November 5, 2008
Milwaukee, WI 53208
"I remember Florida 2000 and Ohio
2004, and I am willing to take action in 2008 if the election is stolen
again. I support efforts to protect the right to vote leading up to and
on Election Day, November 4th. I pledge to join nationwide
pro-democracy protests starting on November 5th, either in my
community, in key states where fraud occurred, or in Washington D.C.. I
pledge: No More Stolen Elections!"
We can debate about how to define the change in which we believe.
But no change is possible if our democracy is broken.
That’s what happened in 2000 and again in 2004.
Just mention the names of two states – “Florida” and “Ohio” – and you
have summed up one of the most dangerous barriers to change, and
democracy, in America.
When the promise of a fair vote and fair count is denied, elections become meaningless exercises.
And when that happens, the status quo cannot be peacefully altered.
If we are serious about not just change but democracy, we must be
serious about assuring that the 2008 presidential election is neither
gamed nor stolen.
We must act against:
-
- Voter intimidation and vote suppression
- Ballot tampering and shortages
- Broken voting machinery
- Hackable voting machines
- Suspect vote counting methods
- Unreasonable barriers to ballot access and closed debates
- Media announcements of “results” before the votes are cast and counted
- Corrupt and partisan election officials
- Suppressed and aborted recounts
The assault on American democracy in recent years has been so extreme
and so consistent that, months before Election Day 2008, we already
know what to expect.
Millions of Americans will be denied the right to vote.
Millions more will be prevented from voting for the candidate of their choice.
And with Black Americans leading two presidential tickets, the
intentional suppression of voter turnout in communities of color will
continue to be not just a threat but a virtual certainty as those who
cannot win the Black vote seek to suppress it.
Recent experience and mounting evidence tell us beyond any reasonable
doubt that powerful interests are prepared, at the very least, to
attempt to steal another presidential election.
There is nothing unreasonable, nothing radical about that statement.
After all, these same interests have already rigged the system in their favor:
- They have stacked the deck with winner-take-all elections, partisan gerrymandering, and the Electoral College.
- They have enacted laws designed to prevent people of color, youth, and the poor from voting.
- They have undermined public financing of campaigns.
- They have declared corporations entitled to free speech rights to invest in candidates and buy elections.
- They have made it very difficult and expensive for new parties to form and run candidates.
Much of this explains why so many Americans believe that their vote
doesn’t matter and why the U.S. has one of the lowest voter turnouts in
the world. We are plagued by undemocratic elections that result in the
severe under-representation in government of women, people of color,
youth, and working people. No wonder so many of America’s social,
ecological, and economic problems persist.
Between the rigging and theft of elections, Americans are rightly
concerned that history will repeat in 2008. We may hope for change, but
we fear that once again we will find ourselves ruled by a non-elected,
dangerously powerful President.
In 2000, we were caught unprepared, we mobilized too late, and the
Supreme Court chose the President. In 2004, we prepared the “No Stolen
Elections!” campaign, mobilizing tens of thousands of people across the
country for what was to become the Ohio Recount.
In 2008, we’re ready to mobilize and demand much more.
On Election Day, November 4, we will be ready to protect the sacred
right to vote. On the next day, November 5, regardless of the declared
presidential victor, we will act.
A. If there is reason to believe that the election is likely to be stolen,
as was the case in Florida 2000, we will act to prevent this from
happening – pressing to prevent the theft and, if that is impossible,
demanding a new honest election.
B. If it is unclear whether voting rights violation rise to the level of election theft, as was the case in Ohio 2004, we will mobilize everywhere to demand a full and complete count of the vote.
C. If it appears that the election result was defined by the rigging of the process, we will rally nationwide to press for progress in enacting democratic reforms.
We call on all concerned Americans to commit yourselves to these efforts by signing the “No More Stolen Elections!” Pledge of Action:
"I remember Florida 2000 and Ohio
2004, and I am willing to take action in 2008 if the election is stolen
again. I support efforts to protect the right to vote leading up to and
on Election Day, November 4th. I pledge to join nationwide
pro-democracy protests starting on November 5th, either in my
community, in key states where fraud occurred, or in Washington D.C.. I
pledge: No More Stolen Elections!"
We understand that the “No More Stolen Elections!” campaign is one part
of a far greater struggle for democracy, one that began long before the
2008 election, and that will continue well beyond it. Millions of our
forbears personally risked everything to make real the promise of
American democracy. In honor and respect for them, and for our own
human dignity, we pledge no less.
Please join us in pledging yourself to action to protect our elections,
and to heed the call to mobilize on November 5th. Please sign the pledge now and join the growing U.S. democracy movement:
Additional Information:
If you would like to help organize or just show up, feel free to email Elysse at ACMElysse-voter@yahoo.com
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