Trump won, but democracy is not over yet

Once again, an aspiring fascist is the elected President of the United States. This is our political reality: Donald Trump will bring a group of opportunists and lunatics (led by the vice president-elect, a person Trump once compared to Hitler) into government this winter, and even if the president-elect is overtaken by aging, Trump's henchmen will continue his attack on democracy, the rule of law and the Constitution.

The urge to blame will be overwhelming because there is so much of it. When the history of this dark moment is written, those responsible will include not only Trump voters, but also easily duped Americans who did not vote or who voted for independent or third-party candidates out of selfish pique.

Trump's opponents will also blame Russia and other malign powers. Undoubtedly, America's enemies – some of whom had high hopes for a Trump victory – sought to flood the public with propaganda. According to federal and state government reports, several bomb threats that appeared to come from Russian email domains targeted areas with minority voters. But as always, the power to stop Trump rested with American voters at the ballot box, and blaming others is pointless.

What now?

The first task is to redouble all efforts to preserve American democracy. If I may quote Winston Churchill, this is neither the end nor the beginning of the end; it is the end of the beginning.

For a decade, Trump has sought to destroy America's constitutional order. His election in 2016 was something of a prank gone completely wrong, and he probably never expected to win. But once in office, he and his government became a rocket ride of corruption, chaos and turmoil. Trump's lawlessness finally caught up with him after he was forced from office by the electorate. He knew his only hope was to return to the presidency and destroy the last instruments of accountability.

Paradoxically, however, Trump's ruthless venality gives cause for hope. Trump has the soul of a fascist but the mind of a disordered child. He will probably be surrounded by terrible but incompetent people. All of them can be defeated: in courts, in Congress, in statehouses across the country, and in public. America is a federal republic, and states — at least those in the union that still care about democracy — have ways to protect their citizens from a rogue president. Nothing is inevitable and democracy will not collapse overnight.

Don't get me wrong. I don't advise complacency: Trump's re-election is a national emergency. If we've learned anything from the last few years, it's that performative feel-good politics can't win elections, but if ever there was a time to exercise America's right to freely assemble, it's now – not least because Trump is determined to to end these rights and silence his opponents. Americans must remain engaged and make their voices heard at every turn. They should find and support organizations and institutions committed to American democracy, and especially those determined to fight Trump in court. They must encourage candidates in the upcoming 2026 elections who will oppose Trump's plans and challenge his legislative enablers.

After Barack Obama was elected president in 2008, then-Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed to make Obama a one-term president and obstructed him at every turn. Of course, McConnell was only interested in seizing power for his party, and later he was no longer able to muster the same bravery in the face of Trump's attacks on the government. Patriotic Americans and their representatives could now make a similar commitment, but with better goals: Although they cannot remove Trump from office, they can declare their determination to prevent Trump from implementing the terrible policies he committed to on the campaign trail has.

The kinds of actions that will stop Trump from destroying America in 2025 are the same ones that stopped many of his plans the first time. They are not flashy and require sustained attention because the next battles for democracy will be fought by lawyers and lawmakers in Washington and every state capital. They are fought by citizens who come together in associations and movements to awaken others from the sleepwalking that has brought America to this moment.

Trump's victory is a dark day for the United States and democracies around the world. You have every right to be horrified, sad, shocked and scared. Soon, however, you should shake off the dust, square your shoulders and take a deep breath. Americans who care about democracy have a lot of work to do.

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