Jimmy Carter Warns Democracy Remains at Risk One Year After Capitol Riots: 'The Brink of a Widening Abyss'

Former President Jimmy Carter is among those warning that American democracy "teeters on the brink of a widening abyss" one year after the deadly pro-Trump riots in the U.S. Capitol.

In an op-ed published Thursday in The New York Times, the 97-year-old Carter writes that, in the immediate aftermath of the insurrection, "There followed a brief hope that the insurrection would shock the nation into addressing the toxic polarization that threatens our democracy."

One year later, however, not much has changed, the nation's 39th president writes.

"Promoters of the lie that the election was stolen have taken over one political party and stoked distrust in our electoral systems," he writes.

In a statement issued immediately after the riots last year, Carter said he and his wife, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, were "troubled by the violence at the U.S. Capitol today," calling it a "national tragedy" and "not who we are as a nation."

At the time, President Carter — who went on to be a Nobel Prize-winning humanitarian and worldwide democratic advocate after the White House — also worried about what the violence signaled for U.S. democracy, saying in his statement.

"Having observed elections in troubled democracies worldwide, I know that we the people can unite to walk back from this precipice to peacefully uphold the laws of our nation, and we must," he wrote. "We join our fellow citizens in praying for a peaceful resolution so our nation can heal and complete the transfer of power as we have for more than two centuries."

The Capitol riots occurred on the heels of a rally held by then-President Donald Trump, where he encouraged his supporters to march to where Congress had convened to ratify the election for Joe Biden.

Trump, who had been falsely claiming for weeks that the election had been "stolen" from him, told the crowd they needed to "fight like hell" and risked losing their country.

Once at the Capitol building, the swarm of Trump supporters grew violent, overwhelming law enforcement and occupying the complex, forcing then-Vice President Mike Pence and other lawmakers to be quickly evacuated.

Five people — including some of Trump's own supporters as well as a Capitol Police officer — died.

As the violence unfolded, and reports emerged that shots had been fired inside, Trump resisted calls from those closest to him to urge the rioters to disperse. In a series of subsequent statements, Trump both praised the mob and told them to leave the Capitol and avoid violence. However, he warned, "These are the things and events that happen."

Though he doesn't name Trump in his Times column published Thursday, Carter does write that the violent group that stormed the Capitol was "guided by unscrupulous politicians." Carter also subtly notes that Trump himself was not among the other living presidents to condemn the rioters or confirm the results of the election.

"All four of us former presidents condemned their actions and affirmed the legitimacy of the 2020 election," Carter writes.

Carter goes on to cite voting laws in his own home state of Georgia, as well as in Texas and Florida, as evidence of attempts by lawmakers to "intervene in election processes."

Voting rights activists say the law in Georgia — passed by a Republican legislature after a historic 2020 turnout that helped narrowly swing the state blue — would make it more difficult for minority voters to participate in future elections.

"They seek to win by any means, and many Americans are being persuaded to think and act likewise, threatening to collapse the foundations of our security and democracy with breathtaking speed," Carter writes in the Times.

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Like other leading Democrats, he proposes that Americans "push for reforms that ensure the security and accessibility of our elections and ensure public confidence in the accuracy of results." He adds that citizens must "resist the polarization that is reshaping our identities around politics."

Carter continues: "Our great nation now teeters on the brink of a widening abyss. Without immediate action, we are at genuine risk of civil conflict and losing our precious democracy. Americans must set aside differences and work together before it is too late."