Five years ago, in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, America’s civic institutions pledged to do more to defend our system of fair and free elections. Major philanthropies increased their investments in programs that defend democracy. Law firms expanded their pro bono election-protection work.
University presidents publicly condemned the effort to thwart the will of American voters. Many of the country’s largest businesses pledged to stop donating to candidates who had tried to overturn an election. Today, our elections are again under attack.
But while some institutions have maintained their commitment to defending democracy, far too many have retreated. There are fewer than 100 days until the 2026 nationwide elections. Now is the time for everyone to protect the system of fair and free elections upon which our society and prosperity ultimately depend.
Together, the two of us have spent considerable time in all the major sectors of American society: philanthropy, business, academia, and the law. We understand that leaders in these sectors fear government retribution, and understandably so. But with the integrity of our elections under enormous strain—and with government officials signaling that more aggressive attacks may follow—it is time for all institutions to reaffirm their role as defenders of the free and fair elections at the heart of American democracy.
Defending our democracy begins with a clear-eyed assessment of the threats to it. Over the past 18 months, the Justice Department has disbanded government agencies meant to protect elections from foreign interference and to help states administer them smoothly. President Donald Trump has repeatedly made false claims that the 2020 election was fraudulent and made new ones—without evidence—about the midterms.
Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin recently threatened to jail local election officials his department finds were insufficiently responsive to the federal government’s unproven claims of fraud. Overall, the federal government has tried to wrest control of elections from the states, with courts repeatedly finding such efforts illegal. Now, experts across the country are deeply concerned about what might occur in the coming months, whether it’s false allegations that cast doubt on individual races, state officials refusing to certify election results as required by law, or baseless efforts to block House members from taking their seats in January.
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