Opinion: ‘An appalling abuse of power’

In Georgia, the Republican nominee takes a page out of Hungarian autocracy. View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Monday, November 5, 2018 [NYTimes.com/Opinion »]( [David Leonhardt] David Leonhardt Op-Ed Columnist A campaign based on anti-immigrant fears. Election-law changes to help the ruling party. And a bunch of made-up conspiracy theories about George Soros. I was in Hungary for several days last week and was alarmed at how much the autocratic ruling party there reminded me of the Republican Party here in the United States. And the most alarming thing was how normal Hungary feels to a Westerner. It doesn’t feel like Russia or China. If anything, that sense of European normality has made me all the more worried as I reflected on my trip and on the midterm campaign in this country. Like Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party in Hungary, today’s Republican Party has repeatedly been willing to subvert democracy for the sake of power. It’s the single biggest reason that Republicans need to be held accountable in tomorrow’s elections. [My column this week tells the story of my trip.]( Related: If the column makes you want to learn more about Hungary, I recommend Zselyke Csaky in Foreign Policy, from [September]( or [April]( [Zack Beauchamp in Vox]( and [my colleague Roger Cohen](. To go deeper, [the book “Orbán,”]( by Paul Lendvai, is excellent and accessible. Orbánism in Georgia. The latest example of Republicans subverting democracy to gain power is happening in Georgia. There, Brian Kemp is both overseeing the governor’s election, as a secretary of state, and running in that election, as the Republican nominee. And he’s behaving shamefully. On Sunday, he leveled an apparently false allegation against Democrats: that they hacked into a state voter database. In Slate, the legal scholar [Richard Hasen]( called Kemp’s move “perhaps the most outrageous example of election administration partisanship in the modern era.” [Michael McDonald]( the data-minded University of Florida elections expert, called Kemp’s move “an appalling abuse of power” and “beyond the pale of what is acceptable in a well-functioning democracy.” That description captures why the parallels between Hungary and the United States have left me unnerved: one of our two political parties is behaving in ways I never expected to see in this country. It is discarding basic standards of democracy for the sake of holding power. A chance for justice. I have one piece of potential good news for you this morning. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal from Curtis Flowers, the Mississippi man on death row for a crime he doesn’t appear to have committed. I wrote about Flowers’s case [earlier this year]( and cited the podcast, “[In the Dark,”]( which tells his story. This weekend, I asked Madeleine Baran, the lead reporter on the podcast, what [the new development]( means. She said it’s a huge win for Flowers, because it could lead to the reversal of his conviction — on the grounds that the prosecutor engaged in racial discrimination during jury selection. “The Court’s decision to take the case,” Baran wrote in an email, “also puts the spotlight on the jury selection process and the lack of accountability in the justice system for prosecutors who violate the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by striking black people from juries because of their race.” In The Times. Check out [this video Twitter thread]( in which John Lewis and others urge people not to make excuses for not voting. The full Opinion report from The Times follows. From Our Columnists [What We Have to Fear]( By DAVID LEONHARDT Before the midterms, a trip to Hungary shows the dangers facing the United States. [Vote, Vote, Vote!]( By CHARLES M. BLOW You have to ask yourself: Do you want a Congress full of Trump puppets? [Ballot Initiatives Are Powerful. The Powerful Have Noticed.]( [Signs supporting a proposition for a soda tax posted in Oakland, Calif., in 2016.]( Signs supporting a proposition for a soda tax posted in Oakland, Calif., in 2016. Jim Wilson/The New York Times By MIRIAM PAWEL In California, wealth and stealth have often subverted the goals of measures that have impacted nearly every facet of life in the state. Contributing Op-Ed Writer [If You’re Sure You Know What’s Going to Happen on Tuesday, You’re Wrong]( By CHRISTOPHER BUSKIRK The rise of Trumpism has changed the shape of the electorate. We are working our way toward a new political dispensation. Contributing Op-Ed Writer [Could Asian-Americans Turn Orange County Blue?]( By VIET THANH NGUYEN Angered by Republican anti-immigrant policies, Asian-Americans may turn the tide for Democrats in several tight House races in Southern California. Contributing Op-Ed Writer [Why Do We Destroy What Makes Us?]( By YASMINE EL RASHIDI A historic part of Cairo is being razed. Its demolition means the loss of heritage buildings — and of characters and customs. [A Slow-Motion Coup in Tennessee]( [A voter leaving a polling place Wednesday in Franklin, Tenn.]( A voter leaving a polling place Wednesday in Franklin, Tenn. Drew Angerer/Getty Images By MARGARET RENKL For years, Republicans in this state have attempted to undermine the foundation of democratic government: the vote. [Letitia James for New York Attorney General]( By THE EDITORIAL BOARD She has been a fighter against special interests. Listen to [“The Argument” podcast]( every Thursday morning, with Ross Douthat, Michelle Goldberg and David Leonhardt. ADVERTISEMENT LIKE THIS EMAIL? Forward it to your friends, and let them know they can sign up here. Sunday Review [The Luck of the Democrats]( By ROSS DOUTHAT Trump could have flattened liberalism. Instead he’s given it an opening. [Trump and the Hart-less Presidency]( By MAUREEN DOWD After 30 years, Gary Hart still wonders what might have been. Gray Matter [The Psychology of Anti-Semitism]( By AMY CUDDY Why is prejudice against Jewish people so often expressed in sudden waves of virulent, even exterminatory attacks? [I Have a Green Card Now. But Am I Welcome?]( By JAVIER ZAMORA I should feel safer, but the president’s anti-immigrant rhetoric doesn’t help. [God’s Red Army]( By KATHERINE STEWART The Republican Party hopes to beat back the Democrats on Tuesday with a big push from the Christian right. [Three New York City Ballot Proposals, One Worth Supporting]( By THE EDITORIAL BOARD Lowering campaign contribution limits could blunt the impact of large donations. We’ve got more newsletters! You might like Frank Bruni’s newsletter.  Go beyond the headlines and behind the curtain with Frank Bruni’s candid reflections on politics, culture, higher education and more every week. 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