Many of the best learning lessons of my life have come from tough losses on the baseball field.
Baseball pitchers dread being pulled from a game too early. During my minor league career, I distinctly remember being pulled from the Arizona Fall League championship game despite being only one out away from clinching a victory for our team. I pleaded my case to the manager when he came to the mound, but he and the coaching staff had decided that another pitcher was better equipped to finish the game. I was furious. However — for the good of the team — I handed over the ball and left the mound.
Pitching is nowhere near as important as a presidential election, but I think the analogy is useful. President Trump, in my opinion, is being pulled from the game too early. However, we must respect the sanctity of the American electoral process. The people have decided to pull him from the game. It is time — for the good of the country — to hand over the ball rather than blame teammates, umpires, or the game itself.
As one of the leaders of Georgia’s Republican party, I’m highly concerned with the characterization of our recent presidential election as illegal, rigged, or unfair. I strongly supported President Trump throughout his campaign and my family and I, like millions of other conservatives, were disappointed that our legal votes were insufficient to ensure his reelection. However, an election’s fairness is not measured by how closely its outcome mirrors one party’s preferred result.
When you look past the top of the ticket, Georgia Republicans actually fared well on election night. In contrast to the projected “blue wave” building off of the Democrat’s gains in 2018, our Republican colleagues in the state House and state Senate were immensely successful. In the House, the Democrats only gained two seats which ensured the continuation of a large Republican majority. The House Minority Leader was even defeated by a conservative candidate. Similarly, in our state Senate, we retained our Republican majority despite an influx of out-of-state money to support Democrats.
As confirmed by this year’s electoral results, Georgians remain conservative. Georgians want their elected officials to fight for smaller government, lower taxes, and less regulations that burden their everyday lives and inhibit the growth of their small businesses. The fact that this message led to Republican wins across the state without netting a victory in the presidential election is more than an insignificant consequence. Rather, it is an important learning lesson with short- and long-term implications.
In the long run, I believe that Republicans are looking for a conservative candidate who communicates through inspiration and impactful policy proposals rather than diluting conservative policies with demeaning rhetoric. President Trump has shown that an outsider can be a change agent in D.C., and we should build on his success by refining our approach to continue to grow the Republican party while bringing tangible solutions to the table.
We cannot allow misinformation about our elections to endanger our state’s exceedingly bright future. Simply put, conservatives cannot afford to stay home on election day.
To quote President Ronald Reagan: “Just as important as how we vote is that we vote.”
Please vote on January 5. Despite what some may say, I have every confidence that our electoral process will remain fair and impartial.
Geoff Duncan is Georgia’s Lieutenant Governor.
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