After dire warnings ahead of midterms, some question if democracy remains in danger

WASHINGTON (TND) — Is our democracy in peril? That was one of the arguments made by candidates and lawmakers ahead of this year’s midterm election.

“Make no mistake, democracy is on the ballot for all of us,” President Joe Biden said ahead of Election Day.

Throughout the mid-term campaign, it was a repeated refrain, especially from Democrats with dire messaging.

“I think the vote tomorrow is a vote to defend our democracy,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said on Anderson Cooper 360.

Warnings were sent about what might happen on Election Day.

“There are 50% of the states that have election deniers on the ballot,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.

Many of those candidates painted as election deniers lost but instead of fighting the results, some gave statements like Michigan gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon, saying she called Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to concede.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin congratulated New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on her election to a full four-year term and Dr. Mehmet Oz sent well wishes to Pennsylvania's newest senator John Fetterman and his family both personally.

The New York Times even reported that concessions are making a comeback.

Concerns about voter intimidation and updates to voting bills in states like Arizona, Texas and Georgia didn’t appear to stifle turnout but there are questions about how things might be different down the road had some of those candidates won and what to expect from candidates in still undecided races.

“The system we have right now does not work. We the people deserve to know on election night the winner and the loser,” said Kari Lake, the GOP candidate for governor of Arizona.

But with an investigation into the attack at the U.S. Capitol still underway, political analysts say it’s not only a legitimate concern but one that likely helped drive some voters to the polls.

“We know that high turnout tends to help Democrats. We know that people tend to vote when they’re angry or scared so the Democrats are saying the stakes are super high. You’ve got to come out and vote,” said Peter Loge, associate director at the George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs.

With votes still being counted in some parts of the country, in others, there's been a sigh of relief that most systems worked as they should.