It’s Election Day.
I’m mostly writing for two practical reasons.
First, a quick summary some of the main ways Protect Democracy is in court, and will stay in court as long as it takes, to protect the integrity of the elections until all the votes are counted, the winners certified, and the elected officials seated:
On Friday, a court in California granted our request for a temporary restraining order that blocked the Trump administration from threatening, intimidating, or coercing elections officials or workers. After a back-and-forth last night at the appeals court, this order remains in place for Election Day.
On Friday and Saturday, the appeals court twice upheld our win blocking DHS from sending armed agents to investigate whether voters really are citizens.
Yesterday, a judge upheld our win blocking the creation of a mass national voter database that would be used to tell states who is and isn’t eligible to vote.
Last month, we blocked DHS from using federal counterterrorism funding to force states and localities to use a federal voter database tool.
Second, I want to send you, in one email, the whole treasure trove of Protect Democracy’s resources, explainers, and tools from the past year. See below. I want you to have them on hand today and tonight (or tomorrow, or later) if anything happens.
But I also want to briefly acknowledge that feeling in your gut. I have it too: The anxiety, the stress, of not knowing what’s going to happen next.
Part of that uncertainty is really bad. We don’t know what the president of the United States will do in response to the vote. We don’t know whether, and certainly not how, the American federal government will seek to disrupt or deny the results of an American election. We don’t know what sorts of further intimidation of voters and election officials that federal law enforcement may get up to. We don’t know to what lengths the most powerful person in the country will go to try to silence all of our voices and crush our right to representation in Congress.
We don’t know if the election will be free and fair.
That’s an anxiety that American voters have not had to carry, at least not like this, in many decades. It’s an uncertainty resurrected from the depths of Jim Crow, or even earlier. The simple fact that the administration’s willingness to accept election results is uncertain is an outrage. It should offend every American, just as it offends the basic principles of our constitutional system of government.
And yet that’s not the only uncertainty we all feel in our guts. Underneath the questions about whether the election will be free and fair, there’s a very different not knowing. It’s a good kind (although perhaps no less anxiety-inducing).
We also don’t know how the voters will vote. A free and fair election means that we don’t know, that we cannot know, in advance what the results will be. Today, the American people are making a choice, and no one gets to tell them what choice to make. Certainly not Donald Trump. If we knew now what the results would be, it would not be an election at all. And as much as this uncertainty too can be deeply stressful (I’ll admit: it is for me), it’s still a good and important uncertainty. So as you go through today, try to separate the healthy kind of uncertainty from the bad and angry kind. And as much as it might stress you out, try to savor the beauty of democracy’s open-endedness, of the raw possibility that elections represent.
In the end, not knowing what will happen next is the very thing that we’re all fighting for.
If you haven’t already done so, go vote. And then sit back and wait to see what all of us together decide.
The administration’s strategy, explained
Executive Override — Protect Democracy’s comprehensive report on how the Trump administration plans to interfere with the 2026 elections and what you can do about it.
If you can keep it - YouGov Poll — Our poll on what the voters think about Deceive, Disrupt, Deny.
What to expect during the 2026 election season — A timeline for the days after Election Day and when final results are likely and specific threats may emerge.
Noncitizen voting lies, explained — Why viral noncitizen voting lies come straight from the election subversion playbook.
DOJ’s attempt to acquire state voter data, explained — What the Justice Department’s push for state voter rolls is really about.
How elections work, explained
Frequently asked questions about the 2026 midterms — Some answers to the questions we hear most about elections.
The ‘blue shift’ and ‘red mirage’ in election results, explained — Why results will shift as states count different kinds of ballots at different times.
Election certification, explained — How results become official after the votes are counted, and what happens if someone tries to stand in the way.
How does Congress seat election winners? — The last step: how newly elected members take their seats.
California’s vote count, explained — What to know about how California counts votes and how that’s changed in recent years.
Voter rolls, explained — How voter roll maintenance keeps the right people on the rolls so they can be trusted as the foundation of our elections.
Tools and resources for people working to defend elections
What to do if you face intimidation at the polls — Federal agents near a polling place can amount to voter intimidation even if they aren’t right outside it. Here’s how to respond.
How to spot (and push back against) federal voter intimidation — A toolkit for recognizing federal intimidation and what to do about it.
Community resilience in the 2026 Elections — A toolkit for helping communities stay safe and vote freely.
Interference explainer for election officials — A guide for the people who run elections on federal interference and how to respond.
The gen Z election defense toolkit — Resources for youth-focused groups educating young voters and building youth power this election season.
Again, my recommendation for the rest of the day (after you and everyone you know have voted!) would be to embrace — maybe even savor — the uncertainty. But if you, like me, are the type who needs to be taking action in moments like these, our how you can protect democracy database still has a few more ideas for you.
There's a reason our national anthem is about staying up all night compulsively checking results.
Cogent and true.