• Commentary
  • Research
  • Experts
  • Events
Carnegie China logoCarnegie lettermark logo
{
  "authors": [
    "Dan Baer"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "",
  "programs": [],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "North America",
    "United States"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Political Reform",
    "Democracy"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

In The Media

Elections Are Necessary, Their Integrity Imperative, Even Amid a Pandemic

Voting is not the same as going to a pub or a party or even a political rally; it is not a form of recreation, it is an essential task to the preservation of our democracy. And like other essential tasks, it must continue.

Link Copied
By Dan Baer
Published on Mar 16, 2020

Source: Denver Post

As the response to coronavirus belatedly but increasingly spreads across the country, Americans are having to make choices about what is essential and what activities are better postponed or canceled.

One feature of democracies is that they have regular elections. Once the rules and timing of elections are set, it is reasonable to be skeptical about changes because any change is likely to impact the number of votes cast or the number of votes cast for particular candidates, whether the change is intended to do so or not. There must be a high threshold for altering the schedule and conduct of elections because the integrity and confidence in the electoral process is part of the legitimacy of the government that it produces...

Read Full Text

This article was originally published in the Denver Post.

About the Author

Dan Baer

Senior Vice President; Director, Europe Program

Dan Baer is senior vice president and director of the Europe Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Under President Obama, he was U.S. ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)  and he also served deputy assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.

    Recent Work

  • Article
    Unstrategic Ambiguity: Trump’s Erratic Approach Leaves Europe Guessing

      Dan Baer, Erik Brown

  • Commentary
    NATO’s Northeast Countries Have a Template for Europe’s New Security Reality

      Dan Baer, Sophia Besch

Dan Baer
Senior Vice President; Director, Europe Program
Dan Baer
Political ReformDemocracyNorth AmericaUnited States

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie China

  • Commentary
    China Sells Stability Amid American Volatility

    U.S. unpredictability has allowed China to capitalize on its positioning as the “responsible great power”. Paradoxically, the more China wins the perception game, the more likely expectations will rise for Beijing to deliver not just words but to demonstrate with its deeds.

      Chong Ja Ian

  • Commentary
    When It Comes to Superpower Geopolitics, Malaysia Is Staunchly Nonpartisan

    For Malaysia, the conjunction that works is “and” not “or” when it comes to the United States and China.

      Elina Noor

  • Commentary
    Today’s Rare Earths Conflict Echoes the 1973 Oil Crisis — But It’s Not the Same

    Regulation, not embargo, allows Beijing to shape how other countries and firms adapt to its terms.

      Alvin Camba

  • Trump and Xi on a red background
    Commentary
    Emissary
    China Is Determined to Hold Firm Against Trump’s Pressure

    Beijing believes that Washington is overestimating its own leverage and its ability to handle the trade war’s impacts. 

      • Sheena Chestnut Greitens

      Rick Waters, Sheena Chestnut Greitens

  • Commentary
    A Second Trump Term: Will Southeast Asia Tilt Toward China?

    Tapping our network of China experts in the region, Carnegie China offers this latest “China Through a Southeast Asian Lens” report to offer preliminary assessments of whether the U.S. effort to reshape the global trading order will lead countries in the region to tilt toward Beijing. 

      • +6

      Selina Ho, Khin Khin Kyaw Kyee, Joseph Ching Velasco, …

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie China
Carnegie China logo, white
Keck Seng Tower133 Cecil Street #10-01ASingapore, 069535Phone: +65 9650 7648
  • Research
  • About
  • Experts
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie China
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.