This article is not only about US politics, it applies to any country or even any system outside of elections.
However, since it is inspired by the current political scene in the US, I want to emphasize that after reading this, you’ll see how Democrats are shooting themselves in the foot by rigging elections; and Republicans will get a reason to be optimistic and look forward to the Golden Age.
Let’s start with an example of a two-party political system. Imagine two sides, A and B, competing fairly with neither side cheating. In this case, for either party to win, they only need to get just over 50% of the votes.
Now, if one side, say Team B, decides to cheat by adding a 5% cheating margin through methods like mail-in ballots, overseas voting, tampering with voting machines, or through any other means, Team A’s supporters wouldn’t anticipate such tactics. As a result, Team B would win that election—not because of better policies or a stronger message, but simply due to cheating.
This looks like a bad thing in the present moment. But if you shift your perspective to the long term, a more interesting dynamic emerges.
The Paradox of Cheating
After losing to the other side due to cheating, Team A is now forced to improve. The supporters, volunteers, and leadership can’t afford to be complacent. Instead, they’re driven to work harder, rally more voters, and refine their policies to appeal to a larger base to secure more votes in the next election.
Growth and improvement only come through challenges, whether for an individual, a company, or a political party.
In the next election, Team A may catch up or even win, despite the 5% cheating margin created by the other side, because they’ve worked harder and grown stronger. Meanwhile, Team B, knowing they rely on cheating, may become complacent and fail to improve. Cheating removes the incentive to perform well, as winning is guaranteed without effort.
Now, what happens if Team B decides to cheat even more in the next election? Say they increase the margin to 20%. The larger the margin, the more Team A’s supporters are fired up. They will work harder, motivated by the sense of injustice, while Team B becomes even more complacent.
The US Politics: Republicans vs Democrats
Take a real-world example: Democrats and Republicans in the US. I believe the 2016 election was rigged by the Democrats, who underestimated Donald Trump’s popularity and ended up losing anyway. By 2020, their fear of Trump led them to increase their margin of cheating, which helped their dog Joe Biden win.
However, this win has come at a cost. Owing to Biden’s “leadership”, not only is the country thrown into unprecedented crises on multiple fronts—massive number of illegal aliens, crime, inflation, attacks on free speech and 2nd Amendment, and more—but also the world is burning and humanity is at the cusp of a nuclear war. Biden’s incompetence has been obvious from the start, but because the system was rigged, he didn’t need to earn the victory on merit.
As I said before, over time the side that cheats becomes weaker and corrupt because cheating removes the incentive to do good, be useful, or even be competent. Puppets like Biden and Harris, who aren’t capable or competent, win not because they’re the best candidates but because the party can afford to be useless and even downright evil when the outcome is rigged.
On the other hand, the side facing unfairness—like Trump’s side—gets stronger than ever. It attracts ultra-capable people like Elon Musk and former Democrats like Tulsi Gabbard and RFK Jr. who now back Trump.
If Trump wins again and fixes the election system, the Republicans would have an overwhelming advantage. The damage done by years of cheating would leave the Democrats far behind, incapable of catching up without their previous dishonest tactics.
This is the paradoxical upside of election rigging: it forces the opposing side to grow stronger and more competent, setting the stage for significant change when the system is corrected.