People who still believe that Trump won the US election
Weeks after President-elect Joe Biden was declared the winner of the November election, a deep mistrust of the electoral process remains among many ardent Donald Trump supporters.
This reflects a broader sentiment among conservatives, one that has profound implications for the nation and its institutions.
On Main Street, Kansas, 73-year-old Dillard Ungeheuer was scraping cow manure off his shoes, left over from a visit to a cattle pen, and seemed irritable.
When it came to the ballots, he was emphatic: many were false.
"I'm not going to argue with anyone about it," he said, raising his voice. "I think what I'm saying is based on facts."
His outrage at the presidential election and the government in general was palpable, and many in the city shared his feelings.
"No, I don't have much faith in the government," he declared.
US President Donald Trump lost the election to his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, and his efforts to overturn that result in court have failed.
On January 6, Congress will count the electoral votes of each state.
Although some Republicans have said they will challenge this final step in the process of certifying the winner of the election, this will only delay, rather than change, the outcome.
Interviews with about two dozen Republican voters in the Midwestern state of Kansas reveal a picture of how they see the world.
Most feel that victory was stolen from them and that democratic institutions, particularly the electoral process, are broken.
Most Republican voters, in Kansas and elsewhere, either believe Trump won the election or are unsure of the winner, polls like the one from Northeastern University suggest.
Jackie Taylor, 59, editor of Linn County News in Pleasanton, says the election was stolen: "Everything is murky. You have a guy who was elected under murky circumstances, and now he's president."
When asked why they think the election was rigged, many said they got news from Newsmax, One America News and other outlets that have carried stories about suspected election fraud.
These media companies were relatively unknown until before Trump took office.
The president frequently mentions them and this has raised his profile.
Others say they did not know anyone who supported Biden and have only seen Trump signs.
To them, it was inconceivable that Biden could win.
They hold an unshakable belief, despite the lack of evidence, that the Liberals stole the elections.
Their views are reflected in the programs they watch and are discussed in coffee shops, gas stations, and other places in the city.
They called for a review of the system, saying that stricter controls should be imposed on voters.
They said they feared Biden would demolish what was left of American democracy by turning the country into a socialist state.
Tyler Johnson, 35, talks about voter fraud standing next to his Chevy.
"The United States is in a very fragile position '
Earlier on the outskirts of town, a pickup truck had kicked up columns of dust that rose as high as a barn, and a sign, just off Route 69, read: "Vote, Eliminate All Democrats."
Johnson doesn't think Democrats should be in charge: "With the doubts about the election, it makes me question everything they stand for."
Johnson raises calves like his father did, and like he hopes his two-year-old son Monroe will one day do, and he fears Democrats will sabotage the livestock industry.
"With all the rules that the Biden presidency wants to impose on us, I ask myself: will my lifestyle be viable for my son, as it was for my father and me?" He notes.
His caution about the electoral process could lead to a deeper division in the US, with those who believe in the Biden White House and with those who reject it.
"America is in a very fragile position," says Edward Foley, an electoral law scholar at Ohio State University in Columbus.
He describes mistrust in the electoral process as "a real challenge to the very premise of the system."
Foley recalls another time in history when an election battle broke out.
In 2000, the Republican candidate, George W. Bush, won Florida and its electoral votes by a narrow margin of 537, securing the election.
Supporters of his Democratic rival, Al Gore, were distraught.
"There was a fear that officials would use political power to manipulate the ballot," says Foley, although there was no serious effort to undermine the process.
Democrats took the matter before the Supreme Court, but the justices halted their efforts. And it went out.
Today, however, Trump and his allies raise serious doubts about Biden's victory.
Roger Marshall, the newly elected US senator from Kansas, plans to raise objections to Biden's victory on Wednesday as members of Congress meet in a joint session to certify the election results.
Marshall and a dozen other conservative senators will challenge the votes in some states, a desperate and doomed effort to stop Biden.
When asked if contesting elections erodes trust in the process, Marshall says he is pushing the issue because "I want to give people confidence in future elections, so I couldn't undermine people's trust more than they are. mined now. "
His fears are shared by many in the area, a deeply conservative region.
Here, fears of socialism and fear of a Biden presidency are intense.
"I feel like we're going to see the first signs of socialism," says Mike Avery, 53, who owns a lumber yard on Main Street in Linn County, where 80% of voters voted for Trump.
Ungeheuer, who makes corral fences, thinks about Biden's policies: "You can't start giving something to everyone, and make me work hard, run a business and expect me to give it away. Venezuela didn't do very well staying on. a socialist agenda ".
Now there are also calls in Kansas and elsewhere to tighten voting restrictions.
"I think the election was rigged with the ballots by mail. I think only people who are no longer with us voted," says Julia Smith, 65, who is retired.
"I think we will have to vote again in person, with identification."
For her, Trump's defeat was proof that the Democrats misled them, and she says his attempts should stop.
After saying this, she adjusts her coat to protect herself from the icy wind and continues on her way.
