Almost four years ago to the day, I wrote about the honor, fear and agony of litigating voting and election cases when democracy is literally at stake. Like many of you, I was hoping that the 2020 election would deal a decisive blow to MAGA extremism. I hoped that democracy would heal and that Donald Trump would go down in history as a disgraced, one-term president despised by future generations.

I was sure Republicans would move on after his disgraceful handling of the 2020 byelection—the lies, frivolous lawsuits, and violent insurrection on January 6th. Politics would return to normal.

That didn’t happen.

Almost immediately, Republicans accepted a twisted revisionist history in which election workers were the villains and Donald Trump was the victim. Election denial became the new religion of the right.

Meanwhile, Republican-controlled legislatures passed a series of new voter suppression laws. When Democrats in Congress tried to protect voters, Republicans blocked them. Not a single Republican member of the House voted for the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, the Freedom to Vote Act, or the For the People Act.

Since then, the Republican Party has ceased to exist, regardless of Donald Trump’s whim. While Republicans once pretended they knew nothing about the outrageous things Trump said, they are now rushing to embrace them, no matter how absurd or indecent they may be.

Significant segments of the media have simply given up on checking his facts or holding him accountable. There are disturbing signs that they are preemptively capitulating to him to avoid his future wrath. In early 2020, I founded Democracy Docket to be an uncompromisingly pro-democracy source of news, information and analysis. I can promise you that it will never bow to or obey Trump.

The following year, I left my law firm of nearly 30 years to start a new one focused on the unique challenges of our time. I’m proud of the work we’ve done to help Democrats win elections, protect the right to vote, and help nonprofit clients create positive change.

During this time, we and our clients continued to face the difficult decision of when to litigate and when to allow flawed laws to go unchallenged. I was continually inspired by the courage our customers showed in these battles.

I’ve come to realize that the loudest voices of caution almost always come from those who have the least influence on the outcome of the election. Those for whom voting matters most urged us to move forward with the urgent urgency of the present.

These naysayers often ask if I have any regrets about the cases we lose. I ask in return: Do you regret the consequences of your inaction?

I have to admit that I have doubts from time to time. Although we win more cases than we lose, I find the feeling of victory more fleeting than the pain of defeat. In these moments, however, I reread the words of the members of the Congressional Black Caucus whose constituents have the most at stake:

Be uncompromising in your commitment to do whatever it takes to ensure that every American’s vote is counted, no matter what they look like or where they live. No legal dispute is too trivial when it comes to citizens’ right to vote.

The truth is that litigation has historically been a critical tool for protecting and expanding voting rights. As we face the prospect of a MAGA takeover of government, I believe an aggressive, strategic approach to combating voter suppression and election subversion in the courts over the past three years has been necessary.

I am proud of the work my team has done to secure victories for voters in places like Arizona, Florida, Montana, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. I am proud that we worked with former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to plan and implement an aggressive 50-state strategy to ensure fair congressional elections, including by winning two cases for Black voters before the Supreme US Court of Justice.

As we prepare for another important election, the professional naysayers are back. While we’ve seen Republicans brag about their aggressive litigation strategy, these experts prefer to criticize both sides rather than speak clearly and morally.

Four years ago, I was more unsure whether we had made the right decisions. I now have the confidence that history and victory give me.

I’m glad we didn’t listen to the cynics. We did not allow caution to lead us to abandon voters. We didn’t avoid the fight, we faced it head on. Because here’s the truth: When we fight, we win.