The morning after a divisive election night, independent journalist Glenn Greenwald called the performance of election officials in several key battleground states a “national disgrace.”
“The richest and most powerful country on earth — whether due to ineptitude, choice or some combination of both — has no ability to perform the simple task of counting votes in a minimally efficient or confidence-inspiring manner,” Greenwald wrote in his Substack newsletter.
Greenwald questioned the validity of polling groups that gave Biden a sizable lead heading into the final stretch of the election. Last week, the journalist resigned from his position at the Intercept, a left-leaning news outlet, following allegations of censorship.
“Given the record of failures and humiliations they have quickly compiled, what rational person would trust anything they say at this point?” he asked.
Election officials in Michigan, Georgia, Nevada, and Pennsylvania have urged patience as they count a record number of early and absentee ballots filed amid the coronavirus pandemic. Whichever candidate wins a combination of these states is likely to be named president of the United States.
Greenwald said that questions linger about the validity of the voting process in the U.S.
“The U.S. struggles and stumbles and staggers to engage in a simple task mastered by countless other less powerful and poorer countries: counting votes,” he said.
He also noted the success of election officials in Brazil, where he lives, after similar issues with vote counting the previous elections.
“Nations far poorer and less technologically advanced — including Brazil — have no problem holding quick, efficient elections. A system suffused with this much chaos, error, protracted outcomes and seemingly inexplicable reversals will sow doubt even among rational citizens.”
