Let’s look at a couple more voting statistics. Sources indicate that between 50 and 70 million Americans are unregistered. The divergence in numbers is wide because there is no standard protocol for how jurisdictions collect the data. Then there’s this disturbing fact: in the 2024 presidential election, an estimated 30 percent of registered voters stayed away from the polls. That’s about 50 million people. If we added this 50 million to 50 million unregistered voters, we have a mighty force to be reckoned with.

For pro-democracy organizers, we know that Black and Brown people make up the majority in both the categories of unregistered and registered, nonvoting citizens. One compelling reason identified by both groupings is their deep sense of alienation from the government. The irony is that these are exactly the marginalized sectors that need to be empowered to pressure government to be more attentive to their needs. To truly make it a "government of the people, by the people, for the people."

Trump understands the weaknesses in the voting process and the lack of understanding about our civic responsibility. His SAVE Act exploits all of this. And guess which groups have been targeted? All the politricking will intentionally disadvantage Black and Latino voters. The MAGA tactic of creating confusion and fear has been quite effective.

The confusion looks like making mail-in voting more difficult, whether you’re on the voting list, whether your polling site is on the new gerrymandered map, whether ballots will be counted or confiscated, and creating other unnecessary hurdles for voters.

The fear tactics include sending ICE or other law enforcement to polling sites, creating misinformation about foreign interference, raising the false narrative about voter fraud so that voters think the system is rigged, threatening city and county officials, and manufacturing other disruptive legal obstacles.

I believe Trump’s assault on voting rights is both a diversionary tactic and a political strategy. Trump continues to stoke the Big Lie that the 2020 election was stolen from him. Trump and his MAGA monsters have been transparent in their desire to stay in power after 2028. They are drunk with power, with bank accounts chock full of our tax dollars; they don’t intend to give all this up easily.

Our people have been beaten down with the stress of living as much of the judicial and legislative branches have fallen under the MAGA spell. Working people are being kicked while they’re down with little energy for the fightback. The challenge for democracy defenders is to engage and re-engage demoralized voters back to the reality of their power. This is no time for pity parties or being victims of gaslighting by our adversaries. We must organize our communities into fighting machines, ready for whatever tricks are thrown at us. Only our collective spirit and disciplined endurance can prevail at a time when a narcissistic despot is creating a scenario where he ascends to a fake, uncontested throne.

Yes, it’s that serious.