Richards Center director Rachel Shelden participated in a January 9 talk organized by the Massachusetts Historical Society, titled, “‘At Noon on the 20th Day of January’: Contested Elections in American History.” Dr. Shelden joined distinguished political historians Joanne B. Freeman, Yale University; Peter Onuf, University of Virginia; Erik B. Alexander, Southern Illinois University; and Ted Widmer for the talk, which was postponed from January 6 to January 9 in response to the appalling Capitol riot. The roundtable discussed historical threats to the peaceful transfer of presidential power to provide historical context for the troubling refusal of President Trump and many of his supporters’ refusal to accept the legitimacy of his defeat in the 2020 elections.