Kyle Rittenhouse’s Vindication Proves Just How Important Local Elections Are

The victory of Kyle Rittenhouse shows that, even in blue-leaning cities in blue-leaning states, there are still enough heroic ordinary Americans whose minds are not corrupted by left-wing poison, capable of delivering a just verdict in an unjust case.

But the Rittenhouse trial also shows the importance of something else.

While power in America is more federally concentrated than ever, local politics remains crucial for preserving the dwindling rights and freedoms of ordinary Americans.

For decades, power in America has concentrated at higher and higher levels. Cities have lost power to states, the states have lost power to Washington, and Congress has lost power to the executive branch. Participation in local politics has crashed; in many cities fewer than one-in-five voters turn out to vote in local elections that aren’t lined up with national ones.
As local political power has declined, so has local news coverage. Local newspapers have vanished across America. Even the New York Times, with its vast staff and massive budget, pays less and less attention to local news in America’s largest city.