Mar 23 Current events - Legitimate elections

Current events lead one to wonder about the legitimacy of elections.




Russia claimed that the Crimea democratically determined through election to become part of Russia again.

What made this seem hard to believe?

Is it the short time allowed before voting day?

Is it because the Russian army was already in the country before the election happened?  (How do we know they are Russian soldiers when they have no identification?  If they are Russian soldiers, how did they get uniforms and equipment with no Russian identification?  Have Russia been preparing for this for years? Can we trust our own military if they can change their national identity at a moment's notice?)


I understand that there is a majority of Russian speakers in Crimea and therefore it is credible that an election there will produce a result favoring joining Russia, but 90+%?  Does a high turnout and near perfect election result automatically makes it suspicious?  (Think of the 100% vote in North Korea).

Maybe it is how election boundaries are set, or how issues are framed, or how elections are funded.

When should we not trust an election, and start a revolution?

Here in Canada, we have the party in power in Quebec preparing for an election and talking about the possibility of an independent Quebec.

The premier there complained about possible vote manipulation of non French speaking students, casting doubt about the election itself.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/pq-accuses-students-from-outside-province-of-trying-to-steal-election/article17627605/


We take it for granted that the election process is the expression of the people but the results are open to all kinds of variations.

What makes an election legitimate?

How can we trust that the election result truly reflect the will of the people?