Manufactured Chaos

Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images

With the midterms in less than 14-days, the level of “noise” in the country is reaching a fever pitch. Partisan actors are sowing doubt about the legitimacy of elections through mis- and disinformation across multiple platforms. At the same time, their allies, the vast majority of whom have no experience in election administration, have gained (and may continue to gain) unauthorized access to local and state election administration systems, which can undermine public confidence in the integrity of election results. And let’s be clear: unauthorized access often means simply criminal action. When confusion and persistent falsehoods seep into the minds of average voters, they not only threaten the public’s trust in elections, but democracy itself.  

The strategy fueling this movement is what I call…

Manufactured Chaos

“Manufactured chaos” includes coordinated attempts to interfere with — and potentially overwhelm — normal election administration processes based on assumptions of malfeasance that are not supported by facts. (See: selective narratives in support of “the Big Lie.”)

This chaos has been enabled and accelerated by one cataclysmic shift in our political terrain:  

The wall between impartial technocratic election administration and partisan warfare has been largely decimated. 

Our democracy is under threat because it’s now viewed as legitimate political discourse (in some quarters) to cast doubt upon the very idea that our elections are run fairly and competently — and therefore result in transfers of power that can be deemed illegitimate.

An Example:

Flooding election officials with overwhelming numbers of record requests about the 2020 election (in 2022!), which are often copied & pasted and have no foundation in local voting processes.

Another Example:

Intentionally inserting undisciplined partisans into the poll worker ranks, with the stated intention of overturning normal rules and standards. We’ll likely see more unauthorized breaches of sensitive election technology by political actors. 

A Third and Most Concerning Example:

The most dangerous examples: insider threats. In Mesa Co, CO, an election official “flipped” or was convinced to cooperate with partisan actors to breach the county’s election system. Today, the growing list of partisan dilettantes that want to put their hands on sensitive voting equipment is very troubling. 

Manufactured chaos is Orwellian

It undermines public confidence in election processes, under the guise of  “election integrity.” Facts from election officials are denied, baseless lies are elevated, and election workers are harassed.

This is incredibly destabilizing because innuendo and suspicion can be used to justify anti-democratic actions like allowing state legislatures to nullify the popular vote, or mobilizing intimidating forces for “protection.”

What can be done in the near term? 

For Voters

Think before sharing election-related information online. Learn more about how to spot mis- and disinformation. If you have questions about voting protocols and processes, reach out to your election officials. 

For Election Officials

Getting ahead of falsehoods ASAP is necessary and effective! Enlist the media in forcefully telling the real story. 

For Journalists

If outlandish claims are trending, speak to local election officials early, get the facts, and pre-bunk the claims.

For Everyone

The tactics of manufactured chaos can neither be described nor viewed as “normal” partisan politics or “gamesmanship.” Call these tactics what they are: anti-democratic, baseless attacks on the legitimacy of US elections. The bad actors who traffic in chaos want to dismantle our democracy and shred the fabric of the US Republic that has endured since the 18th century. Call it what it is, because that is exactly what they are trying to do.

Attacking the idea of legitimate election processes is insidious. In a world of fact-free conspiracies, outrageous claims are used to justify election interference that would have been wildly out-of-bounds before.

This is a knife at democracy’s throat.