On January 6, 2021, the U.S. Capitol was breached for the first time since the War of 1812—not by a foreign army, but by Americans who refused to accept an election. They carried flags that said “Don’t Tread on Me” while trampling through the democratic process. It was not the end of something. It was the opening act.
Now in 2025, under a second Trump presidency and the guidance of Project 2025—a strategic policy playbook produced by the Heritage Foundation—the dismantling of American democracy has taken a quieter form. Less glass, more paper. Less riot, more regulation.
This isn’t hypothetical anymore. It’s the implementation stage.
“This isn’t politics as usual. It’s a slow dismantling of American freedom.” — Elizabeth Neumann, former DHS assistant secretary for counterterrorism, 2023
Project 2025 openly calls for purging federal civil servants, asserting unchecked presidential power, defunding the Department of Justice’s Voting Rights Section, and restructuring independent agencies to favor loyalists. Combined, it creates a path not just to consolidate power, but to manipulate future elections—including the 2026 midterms and the 2028 presidential race.
The threats are varied: delay or cancellation of elections under pretext of national emergency; surveillance or intimidation of voters; federalizing vote counts; delegitimizing results with preloaded fraud narratives; installing partisans in election offices. These are no longer fringe theories—they are outlined objectives.
But in New England, a region built on local governance, constitutional stubbornness, and civic habit, resistance remains not just possible, but powerful.
“The Constitution doesn’t enforce itself. People do.” — Sherrilyn Ifill, legal scholar
In this moment, state powers matter more than ever. Elections are administered locally—by town clerks, selectboards, and secretaries of state. Not by the White House.