Election Delays Raise Questions About Integrity Of Voting Process

As Election Day 2024 approaches, concerns are mounting about the potential delay in confirming the winner, with Fox News Decision Desk chief Arnon Mishkin suggesting it could take up to four days to declare the outcome. 

This revelation has sparked frustration among many Americans, who remember when elections were decided within hours of the polls closing. What once was a smooth process, delivering results by the next morning, has become an unnecessarily drawn-out ordeal, leaving many questioning whether these “improvements” in vote counting have done more harm than good.

Mishkin pointed to key swing states like Pennsylvania as examples of where delays could occur, citing the complex vote-counting procedures that have been implemented in recent years. These changes, introduced under the guise of improving accuracy and transparency, have instead led to increasing distrust among voters. The notion that it could take four days to determine a winner only adds to the sense that the election process is becoming more opaque, rather than more efficient.

The fact that this delay has become the new normal is troubling. Before 2020, the idea that we wouldn’t know the winner on Election Night would have been unthinkable. Yet, since then, Americans have grown accustomed to waiting days—even weeks—for results. The drawn-out 2020 election left many with lingering doubts about the legitimacy of the process, and it seems those same concerns are likely to resurface in 2024.

Mishkin’s comments suggest that the 2024 election could once again be marked by uncertainty, as votes from critical states trickle in over several days. While he attributes this to the close nature of the race and the voting processes, many Americans are left wondering why these changes were ever deemed necessary. If anything, they’ve created more confusion, leading to suspicion rather than trust in the system.

It’s time to return to a simpler, more reliable process—one where votes are counted efficiently, and a winner is declared on Election Night. The current system, with its delays and complexities, does little to instill confidence in the outcome.