Opinion: I'm a veteran. We need to defend election system from lies that would destroy it.
The last few years have been filled with questions and doubts about our elections. These doubts have been amplified by misinformation, and the result has been a growing loss of trust in one of the most fundamental aspects of our democracy — the right to vote.
I’ve spent my life serving this country, first in the military and then in law enforcement. One thing I’ve learned through all that experience is this: When people stop trusting the system, the consequences are serious. Trust is hard to rebuild once it’s gone. And right now, we’re at a point where that trust is eroding fast.
Earlier this year, I joined Pillars of the Community, an initiative that brings together people like me from a diverse set of backgrounds and political preferences – including veterans, community leaders and everyday citizens – who care about our country and the preservation of our democracy. I had the chance to meet directly with the people responsible for running elections in our state who took time to explain the processes in place to make our elections as secure and transparent as possible. They also took questions and provided reasonable explanations to the concerns some of us had.
Editorial: You can be confident in Wisconsin election results. We have the proof.
I also heard from legal experts from the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty who described an in-depth review of the 2020 election they conducted. Despite concluding there were things that could be done to improve election administration – like reforming who is considered “indefinity confined” – they explained the 2020 results were accurate and could be trusted.
Here's what I learned: Wisconsin's election system is secure
After my review and learning from others, here’s what I know for sure: Our election system is secure. From the moment you register to vote, your information is checked and verified. You can’t just walk in and cast a vote without showing identification and confirming your eligibility. Voting machines aren’t connected to the internet, which makes hacking a non-issue. Mail-in ballots are carefully tracked from start to finish, backed by tamper-proof seals and documented every step of the way.
But here’s the real threat we face — it's not election fraud. It’s the spread of misinformation that’s designed to make people doubt the system. The more that doubt grows, the more damage it does to our democracy. Once people lose faith in elections, the very foundation of our democracy — and what us veterans fought to protect — is at risk.
I’ve seen firsthand what happens when systems break down because people lose trust in them. It’s something you can’t afford to let happen. When I deployed overseas, I saw how vital trust is — whether it’s trust between soldiers or trust in the mission. Without it, everything falls apart. Our elections are no different.
I’m not saying the system is perfect. Nothing is. But what I am saying is that the people running these elections — our neighbors, local clerks, and public servants — are doing their jobs with integrity. They are working in an environment where they face threats and harassment just for ensuring that your vote counts. There’s no harm in asking questions —everyone should — but there’s a big difference between questioning something and letting yourself be misled.
Key to battling misinformation is going directly to the source
If you’re unsure about how the election process works, do what I did: Go to the source. Ask the people running the system. Look to actual legal experts. They’ll give you straight answers. What we can’t do is sit on the sidelines, spreading rumors or letting doubts fester. We all have a responsibility to be informed citizens, especially now.
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This isn’t about party politics. It’s about making sure the democratic process works for everyone. We owe it to ourselves, to future generations, and to those who risked their lives on behalf of our country to defend that process and protect it from those who would tear it down with lies.
Adam Wallace is a U.S. Army veteran and veteran advocate from Stoughton.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Opinion: WI elections plagued with destructive lies. Don't be misled