules that can be more restrictive, like voter ID requirements, eliminating early voting, and controlling the number and location of polling sites. As planned, the MAGA party leaders have already instituted many restrictions, including those mentioned here.

This Supreme Court decision, combined with successful gerrymandering in key battleground states controlled by the MAGA state legislators and secretaries of state, has allowed the party to ensure its own candidates’ victories in 29 states. With multiple polling sites reconfigured in predominantly MAGA districts (think Texas) and far fewer voting sites in broken up Democratic Party districts, elections will continue to allow the MAGA party to remain in power.  After all, voting is much easier and more convenient when you only wait in a line for four minutes than it is when you need to wait in line for four hours.

Even more powerful than Republican-driven gerrymandered districts and the evisceration of the Voting Rights Act is the passion of the MAGA party. Seventy-one percent of all Republican voters now call themselves MAGA supporters, and they remain loyal supporters of President Trump. That’s not true with Democratic Party voters. Even though there are more registered Democratic voters than Republican voters in the nation, only 59% of Democrats voted in the 2024 election, compared to 70% of Republicans who voted. Voter apathy is a problem for Democrats to overcome, as fatigue and fear appear to be overtaking demonstrations of resistance. That can’t happen now.

Given all these factors, the likelihood of voting out MAGA Republicans in November of 2026 seems remote unless we mobilize.  District lines are not changing, and voting restrictions will remain in place.

If there is not a surge in passion and voter participation from the independent voter population and from affiliated Democrats, the midterm election results will keep the Trump Administration in power until 2028. Democrats must show their resistance on the streets and at the voting box. Another 59% percent voter participation percentage will not be enough in 2026. 

Of course, all of this assumes there will even be elections in 2026.  States control their elections. A governor can issue an executive order declaring a state of emergency.  State legislatures can do the same without declaring a state of emergency. Only Congress can set federal election dates, but states still have flexibility when scheduling federal elections.  

President Trump might also use the Emergency War Powers Act to postpone elections, telling the nation that we are at war and being “invaded by immigrants and insurrectionists.” Further, his recent comments about eliminating mail-in ballots and ending the use of voting machines in all elections are more ways to ensure the MAGA regime remains in power, especially in those states already controlled by MAGA governors and state legislatures.

Then again, the president might want to hold elections. After all, 77 million Americans voted for the president, and given the loyalty to the MAGA party combined with the voting restrictions in key states, there is a very good chance the party would solidify its dominance through the 2026 election cycle and into 2028. And of course, if MAGA candidates are defeated in key 2026 state races, we know how Trump will deal with loss. It would be November 2020 all over again.  Only this time, his people would already be in power and refuse to leave.

Any decision to postpone elections will certainly face legal challenges because the scope of authority is unclear and subject to interpretation. But when has the threat of legal challenges stopped President Trump? He thrives in the world of appeals and the administration has already moved on without respecting past precedent set in numerous amendments and constitutional language.  He has many loyal judges controlling the appellate courts, and any decision by the Supreme Court is only enforceable by the president. Do you think the president would enforce a decision that does not grant him more power and authority?

Americans must resist and mobilize now in massive numbers, protesting and marching in major city streets to let it be known that our elections are never to be cancelled or postponed, regardless of any state’s right to do so. 

There also needs to be a large independent and Democratic voter turnout to bring much-needed change that honors the election process, our Constitution, and respects all Americans.

Silence, fear, and “resistance fatigue” are not options. Too many people still believe that “This too shall pass.” It won’t. Wake up! It’s time to show your passion for democracy and your courage to stand up for what is right in America.

John Bossange is a retired Vermont middle school principal who now serves on multiple non-profit boards in the Burlington area. He lives in South Burlington.