Looking for voice of reason on election fraud? Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp may be your man. | STAFF COMMENTARY

Donald Trump’s latest indictments, a raft of criminal charges — including racketeering — lodged this week against him and an army of 18 co-conspirators for plotting to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia, drew what have now become customary responses. After all, this was the fourth time the ex-president has been criminally indicted in recent months so there’s been no shortage of opportunities to establish a pattern. Trump, his lawyers and the top tiers of his sycophantic chorus said “witch hunt” and “weaponized” legal system and “un-American.” Certain minions even appeared on friendly right-wing news outlets to remind viewers that Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis was not only a card-carrying Democrat but her father, a defense attorney, had once been a member of the Black Panther Party (which hasn’t been operational in 41 years but whatever). Democrats mostly held their tongues (and glee), not wishing to become a sound bite for those seeking to portray the 45th president as a political victim — of the FBI, the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, Special Counsel Jack Smith, etc. — whose free speech rights have been trampled.

And then there was Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican who has had quite enough of Trump’s false claims, of his attempts to interfere with the outcome in 2020, of his efforts to skirt the law. He stood up and simply reiterated the truth: The 2020 election wasn’t stolen from Trump. The election in Georgia was conducted fair and square. And right now, the people of this country should be focused on the 2024 election (which, presumably, a 77-year-old Florida man facing such a mountain of disqualifying criminal charges can’t do). Reacting to news that Trump plans to release on Monday new information leading to his “complete EXONERATION,” Kemp’s rebuke on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter was succinct: “For nearly three years now, anyone with evidence of fraud has failed to come forward — under oath — and prove anything in a court of law. Our elections in Georgia are secure, accessible, and fair and will continue to be as long as I am governor.”

In a less politically polarized country, Trump’s lies about 2020 would have been obvious to all — from his infamous phone call to another Republican, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, to “find” enough votes to reverse his loss in the state to the storming of the U.S. Capitol at his direction four days later or perhaps the fake electors scheme in seven states he lost including Georgia. But this is not our current reality. Polls suggest that while Trump’s indictments may have hurt his popularity overall, he’s not feeling it with GOP primary voters. The latest numbers at FiveThirtyEight suggest his lead over his nearest competitor, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, is somewhere around 38.7 percentage points. It’s so big that most of his opponents seem reluctant to proffer a cross word in his direction let alone stand up for the rule of law and the fairness of elections — hoping, apparently, to be Trump’s successor should he find himself convicted of a disqualifying crime (and you can pick your poison there).

That leaves the truth-tellers. Not just Kemp and Raffensperger but any Republicans who have stepped forward and decided that fealty to themselves, to the constitution. to their nation and its ideals is more important than pleasing the Florida man or his blind loyalists. Make no mistake, Kemp is no Joe Biden supporter. Neither is former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie who has been willing to criticize Trump over the indictments. Former Alabama Gov. Asa Hutchinson who, like Christie, is running for president, and former GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney have been critical of Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, too. When this unhappy episode of presidential politics is over, when the American people realize they’ve been conned as inevitably happens, these truth-tellers will be acknowledged for putting country first while those who said nothing or, worse, happily fed the false narratives, will be treated far less generously by historians.

Baltimore Sun editorial writers offer opinions and analysis on news and issues relevant to readers. They operate separately from the newsroom.