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'Count Every Vote' Rallies Held in Falmouth, Hyannis

Sixty people demonstrated at the airport rotary in Hyannis and another 50 in Falmouth Wednesday, calling for every vote to be counted in the presidential election.

The rallies were among hundreds planned nationally as part of an effort called Protect the Results.

Simone MacLellan of Brewster joined the group in Hyannis.

 

“I would like to make sure that we have a fair vote, and that all the votes count, because everyone’s voice needs to be heard,” she said.

 

Although non-partisan, the rallies aimed to respond to what participants say are President Trump’s efforts to undermine the election results.

 

Laurie Veninger, the main organizer of the Hyannis event and leader of the group Indivisible Outer Cape, pointed to Trump’s statement that he had already won the election.

“In democracies, it takes time sometimes to count all of the votes,” she said. “And so it's a desperate attempt on his part to try to sway the narrative.”

Trump’s campaign filed lawsuits Wednesday challenging the election in Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, and the campaign said it would ask for a recount in Wisconsin.

At the Hyannis rally, Wayne Nisby of Marstons Mills said Trump wants to do anything he can to stop votes from being counted.

“The present administration makes it impossible to believe that this will be a complete election,” he said.

 

Participants held signs that read, “Defend democracy,” and, “Count every vote.”

 

A musician led others in singing the song “This Little Light of Mine,” with customized verses such as, “Constitutional democracy, we’re gonna let it shine.”

A national organizing effort called Protect the Results had planned to activate hundreds of rallies across the country, depending on Trump’s reaction to the election returns. It decided not to activate demonstrations on the national level on Wednesday, but some communities held their own rallies on the theme “Count Every Vote.”

Jennette Barnes is a reporter and producer. Named a Master Reporter by the New England Society of News Editors, she brings more than 20 years of news experience to CAI.