Bost v. Illinois Bd. of Elections · ¶51

That assessment gets the significance of the relative interests exactly backward. A public office is a public trust, and an election for that office is the ultimate expression of the will of the people, not a mere competition to be won or lost. In the Court's telling, though, elections are a glorifed national pastime—the competitors' success is the main objective, and voters are mere bystanders who simply “lend their support.” Ibid. This depiction drastically devalues the role elections play in a democratic society.

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