The Quorum's Child: and the Constitution-Challenging Election of 2020

Those in the small inner circle of President James Augustus Faulkner warned him not to seek reelection in 2020, fearing that he would not survive the term. Yet, despite the concerted efforts of those who cared for him, the president stubbornly pursued his goal of four more years in office.One reason for his reluctance to leave the White House was the 1865 secret federal law which had been uncovered during the opening of a time capsule from the Wilson administration. His fears that public knowledge of the law would create chaos in the streets concerned him greatly. More pressing were the attacks upon US cities by a radical national group. The attacks took place in cities whose names followed the warning S.U.C.C.U.M.B. A.M.E.R.I.C.A., N.O.W., with Springfield (MA) being first, followed by Union City, Chicago, Cleveland, Utica and others, each attack placing fear into the hearts of citizens whose city started with the next letter. Faulkner's ill-advised decision to seek reelection led to the most controversial election in American history, one that presented an issue for which the Constitution had no answer. As complications continued to mount, Faulkner would leave office, the timing of which set into motion a string of events that resulted in a delayed announcement of the election winner. Since its creation, the specter of a cataclysmic storm has loomed over the Constitution and its prescribed election process. In the 1870s the tempest came close to wreaking havoc, but Washington, D.C. and the nation were fortunate to experience a near miss.The Quorum's Child and the Constitution-Challenging Election of 2020 takes a fictional, yet serious look at the ramifications of a direct hit upon our election process, one for which neither the Constitution nor the nation is prepared.