Hold Fast: Navigating the Ballot

National security is about far more than war. It is the strength of the institutions, laws, alliances, expertise, technology, and democratic norms that protect Americans—and voters should know how to judge whether the people seeking power understand that.

This election season, the choices on the ballot will shape how America protects its democracy, confronts threats at home and abroad, upholds the rule of law, and leads in an increasingly dangerous world.

That is why The Steady State is launching Hold Fast: Navigating the Ballot, a voter guide series built for Americans who want clear, practical context about power, democracy, institutions, and America’s place in the world, from a national security perspective. Each installment will take on one consequential aspect of national security and the part it plays in the heath and resilience of the entire constitutional system. We will aim to explain what is at stake, help readers cut through slogans, evaluate candidates’ claims, and ask sharp questions about the future of the country.

Our purpose is not to tell you whom to support. It is to help voters to better understand the choices as relate to national security topics that are before them. In the weeks ahead, Hold Fast: Navigating the Ballot will offer concise, accessible guides to the issues shaping American security, democratic resilience, and its place in the world.

Founded in 2016, The Steady State is a nonprofit 501(c)(4) organization of more than 400 former senior national security professionals. Our membership includes former officials from the CIA, FBI, Department of State, Department of Defense, and Department of Homeland Security. Drawing on deep expertise across national security disciplines, including intelligence, diplomacy, military affairs, and law, we advocate for constitutional democracy, the rule of law, and the preservation of America’s national security institutions.