Republicans are inadvertently suppressing their own voters


We now have a likely answer to the question of what will happen if Republicans keep manufacturing charges of "voter fraud" every time they lose an election: Fewer Republican voters will go to the polls.
At a Wednesday postmortem on this week's California recall election, GOP consultant Ron Nehring said that false fraud allegations in the days before the election — aired on Fox News and promoted by Larry Elder, the leading Republican candidate in the race — probably persuaded many of the party's voters to stay home.
"We can't have an evidence-based party if we are bulls---ing people in advance that this election was stolen when it was not," Nehring said Wednesday. "One way not to have Republicans win is by telling Republican voters that their votes don't matter. ... Lying to Republicans claiming an election was stolen, before a single vote or result had been published, is grossly irresponsible."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Democrats have a huge advantage in California, of course, and Gov. Gavin Newsom's margin of victory was so large that he would've won even if a few more Republicans had cast a vote. But we've seen this story before, and not so long ago: Democrats control the U.S. Senate because they won two runoff elections in Georgia in January — and they won those elections, in part, because Donald Trump was blaring lies about voter fraud in the state in a failed effort to reverse his own election loss. As Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) noted afterward, "It turns out that telling the voters that the election was rigged is not a great way to turn out your voters."
The GOP has spent much of 2021 embracing Trump's "Big Lie" that the 2020 election was stolen, writing up new laws in states like Texas and Georgia seemingly designed to make it more difficult for Democratic constituencies to vote. We've yet to see how those new laws will actually play out. In the meantime, though, it sure seems that by routinely crying "fraud" at the polls, Republicans have succeeded mainly in suppressing their own voters.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.
-
Some mainstream Democrats struggle with Zohran Mamdani's surprise win
TALKING POINT To embrace or not embrace? A party in transition grapples with a rising star ready to buck political norms and energize a new generation.
-
How to make music part of your vacation
Let the rhythm move you
-
What is credit card churning and why is it risky?
the explainer Churners frequently open new credit cards with the intent of earning a welcome bonus and accessing other perks
-
How Zohran Mamdani's NYC mayoral run will change the Democratic Party
Talking Points The candidate poses a challenge to the party's 'dinosaur wing'
-
Is Trump's military parade 'just a parade'?
Talking Point Critics see an 'echo of authoritarianism'
-
Is Trump's LA troop deployment about order or authoritarianism?
Talking Points President: 'We're going to have troops everywhere.'
-
Musk: What did he achieve in Washington?
Feature Elon Musk leaves his government job but not after bruising his image, slashing aid and firing thousands
-
GOP megabill would limit judicial oversight of Trump
speed read The domestic policy bill Republicans pushed through the House would protect the Trump administration from the consequences of violating court orders
-
Medicaid: Will millions lose coverage?
Feature House Republicans have proposed a plan to cut Medicaid coverage for millions to help fund the GOP's tax cuts
-
A running list of Trump's conflicts of interest
In Depth A potential Qatari plane is the latest in a series of problematic connections
-
Is Trump trying to take over Congress?
Talking Points Separation of powers at stake in Library of Congress fight