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By: NATHANIEL BALLANTYNE

The United States has always been a shining example in the exercise of democracy. For decades, the U.S. sent hundreds of elections observers to different parts of the world to ensure that votings are free and fair. We have U.S. institutions that teach other countries how to hold free and fair elections. Our presidential elections have been one of the best examples of fraud-free elections. The loser congratulates the winner and asks every American to rally behind the winner regardless of politics or party affiliations. Many countries try to emulate us, but Donald Trump has singlehandedly changed all that.

While it was shocking, it was not utterly unexpected. The world is now used to Donald Trump’s dictatorial tendency. As the nation held its collective breath and awaited the result of the 2020 presidential election, President Donald Trump stepped to the podium in the White House on Thursday. He made a full-frontal attempt to undermine the integrity of the vote, and the world takes notice.

“I think the whole world waits for the final outcome in the United States,” New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told reporters on Thursday. “We have faith in the institutions in the United States and, of course, faith that those final votes will continue to be counted, and there will be a final result declared.”

Former Bolivian President Evo Morales mocked the United States by suggesting Trump “take complaints about voter fraud to the Organization of American States,” which issued a critical and much-criticized report about irregularities in Bolivia’s national elections.

In Canada, the Toronto Star described a “nagging, palpable sense of dread” that no matter who prevails, Canada has never felt “so far apart” from its southern neighbor. An editorial in the Globe and Mail, meanwhile, commented on Trump’s litigiousness. “Better an army of lawyers than an army of Proud Boys,” the paper wrote.” 

A government-owned channel broadcasting in English and French aired Trump’s remarks live in Iran, providing it more coverage than some U.S. outlets. The Mirror, a left-leaning U.K. newspaper, described Trump as “rambling from the White House podium with lies, untruths and misleading claims,” while The Australian, a conservative-leaning newspaper, accused Trump of “making unsubstantiated claims of corruption against the Democrats.” Like many other news outlets worldwide, The Mirror and The Australian carry live updates of the U.S. elections.

It’s been nearly seventy-two hours, and the world does not know who will be the next most powerful man in the world. Amid the slow count of ballots and Trump attacking the voting system’s integrity, America’s global image as a model for other democracies to emulate has taken yet another battering, and our enemies are taking notice. Moving forward, how do we expect America to instruct others about fair and fraud-free elections when its own president said America engages in vote-rigging? How?