You might be encouraged to know that electoral corruption has been here from the time Aaron Burr rigged the elections in NYC with ineligible voters. It has never stopped in the 220 yrs since Burr conceived of the scheme to defeat the Hamiltonian federalists.
Watch “Gangs of New York” for an excellent demonstration of how it was done in the 1850-60s.
In Chicago the late nineteenth century politics was dominated by criminal gangs organized around the saloons and brothels. Criminal gangs continue to be used to round up the vote or suppress the vote as their leaders desire.
American politics has never been Mom, Pop and Jimmy STewart fair and free. We had decades of elections without a secret ballot. How would you like an election with the poll workers being gang members who would beat hell out of you if you voted against their candidate? Or be at a polling place when a rival gang arrived to break the place up as the police strolled away?
All is not lost. I have remarked elsewhere that there are almost no Zero signs in my Chicago neighborhood filled with city workers, teachers, cops, firemen and very few bumper stickers throughout the city. We may have a surprise coming.