Thinking about Elections

MYTHS AND FACTS about Contesting the 2026 Midterm Elections.

CAN AND WILL THE COURTS ENSURE FREE AND FAIR ELECTIONS IN 2026.

These are two upcoming webinars. Sign up and get the recording afterwards to listen at your leisure. Scroll down at the link. These folks are the real deal. I’ve read many of them for years.

How do you know if someone is the real deal? This is important because there are plenty of people giving info that *sounds* plausible but is actually misleading or just plain wrong. They often begin by establishing seemingly convincing credentials “I’m a statistician…”, “I’m a political scientist…” Regrettably, this approach works equally well targeting folks on the left and the right regarding elections.

You have to do some digging before deciding someone is credible. There’s no shortcut. Look into their background. What exactly is their hands-on experience with election equipment, voter rolls, election security or whatever the issue is that they are addressing.

As an example, consider Andrew Appel, one of the presenters in “Voting Machines, Risk-Limiting Audits, and Faith in U.S. Election Results” a recent webinar in this series.

Andrew Appel is a Princeton computer scientist and expert in election technology. He has worked with numerous states (TX most recently) on voting equipment, election security, etc. Look at his list of publications, his involvement as an expert testifying to legislatures, etc. over many years. He didn’t just jump into this recently.

Does the person you saw on YouTube have the kind of background Andrew Appel has, or did this YouTube presenter jump into the game after the 2020 or 2024 elections? I see lots of people fall for stuff that’s not true. It seems plausible because it confirms what they would like to believe.

https://law.ucla.edu/academics/centers/safeguarding-democracy-project