Ramin Mazaheri
Press TV, Chicago
The United States has not been so divided in recent memory, as there are two people claiming to be president.
The mainstream media rushed to accept Joe Biden’s declaration of victory, even though he has an average lead of only 32,000 votes in three states in a vote which is not even finished counting yet. Donald Trump has also claimed victory prematurely.
It appears half the country believes Biden is the president-elect while the other half believes Trump is the president-elect. No one knows what will happen next, and many fear tensions could elevate into violence.
But mail-in ballots were used in unprecedentedly massive numbers, and the vote’s legality has been openly disputed for many months. It seems certain the courts will ultimately decide the legality of the vote, and maybe even who won, as in the year 2000, which caused massive political alienation, cultural division and mistrust.
The lack of trust is also because the US election process is considered the worst of any of the core Western democracies. That's according to the Harvard-based Electoral Integrity Project, whose 2019 index ranked US elections just 57th in the world.
Pro-Biden corporate media is seemingly acting as if there is no dispute at all, while skeptical pro-Trump outlets insist this unique election must be vetted by the courts and that Trump must not concede before that process is finished.
Both sides appear to be bewildered by the stance of the other side and both sides are certain of their own righteousness. With two presidents many say the US election could not have turned out worse, and the worst seems yet to come.