Unfortunately for democracy, the vote is intangible, invisible, inaudible. If the vote were a person, we could clearly see that it has been bloodied beyond recognition and is gasping for breath on life support. Instead, corrupt systems beholden to moneyed interests supply it just enough air to prevent it from dying; barely maintaining the illusion that your voice and my voice count for something.

Most parents know that if you are going to threaten a punishment for misbehavior, you’d better be ready to follow up with that punishment when the misbehavior occurs. Why did the Democratic Party think it could threaten to disenfranchise millions of voters in Florida and Michigan because their state leaders decided to move up their primaries? Has disenfranchisement of voters become that passé?

Apparently so. One has to wonder if the 2008 US presidential elections will be certified free and fair by international observers. If the dirty tricks of Florida 2000 and Ohio 2004 are any indication, the vote is in for another thrashing. But here’s a prediction to remember in November 2008: don’t expect to hear about it from the US mainstream media.

Certainly the US has a lot of company pummeling the vote. In Pakistan, President Pervez Musharraf “won” re-election in October after imposing a state of emergency. By most reports, the Supreme Court had been prepared to rule unfavorably on his ability to stand for election when Musharraf dismantled it. The December assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto sent democracy further into question and delayed parliamentary elections. Her husband, Asif Zardari, was elected in her place has now agreed to work together with rival, Nawaz Sharif, but both are restricted in what they can do by the replacement Supreme Court hand picked by Musharraf.

When Cameroonian president Paul Biya announced in January that he will seek another seven year term - in violation of the constitution - students called strikes that turned violent. One student said, “We have been voting and our votes have never been considered.” The only olive branch offered was a reduction in prices that had soared recently.

This month, hand-picked Russian successor Dmitry Medvedev soared to a 70% victory in a well choreographed election to “succeed” President Vladimir Putin. Former chess grand champion Garry Kasparov, having recovered from a beating he received from authorities at an unsanctioned December protest, urged world leaders not to recognize Medvedev. "This election is the imposition of Putin's successor. It is one hand-picked candidate replacing another. If the leaders of the free world accept Medvedev they will be approving and giving credibility to this farce," said Kasparov. The US, among others, has recognized Medvedev.

Also this month, Conservative Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper filed a $2.5 million libel suit against the Liberal party for accusing him of knowing about a bribery attempt that could have toppled the minority Liberal government in 2005.

Steve Glickman is founder of the Democratic Empowerment Party, a one-platform party dedicated to balancing economic and political power and bringing a real voice to the powerless through a weighted vote.