Alex Lopez doesn’t object to the fact that Joe Biden was elected president in 2020.
Their concern is about how these results came.
“By the numbers? He absolutely won it. morally? Probably not,” said the 38-year-old Anaheim resident, who works as a logistics coordinator.
Questions have been raised nationally for years about the integrity of the election process, primarily due to former President Trump’s claims that the victory was stolen from him.
The same applies to Orange County, where 26% of adults The survey was conducted in a UC Irvine survey released this month. They said they do not believe Biden legitimately won the presidency in 2020, while another 17% are unsure about the question.
There are several key races in Purple County that can help Determine the balance of power in CongressThese doubts could force voters to stay home in November – especially conservative voters.
A majority of OC Republicans polled for the poll – 55% – thought Biden did not win fairly, while a majority of Democrats – 88% – believed the election results.
The majority of people surveyed, who are not members of either party, said Biden won legitimately. However, 23% said they did not know, and a similar percentage did not know.
“Distrust in the election system may very well convince some people not to participate, and what we’re seeing is that people who distrust it more tend to lean to the right, and that’s going to push Republicans.” There will be harm,” said John Gould, dean of the UCI School of Social Ecology, who led the survey.
The issue has come to the fore locally in Huntington Beach, a longtime GOP stronghold that has — along with the rest of the county — become more politically and demographically diverse in recent years. This has led to differences of opinion between residents and politicians Opposition to political views.
In March, voters approved a measure that would require the city to require voters to show government-issued photo identification starting in 2026.
Huntington Beach Councilman Tony Strickland and Mayor Gracie Van Der Mark wrote in support of the ballot measure, saying voters “deserve the right to know that our elections are secure.”
“It is vital to our democracy that voters have confidence in our election results. “Trust in election results is called into question when we cannot always be sure who is voting,” he wrote.
California law requires residents to verify their identity when registering to vote and imposes criminal penalties for fraudulent registration. The state does not ask for photo ID at the polls, but voters are required to provide their name and address.
this month, California sued Huntington Beach over its new law. Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said during a press conference that the photo identification requirement is “not only misleading – it is clearly and completely illegal.”
Election uncertainty in OC may be lower than in some other parts of the country. in a national survey A poll conducted by the Washington Post and the University of Maryland last December found 36% of respondents said Biden’s victory was not legitimate.
But in the highly competitive Orange County congressional race, particularly in the 47th and 45th districts, where a few votes could sway the outcome, the consequences could be far-reaching.
In the 45th District, Democrat Derek Tran is challenging incumbent Republican Rep. Michelle Steel. In the 47th District, which runs largely along the coast, Democrat state Senator Dave Min and Republican Scott Baugh are facing off to replace Democratic Representative Katie Porter.
As far as the re-election presidential contest between Biden and Trump is concerned, there is little suspense in California due to its dense population in urban areas.
Still, Trump said in a speech at the GOP California Convention in Anaheim last year that “we would have won California in the general election if they didn’t have a rigged voting system.” He alleged that people were receiving five or six ballot papers by post.
“No one knows where they are going, who they are going to, who signs them, who delivers them and who counts them? Nobody knows,” he said.
The widespread use of vote-by-mail ballots, which began during the pandemic and remains popular, changed vote counting patterns as results came in, reinforcing perceptions that something nefarious was afoot. Is.
“Trump was winning on election night, and then as more and more votes started being counted, he started losing, and some people are feeling as if someone is changing the election results, as people are getting the vote for the first time. Was being exposed to give. Mail,” said UCI’s Gould.
Orange County Registrar of Voters Bob Page started organize open tours of the ballot counting operation in Santa Ana during the 2022 midterms in an effort to show people the process and ease concerns.
But electoral skepticism and allegations of a “rigged” voting system persist.
The economy, abortion, foreign policy and immigration remain the top issues for Orange County voters this cycle, according to a UC Irvine poll. The economy is one of the top issues for both Democrat and Republican voters.
Democrats have called abortion the third most important issue behind Trump’s presidency “going too far” and stalling the economy. Republicans rank the economy and the situation at the border as their first and second most important issues.
Lopez, who is an unaffiliated voter, said he is concerned about issues like ballot harvesting – especially those affecting people who may be vulnerable to outside pressure – that he fears could skew election results. .
They also have concerns about the “motor voter” system, in which Californians who apply for or update a driver’s license are automatically registered to vote unless they opt out. In 2018 – the year the system began in California – about 1,500 people, including noncitizens, Was incorrectly registered to vote.
“I would love to hear the government and states come out and say, ‘Hey, you know what, these are concerns a lot of people have, and we’re going to put some barriers to this,'” Lopez said.
Lopez, who views the economy as the top issue, still plans to vote. He’s still researching the candidates in all the races but said he’s leaning toward Trump for president.
Others frustrated with the voting process may choose to sit it out.
“By selling doubt in the election, an interesting question is whether Republicans, and especially Trump, are sowing the seeds for their defeat,” Gold said.
