By: Jack Bilyeu
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.- It has been more than one day since polls nationwide started closing and there is still no clear winner in the presidential election. Wednesday evening, a group of protesters organized by the Socialist Alternative and other similar groups met up outside the Washington County Courthouse. Part of what spurred them into action was a tweet from President Donald Trump late Tuesday night in which he claimed victory in the election.
“It’s going to be more of a symbolic gesture to say that the president is not allowed to declare an immediate victory the night of,” said University of Arkansas Young Democrats president Billy Cook of the demonstration. He called the protest a way to rally democratic voters that feel like their candidate has already lost.
Protesters hold signs at the demonstration.
“In the immediate knee jerk reaction, people are going to be upset,” Cook said, “The democratic party is largely down in the dumps because once again the polls predicted a Biden route through Florida and even Texas.” Many democrats expected a Biden victory with a large margin- but the reality is not so cut and dry.
Karen Sebold, a political science professor at the University of Arkansas, says that promising poll numbers cannot always be trusted. before election results are considered legitimate, they must be certified by state officials.
“The secretary of state will be responsible really for the election process and it’s gonna be done differently in every state,” Sebold said. She said it is unlikely either candidate will concede unless their position worsens significantly. She called this situation very similar to the 2016 election, with a clear democratic lead in the popular vote but not in the electoral college.
“Now that the democrats don’t really have a chance of taking the senate, there’s not going to be any reformation of the electoral college,” Cook said. He views the system as unfairly benefiting Republicans, who tend to do better in more rural states. Speakers at the protest also addressed the topic.
Police were present at the beginning of the protest, but left partway through the event. Sergeant Murphy with the Fayetteville Police Department urged those who demonstrate to treat everyone with respect.
Police presence near the protest.
“Treat everyone like you want to be treated and we’ll all get through this safely and get through twenty twenty,” Murphy said. Several dozen protesters attended the event. There were no counter protesters.
“This is gonna go right hand-in-hand with the kind of year we’ve been having. It’s not gonna be a pretty, decisive election,” said Sebold of the anxious wait for results. She believes that some states might not certify their numbers until December.
You can view my live tweet thread from the protest here.