美国国家公共电台 NPR--Trump-backed election denier loses to Democrat in Nevada's secretary of state race

Trump¹-backed election denier loses to Democrat² in Nevada's secretary of state race

Transcript³

NPR's A Martinez talks to Democrat Cisco Aguilar, who won Nevada's race for secretary of state. He beat Republican Jim Marchant, who had spread conspiracy⁴ theories about the 2020 election.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

Every election denier that tried to become a top election official in a battleground state lost in this year's midterm elections. They include Jim Marchant, a Nevada Republican who falsely claims that Donald Trump won the 2020 election. He organized a coalition⁵ of secretary of state candidates across the country pledging that if they won, Donald Trump would again be president in 2024. But Marchant lost to Democratic attorney Cisco Aguilar, who joins us now. So you're going to be Nevada's next secretary of state. What was at stake in this race for you?

CISCO AGUILAR: Thank you for having me. Excited to be here. There was a lot at stake, especially when you talk about voter confidence. As you mentioned, my opponent wanted to disenfranchise a large group of Nevada voters by taking away some of our early access, taking away mail ballots⁶ and going back to a single Tuesday in November for everyone to vote across our great state. And one, I'm honored to serve in this position. I'm glad the voters believed in my vision. But also two, delivering a big blow to the leader of the America First Coalition, who wanted to deny a large group of Americans from having a voice in the future of our democracy.

MART?NEZ: Here's the thing, though. You won the election, but your opponent still had 465,000 votes. That means 465,000 people at least knew what he was about and still cast their vote for him. So what's your message to them?

AGUILAR: Well, I'm not sure that they knew who he was or what he represented because throughout the entire election, he hid. He was never present. He never agreed to a debate. He never agreed to be on a panel. And so I don't think the voters really knew who he was. What he had going for him was the power of the R next to his name.

MART?NEZ: Now, I just noticed a tweet from former President Barack Obama, who wrote, let's celebrate Democratic candidates like Cisco for Nevada - that's you - who will be Nevada's next secretary of state. His opponent spread conspiracy theories and lies about voting machines. Cisco will protect the integrity of Nevada's elections.

So for those who don't know, what does a secretary of state of a state do?

AGUILAR: (Laughter). It's different from state to state. But in Nevada, there are actually eight divisions within the secretary of state's office. The two most important one are elections. You are a regulator of elections. You are supposed to ensure that the 17 counties are doing what they need to do to make our elections lawful⁷, secure and transparent⁸. The other division that's really important is every business in Nevada has to file with the secretary of state's office. And so you have to have an understanding of what our business environment is and realize what we need to do in this office to make it easier for businesses to do what they do.

MART?NEZ: Did your job get tougher with Joe Lombardo, who was backed by Donald Trump, becoming the governor?

AGUILAR: No, not at all. I believe Joe Lombardo has the priority of all Nevadans at heart, and he will do the best job to protect that interest.

MART?NEZ: So as secretary of state, then, of Nevada, how much will you focus on targeting election-denying efforts anywhere in the state?

AGUILAR: Well, obviously, they're going to be - continue to put information into our state. Nevada is going to determine who the next president of United States is in 2024. So it's going to be a hot topic. It's going to be a discussion. However, I have to be out front and center in it. I have to build trust with our electorate⁹ throughout the state and get them to understand that, sometimes, information being given to us is not always accurate.

MART?NEZ: You had a tough win this time around. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto was locked in a battle with Adam Laxalt. And just looking at the last few presidential elections, Democrats¹⁰ are winning over Nevadans, but the margins¹¹ are getting smaller and smaller every single year. What is going on, do you think, with the Democratic Party in Nevada?

AGUILAR: I don't think it's an issue of the Democratic Party. It's just Nevada is a deep purple state. We've had success as Democratic candidates in the last election cycles. But there's been challenges. There are issues that Nevadans care about that we need to get better at addressing and understanding and finding solutions. Democrats this cycle had a vision. They had a solution to some of those issues. And really look at this from a long-term perspective. We're going to have to fight to continue to get Nevadans to believe in our vision.

MART?NEZ: And we're hearing election officials across the country reporting being threatened because of their work. How do you plan to protect election workers and volunteers in Nevada once you begin your term?

AGUILAR: Absolutely. And that's been a big priority of my campaign. We recognized from the very beginning that we can't continue to have secure elections, fair elections, accessible elections without the human component¹². The human component is so critical to the success of our elections. And we have to continue to ensure to protect them. They have to feel comfortable. They shouldn't feel threatened. They shouldn't feel intimidated¹³ by doing the job they're doing to put food on their table. I'm going to stand up. I'm going to have their back. We're going to introduce legislation this upcoming legislative¹⁴ cycle to make it a felony to harass¹⁵ any election worker or volunteer.

MART?NEZ: That is Cisco Aguilar, Nevada's next secretary of state. Thanks for speaking with us.

AGUILAR: Thank you for having me.

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

5 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

6 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 lawful   

adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的

参考例句：

• It is not lawful to park in front of a hydrant.在消火栓前停车是不合法的。
• We don't recognised him to be the lawful heir.我们不承认他为合法继承人。

8 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

9 electorate   

n.全体选民；选区

参考例句：

• The government was responsible to the electorate.政府对全体选民负责。
• He has the backing of almost a quarter of the electorate.他得到了几乎1/4选民的支持。

10 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

12 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

13 intimidated   

v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的

参考例句：

• We try to make sure children don't feel intimidated on their first day at school. 我们努力确保孩子们在上学的第一天不胆怯。
• The thief intimidated the boy into not telling the police. 这个贼恫吓那男孩使他不敢向警察报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

15 harass   

vt.使烦恼，折磨，骚扰

参考例句：

• Our mission is to harass the landing of the main Japaness expeditionary force.我们的任务是骚乱日本远征军主力的登陆。
• They received the order to harass the enemy's rear.他们接到骚扰敌人后方的命令。