This is how the pandemic could contribute to a 2020 US presidential election scandal

I was still living in London during the 2016 US election.

I recall waking up in the early hours, seeing that Donald Trump was on course for victory, and thinking I was still dreaming.

An hour later, after a brief doze, the unthinkable was confirmed.

I use this to illustrate what not to expect on election night this November: speed.

We’re all used to fairly rapidly moving denouements after votes have been cast – both in the US and the UK.

Exit polls come out once the polls have closed, within an hour or so people have drawn conclusions from the size of the ballot piles in front of the counters, and an hour or two later, the area in question has called it.

Then, within a few hours, the whole election is called – with a winner announced and a loser conceding.

Not so this year. Covid-19 and the likely mass use of mail-in votes mean that some pundits have speculated that the result could still be inconclusive by the time the Thanksgiving Turkey is being carved.

This is new territory – people are used to being given near-instant election results and some may jump to suspicions of foul play when counting drags on for days or weeks.

That leaves the media in a critical position, more so than ever.

First, readers need to be briefed – clearly and repeatedly – in the run-up to the election that a delayed result is expected, accounted for, and not the result of a conspiracy or foul play.

The second responsibility is to present after-the-fact arguments by both sides fairly. Given the combative nature of the current president, the new territory of mass mail-in voting, and the high-stakes nature of this election, there’s a chance this could end up before the Supreme Court.

The court does not operate in a vacuum, as much as those who sit on it would probably like to think, and both Democrats and Republicans will be using post-election briefings, statements and interviews to “work the refs” in their favour.

Forget “election night”, prepare for “election month”.

Yours,

Dave Maclean

US features editor