“There are not enough jails, not enough policemen, not enough law courts, to enforce a law not supported by the people.” So said Hubert Humphrey, one time candidate for the U.S. presidency.

Such was the case with the Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Ratified in 1919, it prohibited intoxicating beverages. A backlash against it, however, led to its repeal in 1933. Too many people made “bathtub” gin or bought bootleg liquor (leading to an increase in organized crime) for the amendment to work.

Elections are important, but more for incremental change than sweeping mandates. The direction of a nation changes dramatically only if a broad consensus of citizens wants to go in that direction. We may suppose that an election will perform miracles, but it rarely does.

The day-to-day lives that we lead, the persuasion we bring to bear in civil discussions, and the proofs we are able to offer that one way is better than another count more than any election. Our nation is, after all, a republic. Before lasting change comes, not just the hoopla of an election, a significant percentage of the citizens must be committed to it.