Transcripts For CSPAN Election Officials Testify About Threa

Voter rolls and taking actions to prevent cyber attacks. They also warned about the dangers of misinformation and threats of violence related to the administration of elections. [indiscernible chatter] the committee on Homeland Security will be in order. Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare the committee in recess at any point. Good morning. Free and Fair Elections are the bedrock of our democracy. As we learned just over 18 months ago, democracy is not something we can take for granted. We must defend it fiercely and protect the institutions that uphold it. So i commend chairman thompson a for allowing this hearing. When i was first eligible to vote in two 1006 election officers were in the process of replacing of the structure. Social media was new and largely a way for Young College kids to connect it our adversaries had not figured out how to weaponize our freedom of speech or technological ingenuity and use it against us. The notion that an armed crowd would descend upon the United States Capitol Building and disrupt the peaceful transfer of power would have been be on anyones wildest imagination. And harassing Election Officials or alter an election result was something relegated to developing democracies where democracy is in decline. The 2006 election ushered in a new era of threats to our democracy. The russian government targeted Russian Election infrastructure to spread conspiracy theories to tip the scales in favor of one candidate and more devastatingly begin to sow doubt among the public about the integritys of our democratic institutions. Many democrats recognized the Urgent National Security Threat rest of the created and established an Election Security task force with members of the House Administration committee to better understand the threats and better mitigates against them. We did not get bipartisan support to implement the task forces recommendation and efforts to enact them into law have languished. In the meantime, adversaries redoubled efforts to so division among us and some politicians last onto the big lie end of the conspiracy theories. As a result a violent mob stormed the Capital Holding democracy hostage. Outside washington, Election Officials have found themselves victims of harassment and threats in a way that weve never seen before. As a result, election offices across the country are struggling to retain a trained staff, exacerbating the existing challenges associated with administering the 2022 midterm elections. Mr. Chairman, you stole my thunder. This committee giving her proximity to the southwest border will be evidently a value add to the committee. I want to thank you for holding this hearing and i want to discuss how we can Work Together to physically protect our state and local election Election Officials while also securing election infrastructure from foreign interference and Cyber Threats. The cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency or cisa is charged by congress with being the nations lead civilian cyber Security Agency. It plays a Critical Role in this endeavor. I look forward to our witnesses perspectives on ways to improve the physical security of our elections as well as the tools and Services Provided by system cisa to shore up our election cyber defenses. Theyve come a long way for sure. Our committee remains committed to securing our democratically run elections from all threats, including physical threats to electrical workers. Following the 2020 president ial election, the department of justice reported more than 850 incidents of threats and harassment targeting election workers. Issues such as these will not be tolerated and can and should continue to be dealt with by local Law Enforcement. In recent years, foreign adversaries like russia iran and china have targeted u. S. Elections both through election and influence and election interference. Foreign actors seek to undermine our elections both directly by tampering with our election systems and indirectly by attempting to influence how people think about an election. Let me be clear. The United States will not allow any adversary to sow distrust or chaos in our democratic process. In addition to these foreign interference efforts, our nation is seeing a spike in Cyber Threats across all 16 Critical Infrastructure sectors and the election Infrastructure Sector no exception. Simply being vigilant is no longer enough. Todays cyber threat environment demands a posture of unwavering resilience. As we entered the 2022 we must keep a keen eye on the midterms and ensure that voters can be confident that their vote will be cast securely given the fact securely. Given the volume and sophistication of the Cyber Threats we face, we must empower cisa with the tools and resources it needs to support our state and local Election Officials so that they can carry out their mission to administer free and Fair Elections. This is Election Security mission has greatly evolved since election infrastructure was designated as a sub sector of our nations Critical Infrastructure. In 2017, cisa as gone to Great Lengths to build trusted relationships with state and local elected officials across the country and it has provided free and voluntary cybersecurity services, tools under the guidance in all 50 states. A key part of securing election infrastructure that is owned and operated by state and local governments, not the federal government. Ensuring that cisa as ability to provide Situational Awareness about moto buddies across digital footprints. I am pleased that we are joined today by secretary larose, who has ohio secretary of state, serves as states chief elections officer. The secretary spent years working to ensure ohios elections are secure and he was even named legislator of the year in 2016 by the Ohio Association Election Officials for his work to improve the States Election process. I look forward to hearing from the secretary and all our Witnesses Today about the practical a meaningful steps congress can take to improve cisas ability to support our state and local officials in protecting the cyber and physical security of our elections. Cybersecurity is indeed a team sport and now is the time to double down. Protecting the homeland requires partnerships throughout all levels of government and across industries and party lines. Working together, we can be prepared not only for the threats of today but also the emerging risks of tomorrow. And before i closed briefly, i just want to give you one story. Several years ago, two years ago, we had an Election Security Task Force Meeting up in in Central New York and we have the Election Officials there from the counties in my district and one woman told me that she received 1762 directives from the Election Security task force in one year. She shares her chief Information Security officer with 20 something other agencies in her county. And no ones digesting that information. Thats one of the big concerns i have and thats one of the big things we need to tackle Going Forward is how do we make, how do we make actionable the information were getting from the experts, and thats something that we want to hear from you miss howard and the other Witnesses Today. And with that, mr. Chairman, i yield back. Other members of the committee are reminded that under Committee Rules Opening Statements may be submitted for the record. Members are also reminded that the committee will operate according to the guidelines laid out by the chairman and Ranking Member in our february 3, 2021 colloquy regarding remote procedures. I now welcome our panel of witnesses. Our first witness, the honorable Maggie Toulouse oliver has served as the secretary of state of new mexico since 2016. From 2007 until 2016 secretary Toulouse Oliver served as the county clerk, Bernalillo County where she oversaw elections in the states largest county. Secretary oliver is also the past president of the National Association of the secretaries of states. Our second witness, mr neil kelly is the current chairman of the committee for safe and secure elections. Mr. Kelly is a past member of the Voting System standard board and a member of the Election Integrity task force, Government Coordinating Council and a number of other organizations aimed at making elections more accessible and secure. Our third witness is Elizabeth Howard at the Brennan Center for justice at ny school of law. Prior to joining the centers she served as Deputy Commissioner for the Virginia Department of elections. During her tenure she coordinated many modernization projects including the adoption of online, paperless absentee ballot applications, which the department received a 2017 innovation in American Government right ideas award from the ash center. Our final witness, the honorable frank larose served as secretary of state of ohio since 2019. Secretary larose served two terms in the Ohio State Senate and was deemed legislator of the year in 2016 by the ohio state of elected officials in recognition of his support to improving ohios election process. The witnesses statements will be committed to the record. The chair asked each witness to summarize their statements beginning with secretary oliver. Thank you very much, mr. Chairman and members of the committee. I am pleased to be here today with these distinguished colleagues. I served as to mexicos secretary of state, our chief elections official. Election administration is conducted at the state, county, and local level. My services to come to work every day to keep the engine of our democracy running. This work is not glamorous but it is vital to how we elect our leaders and how we organize our way of life. Since 2020 lies and misinformation about how elections are run at about the people who run them have proliferated to an unreasonable degree. Among a significant portion of the country the continuous drumbeat of these lies is created an atmosphere of distress in our elections and Election Officials. Any people believe that our countrys highest office is occupied by an illegitimate president. Many people now believe that our entire election infrastructure is corrupted and has been weaponized to exclusively favour one Political Party. Many people now believe that Election Administration that practices that serve to increase access and security like secured ballot drop boxes, air gapped vote counting systems, vote by mail and the ministerial certification of Election Results to name only a few are part of a vast conspiracy meant to undermine our entire american way of life. Course these things are not true and no one has ever produced a shred of credible evidence to support these conspiratorial claims. But the consequences of these lies have real world impacts, especially for Election Officials. For people who believe their government is corrupt and their leaders are not legitimate threats of physical violence and acts of intimidation have unfortunately begun to seem like acceptable responses in new mexico. New mexico, the conspiracies about our voting and election systems have gripped a portion of the electorate here and have caused people to take action during the 2020 election cycle. I was doxed and had to leave my home for weeks under state police protection. My office has since had to utilize services for both me and members of my staff that prevent doxxing by removing personal identifying information from the internet. Since 2020, my office has certainly seen an uptick in social media trolling, aggrieved emails and calls into our office and other communications that garrett parrot the misinformation circulating widely in the national discourse. But more recently, especially since our june 22 primary election, my office has experienced pointed threats serious enough to be referred to Law Enforcement. As recently as june for example, there were three threatening phone calls against me that were for excuse me were referred to our Fbi Field Office for investigation. These threats came on the heels of my offices effort to directly combat election misinformation through a new website and shortly after a nationally publicized situation in otero county new mexico, where the county commission parroted much of the election misinformation were seeing across the country initially refused to certify the primary Election Results. My office then had to seek a court order to compel them to perform their duty under the law. Growing distrust about our election system leads to either apathy or indignation, both of which will have detrimental effects on our entire system of government. The Election Officials and volunteer poll workers that our elections depend on. I fear that threats coupled with the general vitriol online and in the media directed at all aspects of our elections will cause them so much stress and uncertainty that they will simply not want to do the work anymore. Weve already seen this happening in many parts of the country. For voters, i fear that the flood of misinformation will compel them to lose more and more trust in the system and they will no longer participate in our democracy. I believe both federal and state Law Enforcement agencies are taking these threats seriously and diligently. We must show the public that threats against Election Officials will not be tolerated. Thank you again. I hope my testimony is helpful and im happy to answer any questions. Thank you for your testimony. The chair recognizes mr kelly to summarize a statement for five minutes. Yes, im sorry. Good morning, chairman torres, Ranking Member kokko and members of the committee on Homeland Security. Thank you for the invitation to speak today at this important hearing. You rigged my election. Were going to try you and hang you. Were coming for you. There will be blood on the ballots and blood on you. These are just a small example of the type of threats and harassment Election Officials around the country have experienced, including myself in recent elections. We also know that many Election Officials, in addition to personal threats, have also endured threats against their families. As a result, Upcoming Elections are not very appealing to those that run them. Many have left the profession. The impact is widespread and while the effects on individuals are devastating the potential blow to democracy should not be dismissed. Throughout my written testimony, i talked about the need to engage Law Enforcement in the election planning process. However, i must make clear that im not advocating for the presence of armed officers in polling places. This is a sensitive issue and one that should be handled with the seriousness that it deserves. I believe there are ways to address these growing threats while remaining steadfast in our resolve to recognize that the mere presence of Law Enforcement in the polls can be viewed as intimidation. There are steps that can help as an example while serving as Orange Countys chief election official. I established a Task Force Made up of dhs, the fbi, our state and local Homeland Security<\/a> will be in order. Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare the committee in recess at any point. Good morning. Free and Fair Elections<\/a> are the bedrock of our democracy. As we learned just over 18 months ago, democracy is not something we can take for granted. We must defend it fiercely and protect the institutions that uphold it. So i commend chairman thompson a for allowing this hearing. When i was first eligible to vote in two 1006 election officers were in the process of replacing of the structure. Social media was new and largely a way for Young College<\/a> kids to connect it our adversaries had not figured out how to weaponize our freedom of speech or technological ingenuity and use it against us. The notion that an armed crowd would descend upon the United States<\/a> Capitol Building<\/a> and disrupt the peaceful transfer of power would have been be on anyones wildest imagination. And harassing Election Officials<\/a> or alter an election result was something relegated to developing democracies where democracy is in decline. The 2006 election ushered in a new era of threats to our democracy. The russian government targeted Russian Election<\/a> infrastructure to spread conspiracy theories to tip the scales in favor of one candidate and more devastatingly begin to sow doubt among the public about the integritys of our democratic institutions. Many democrats recognized the Urgent National<\/a> Security Threat<\/a> rest of the created and established an Election Security<\/a> task force with members of the House Administration<\/a> committee to better understand the threats and better mitigates against them. We did not get bipartisan support to implement the task forces recommendation and efforts to enact them into law have languished. In the meantime, adversaries redoubled efforts to so division among us and some politicians last onto the big lie end of the conspiracy theories. As a result a violent mob stormed the Capital Holding<\/a> democracy hostage. Outside washington, Election Officials<\/a> have found themselves victims of harassment and threats in a way that weve never seen before. As a result, election offices across the country are struggling to retain a trained staff, exacerbating the existing challenges associated with administering the 2022 midterm elections. Mr. Chairman, you stole my thunder. This committee giving her proximity to the southwest border will be evidently a value add to the committee. I want to thank you for holding this hearing and i want to discuss how we can Work Together<\/a> to physically protect our state and local election Election Officials<\/a> while also securing election infrastructure from foreign interference and Cyber Threats<\/a>. The cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency<\/a> or cisa is charged by congress with being the nations lead civilian cyber Security Agency<\/a>. It plays a Critical Role<\/a> in this endeavor. I look forward to our witnesses perspectives on ways to improve the physical security of our elections as well as the tools and Services Provided<\/a> by system cisa to shore up our election cyber defenses. Theyve come a long way for sure. Our committee remains committed to securing our democratically run elections from all threats, including physical threats to electrical workers. Following the 2020 president ial election, the department of justice reported more than 850 incidents of threats and harassment targeting election workers. Issues such as these will not be tolerated and can and should continue to be dealt with by local Law Enforcement<\/a>. In recent years, foreign adversaries like russia iran and china have targeted u. S. Elections both through election and influence and election interference. Foreign actors seek to undermine our elections both directly by tampering with our election systems and indirectly by attempting to influence how people think about an election. Let me be clear. The United States<\/a> will not allow any adversary to sow distrust or chaos in our democratic process. In addition to these foreign interference efforts, our nation is seeing a spike in Cyber Threats<\/a> across all 16 Critical Infrastructure<\/a> sectors and the election Infrastructure Sector<\/a> no exception. Simply being vigilant is no longer enough. Todays cyber threat environment demands a posture of unwavering resilience. As we entered the 2022 we must keep a keen eye on the midterms and ensure that voters can be confident that their vote will be cast securely given the fact securely. Given the volume and sophistication of the Cyber Threats<\/a> we face, we must empower cisa with the tools and resources it needs to support our state and local Election Officials<\/a> so that they can carry out their mission to administer free and Fair Elections<\/a>. This is Election Security<\/a> mission has greatly evolved since election infrastructure was designated as a sub sector of our nations Critical Infrastructure<\/a>. In 2017, cisa as gone to Great Lengths<\/a> to build trusted relationships with state and local elected officials across the country and it has provided free and voluntary cybersecurity services, tools under the guidance in all 50 states. A key part of securing election infrastructure that is owned and operated by state and local governments, not the federal government. Ensuring that cisa as ability to provide Situational Awareness<\/a> about moto buddies across digital footprints. I am pleased that we are joined today by secretary larose, who has ohio secretary of state, serves as states chief elections officer. The secretary spent years working to ensure ohios elections are secure and he was even named legislator of the year in 2016 by the Ohio Association<\/a> Election Officials<\/a> for his work to improve the States Election<\/a> process. I look forward to hearing from the secretary and all our Witnesses Today<\/a> about the practical a meaningful steps congress can take to improve cisas ability to support our state and local officials in protecting the cyber and physical security of our elections. Cybersecurity is indeed a team sport and now is the time to double down. Protecting the homeland requires partnerships throughout all levels of government and across industries and party lines. Working together, we can be prepared not only for the threats of today but also the emerging risks of tomorrow. And before i closed briefly, i just want to give you one story. Several years ago, two years ago, we had an Election Security<\/a> Task Force Meeting<\/a> up in in Central New York<\/a> and we have the Election Officials<\/a> there from the counties in my district and one woman told me that she received 1762 directives from the Election Security<\/a> task force in one year. She shares her chief Information Security<\/a> officer with 20 something other agencies in her county. And no ones digesting that information. Thats one of the big concerns i have and thats one of the big things we need to tackle Going Forward<\/a> is how do we make, how do we make actionable the information were getting from the experts, and thats something that we want to hear from you miss howard and the other Witnesses Today<\/a>. And with that, mr. Chairman, i yield back. Other members of the committee are reminded that under Committee Rules<\/a> Opening Statements<\/a> may be submitted for the record. Members are also reminded that the committee will operate according to the guidelines laid out by the chairman and Ranking Member<\/a> in our february 3, 2021 colloquy regarding remote procedures. I now welcome our panel of witnesses. Our first witness, the honorable Maggie Toulouse<\/a> oliver has served as the secretary of state of new mexico since 2016. From 2007 until 2016 secretary Toulouse Oliver<\/a> served as the county clerk, Bernalillo County<\/a> where she oversaw elections in the states largest county. Secretary oliver is also the past president of the National Association<\/a> of the secretaries of states. Our second witness, mr neil kelly is the current chairman of the committee for safe and secure elections. Mr. Kelly is a past member of the Voting System<\/a> standard board and a member of the Election Integrity<\/a> task force, Government Coordinating Council<\/a> and a number of other organizations aimed at making elections more accessible and secure. Our third witness is Elizabeth Howard<\/a> at the Brennan Center<\/a> for justice at ny school of law. Prior to joining the centers she served as Deputy Commissioner<\/a> for the Virginia Department<\/a> of elections. During her tenure she coordinated many modernization projects including the adoption of online, paperless absentee ballot applications, which the department received a 2017 innovation in American Government<\/a> right ideas award from the ash center. Our final witness, the honorable frank larose served as secretary of state of ohio since 2019. Secretary larose served two terms in the Ohio State Senate<\/a> and was deemed legislator of the year in 2016 by the ohio state of elected officials in recognition of his support to improving ohios election process. The witnesses statements will be committed to the record. The chair asked each witness to summarize their statements beginning with secretary oliver. Thank you very much, mr. Chairman and members of the committee. I am pleased to be here today with these distinguished colleagues. I served as to mexicos secretary of state, our chief elections official. Election administration is conducted at the state, county, and local level. My services to come to work every day to keep the engine of our democracy running. This work is not glamorous but it is vital to how we elect our leaders and how we organize our way of life. Since 2020 lies and misinformation about how elections are run at about the people who run them have proliferated to an unreasonable degree. Among a significant portion of the country the continuous drumbeat of these lies is created an atmosphere of distress in our elections and Election Officials<\/a>. Any people believe that our countrys highest office is occupied by an illegitimate president. Many people now believe that our entire election infrastructure is corrupted and has been weaponized to exclusively favour one Political Party<\/a>. Many people now believe that Election Administration<\/a> that practices that serve to increase access and security like secured ballot drop boxes, air gapped vote counting systems, vote by mail and the ministerial certification of Election Results<\/a> to name only a few are part of a vast conspiracy meant to undermine our entire american way of life. Course these things are not true and no one has ever produced a shred of credible evidence to support these conspiratorial claims. But the consequences of these lies have real world impacts, especially for Election Officials<\/a>. For people who believe their government is corrupt and their leaders are not legitimate threats of physical violence and acts of intimidation have unfortunately begun to seem like acceptable responses in new mexico. New mexico, the conspiracies about our voting and election systems have gripped a portion of the electorate here and have caused people to take action during the 2020 election cycle. I was doxed and had to leave my home for weeks under state police protection. My office has since had to utilize services for both me and members of my staff that prevent doxxing by removing personal identifying information from the internet. Since 2020, my office has certainly seen an uptick in social media trolling, aggrieved emails and calls into our office and other communications that garrett parrot the misinformation circulating widely in the national discourse. But more recently, especially since our june 22 primary election, my office has experienced pointed threats serious enough to be referred to Law Enforcement<\/a>. As recently as june for example, there were three threatening phone calls against me that were for excuse me were referred to our Fbi Field Office<\/a> for investigation. These threats came on the heels of my offices effort to directly combat election misinformation through a new website and shortly after a nationally publicized situation in otero county new mexico, where the county commission parroted much of the election misinformation were seeing across the country initially refused to certify the primary Election Results<\/a>. My office then had to seek a court order to compel them to perform their duty under the law. Growing distrust about our election system leads to either apathy or indignation, both of which will have detrimental effects on our entire system of government. The Election Officials<\/a> and volunteer poll workers that our elections depend on. I fear that threats coupled with the general vitriol online and in the media directed at all aspects of our elections will cause them so much stress and uncertainty that they will simply not want to do the work anymore. Weve already seen this happening in many parts of the country. For voters, i fear that the flood of misinformation will compel them to lose more and more trust in the system and they will no longer participate in our democracy. I believe both federal and state Law Enforcement<\/a> agencies are taking these threats seriously and diligently. We must show the public that threats against Election Officials<\/a> will not be tolerated. Thank you again. I hope my testimony is helpful and im happy to answer any questions. Thank you for your testimony. The chair recognizes mr kelly to summarize a statement for five minutes. Yes, im sorry. Good morning, chairman torres, Ranking Member<\/a> kokko and members of the committee on Homeland Security<\/a>. Thank you for the invitation to speak today at this important hearing. You rigged my election. Were going to try you and hang you. Were coming for you. There will be blood on the ballots and blood on you. These are just a small example of the type of threats and harassment Election Officials<\/a> around the country have experienced, including myself in recent elections. We also know that many Election Officials<\/a>, in addition to personal threats, have also endured threats against their families. As a result, Upcoming Elections<\/a> are not very appealing to those that run them. Many have left the profession. The impact is widespread and while the effects on individuals are devastating the potential blow to democracy should not be dismissed. Throughout my written testimony, i talked about the need to engage Law Enforcement<\/a> in the election planning process. However, i must make clear that im not advocating for the presence of armed officers in polling places. This is a sensitive issue and one that should be handled with the seriousness that it deserves. I believe there are ways to address these growing threats while remaining steadfast in our resolve to recognize that the mere presence of Law Enforcement<\/a> in the polls can be viewed as intimidation. There are steps that can help as an example while serving as Orange County<\/a>s chief election official. I established a Task Force Made<\/a> up of dhs, the fbi, our state and local Law Enforcement<\/a> partners and our district attorney. Combining my experience as a former police officer, we worked collaboratively long before an election to plan for specific responses. This included local plain clothes investigators, preposition in the field, not in polling places, reviews of all voting locations, personnel and intelligence gathering. When we were faced with agitated observers, threats and protests in 2020, the coordinated response was swift and effective. I believe that we should not lose sight that elections are Critical Infrastructure<\/a> as mentioned by Ranking Member<\/a> kokko which was established to support and protect the mechanics of running elections. The protection of our nations poll workers, voters, physical locations, Ballot Counting Centers<\/a> and Voting System<\/a>s which are part of the backbone of our democracy should be a priority. Id like to try and thread a needle here. I feel its important to highlight the very essential right to observe and comment on elections to be a part of the process and to engage with your local election administrator. I believe in the fundamental rights that the First Amendment<\/a> affords our citizens as they exercise their rights to challenge the outcome of an election. Transparency goes hand in hand with a fully audited, accurate and fair election. These are not mutually exclusive. Nevertheless, as an election official, you know, when that line has been crossed, when acts of violence, threats to oneself or family, threats to the infrastructure, interference, harassment or intimidation begins to emerge, then the entire process is at risk. Over the past several months, a group of Election Officials<\/a> and Law Enforcement<\/a> personnel from across the country have been meeting to address the protection of the Public Servants<\/a> who supervise our elections from intimidation, threats of violence. Recently organized as the committee for safe and secure elections of which im currently the chair i mentioned at the outset, its a group of chief of police, elected sheriffs and former and current Election Officials<\/a> nationwide coming together to close the gap between Law Enforcement<\/a> and Election Administration<\/a>. Our committee is focused on creating tools and developing solutions to combat this problem, such as resources, guides and training for Law Enforcement<\/a> and Election Officials<\/a>, creating tools designed to build relationships among Partner Agencies<\/a> and looking at potential policies that might help to reduce the risk. I dont want to leave this important topic without also noting that we must continue to do work to reduce voters lack of confidence, which can exacerbate the very issues we are discussing today. For instance, Election Officials<\/a> should continue to expand audits, partner with prosecutors on any violations of election law and improve the voter experience, which will continue to build trust and confidence among voters. This, of course, will not change all hearts and minds, but this is a journey without a finish line. Congress can greatly assist states and counties with these growing threats. By raising awareness, increasing funding to enhance physical security of election offices. The associated infrastructure and supporting collaboration among Election Officials<\/a> and Law Enforcement<\/a> partners when needed and most appropriate. Finally, in closing, our institutes of democracy are under attack and while many Election Officials<\/a> are resilient, it is stretching their capacity to create to operate while being threatened. I dont mean to overstate this, but the important act of running fair and accurate elections is what holds a fragile democracy together. We just want someone to have our backs. Thank you and i look forward to your questions. Thank you for your testimony. The chair recognizes miss howard to summarize her statement for five minutes. Thank you, chairman torres, ranking the kokko, and members of this committee. The opportunity to speak with you today about the ever changing Election Security<\/a> landscape and one of the biggest concerns facing our elections today, threats against Election Officials<\/a>. As you know, in 2017, state and local Election Officials<\/a> were somewhat suddenly informed about the threats against our election infrastructure by foreign enemies such as russia and iran and about the types of attacks that they were now responsible for protecting our election infrastructure against. Despite being underfunded and underresourced, our Election Officials<\/a> are rising to the challenge and just five years later, there has been a remarkable improvement in the resiliency of our election infrastructure today. Election officials view cybersecurity as a critical component of planning for safe and secure elections. New and more secure voting equipment has been deployed across many states and many counties, Election Officials<\/a> have developed and practice plans to respond to various Cyber Threats<\/a> such as ransomware. And many officials have taken other important steps to harden their systems against cyber attack. This significant shift would not have happened without the federal Financial Support<\/a> specifically designated for Election Security<\/a> that congress has provided starting in 2018. And the federal partners, including the cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency<\/a> into the u. S. Election Assistance Commission<\/a> that have worked closely with our Election Officials<\/a> over the past five years. Also critical to the significant improvements that we see today are the Election Community<\/a> leaders who have led by example, including the three other witnesses on todays panel, ohio secretary of state larose has long been a pioneer on the election and cybersecurity front. Working too quickly and strategically secure ohios election infrastructure against attacks and establishing some of the first statewide standards in the country. New mexico oliver has also secretary of state oliver has also served as an important Election Security<\/a> leader. She was one of the first to quickly distribute the initial tranche of federal Election Security<\/a> funding to those most in need in her state county elected officials. Neil kelly, who has a local election official was primarily responsible for administering elections, published one of the first practical Election Security<\/a> resources for officials, the 2018 Election Security<\/a> playbook. And while we are now on the right track to secure our election infrastructure against cyber attack, new and different threats, many with domestic routes roots have arisen, including threats of physical harm to our Election Officials<\/a>, their families and their staff. You will effing pay for your effing lying effing remarks. We will take you out f. U. Eff your family, eff your life you effort watch your effing back threats like that. Left as a voicemail for a republican election official in michigan were received by Election Officials<\/a> across the country after the 2020 election and continue today. Not surprisingly, these threats are leading to additional serious concerns, such as an Alarming Number<\/a> of Election Officials<\/a> leaving the profession, which are contributing to the fragility of our democracy. Just as they needed your help to protect our technology. Election officials now need your help to keep them their families and their staff safe. In the Brennan Center<\/a>s 2022 election official survey we found that more than 3 4 of Election Officials<\/a> believe that threats against them had increased in recent years, more than half were concerned about the safety of their colleagues and one in six Election Officials<\/a> had been threatened. Effective mitigation strategies will requiring tackling not only these threats, but also the barrage of false information about our Election Administration<\/a> and our Election Officials<\/a> that is fueling these threats. Of course, congress alone cannot eliminate these problems. A proper response will require a whole of Society Approach<\/a> and we all have a role to play. However, congress can play a primary role in tackling these issues and spurring on others to do their part. For example, congress should authorize grants specifically for physical Safety Training<\/a> and for security enhancements to Election Officials<\/a> residences. Congress should also work with a number of federal departments and agencies to ensure that they are effectively working to protect our Election Officials<\/a>, including the department of Homeland Security<\/a> and justice. As i have detailed in my written testimony. Thank you again for your time today and i look forward to your questions. Thank you for your testimony. The chair recognizes secretary larose to summarize the stable his statement for five minutes. Well, good morning everyone and thank you so much. Chairman torres and Ranking Member<\/a> kakko. And really all the members of the house Homeland Security<\/a> committee. Thanks for the opportunity to submit my testimony today on the security of our elections. Something that we all care deeply about. First let me set the scene for you. Its may fourth quite simply because we were prepared. Now when i served as an army he was engaging in some sort of effort to capture election data. His op was going to discover or download election information to prove Election Results<\/a> can be impacted by an outside influence. I am happy to report that person failed and he failed miserably. Why . Quite simply because we were prepared. Now when i served as an Army Green Beret<\/a> in the, in the special forces, we learned to never let our guard down. Our lives were a constant churn of study and preparation and execution after all the bad guys only had to be right once. We had to be right every single day. When i was elected secretary of state, i took that same mindset and adapted it to how we operate in ohio. In fact, we made it our standard. So how did we stop this perpetrator on primary election day in 2021. It actually started in 2019 when i was, when i issued as secretary of state our first ever security directive for all of ohios 88 county boards of elections. It was a checklist. I called it our preflight checklist for the president ial election of 2020. It was a 34 point checklist of both physical and Cyber Security<\/a> requirements that were designed with one purpose to keep the bad guys out. Now, ill be honest, when i first announced these requirements at a meeting of all of our county boards of elections, there was a groan in the audience and even some laughter in the back, i was asking a lot of them and many thought that it wasnt possible, but our elections are too important and we cant sit on our hands and hope that things are going to be okay. We have to take action. And thats exactly what our county boards of elections did. From the most populous and sophisticated county boards of elections in our state, to the most rural county boards of elections that have been really administering elections the same way for generations. They all rolled up their sleeves and in concert with the Security Professionals<\/a> in our office, they got it done. Thats why ohios bipartisan teams of elections professionals, in my opinion, are truly the best in the business. So when this individual plugged his laptop into a lake county administrative building, what did, what did he access . Quite simply nothing. First of all, every single county board of elections Computer System<\/a> has long been siloed off from every other county office. So anyone thinking that they could use a county Computer System<\/a> in one county office to somehow infiltrate the county board of elections would find that they would run into an impenetrable brick wall. Second, even if they had somehow gotten into the board of elections building and and plugged into their network, they would have immediately been blocked because that computer would have been recognized as an unauthorized user on that network, again, came over. These are just two out of dozens of improvements that we made at our county boards of elections since 2019. Naturally, when we talk about Cyber Security<\/a>, were talking primarily about those elements of election infrastructure which are of course connected to the internet. Were talking about email, websites, polling location, look up functions online, Voter Registration<\/a>, all conveniences that voters of course want to have access to. But its important to emphasize that voting equipment is never connected to the internet. Theres an entire separate parallel set of election infrastructure that is never connected to the internet. Quite simply anything that touches a ballot can never be connected to the internet, thats scanners, Voting Machines<\/a> , tabulators, all of which are very strictly air gapped since our first directive, weve issued two more again, we can never get complacent or rest on our laurels with the most recent one Just Announced<\/a> last month. We call it our security directive as the tactics of our 3. 0. Enemies change and evolve we must do the same. Thats why we cant rest and we we wont rest. A comprehensive multifaceted Security Strategy<\/a> within our county boards of elections is necessary to provide the redundancy required for a strong election system infrastructure. We also know that we also know that our elections are only as successful as the people who run them. In 2020, we recruited a small army of dedicated patriots, republicans and democrats to serve as poll workers in the face of uncertainty amid the start of the covid19 pandemic. We had a record 56,789 ohioans who stepped up, were trained and ready to serve their communities. They provided secure, accurate and accessible elections. The ones which ohio voters have of course become accustomed in accustomed. In light of the pandemic we knew that we had to get creative about older worker poll worker recruitment. Thats exactly what we did. We worked with a whole array of professionals and all sorts of different demographics to recruit patriotic ohioans from across the state to help us administer an incredibly challenging election. In doing so, we stood up also an army of Truth Tellers<\/a> who could speak firsthand about the you simply cannot happen a price on that. Integrity matters. That is what our elections were built on. Thomas jefferson put it very distinctly. That is what we will continue to deliver in ohio. Thank you. I think the witnesses for their testimony. I will now recognize myself or questions. There is the threat of a cyber attack on election infrastructure. And then theres the threat of violence and harassment and intimidation against Election Officials<\/a>. Of all these threats, which one in your view has the greatest likelihood of endangering Election Security<\/a> . Thank you for the question. Right now one of my biggest concerns has to do with threats against Election Officials<\/a>. What we are seeing across the country is Election Officials<\/a> were deciding to leave the profession. Five of arizonas 15 counties now have new election directors this cycle. Six of georgias most popular counties have new election directors this cycle. This creates the potential or more misinformation. Retiring election official have more experience. The new people will not be as prepared. You noted that Election Officials<\/a> have been the target of threats. They have been the targets of threats. We know former president trumps narrative of a stolen election inspired people. To what extent is donald trump at fault for creating a hostile environment against Election Officials<\/a> . Although these types of discourses were amplified, i have seen them before. In Orange County<\/a> there was a number of similar threats and issues that arose when a Congressional District<\/a> flipped from red to blue. We received very similar public statements. It can certainly happen at the local level. It is across the country. It has certainly had an effect. I certainly agree with my colleague. As i noted in my introduction, ive worked on elections for almost 16 years. We see rumors and misinformation. Once we are able to clarify any questions about how the election is conducted and provide the public with information, those rumors tend to dial. Unfortunately we are living with the reverberating effects of the big lie from 2020. Recent activities in my state where we almost failed to certify an entire counties were the votes in a primary election. Those are a direct result. As we all know, when it comes to leadership, what you say from the various highs very highest echelons of power in this country do have reverberating effects. They are impactful and they continue to be impactful on a daily basis. The Doj Task Force<\/a> aimed at confronting threats against election workers has received well over 1000 reports of threats and has only secured one conviction, which raises the question, why only one conviction . Is it the issue of the law . What is your assessment . The Doj Task Force<\/a> has taken an important step. But what they have done is not enough. We have a couple of recommendations. We think they need to expand the task force to include state and local Law Enforcement<\/a>. They did not report those threats to local officials. To help combat the serious threat. I think there are improvements to be made. I recognize you. Welcome to congress. I talked about the local officials being able to digest the information they are given. I want you to tell me what you think you can do to make them more digestible. I want you to comment on that. This reminds me of my time in the military where we had a say that you know what rolls downhill. A servant sergeant or private has to implement it. Directions coming from a somewhere. I have to issue directives. They are the folks on the ground doing the implementing of all the things we are doing. They are focused on a variety of things. Our board of elections is based in ohio. It reflects the great diversity of our country. People are purposeful and dutiful about their work. I have county boards of election that are 150 people. It is important for us to remember the men and women on the ground area these bipartisan groups are doing the work of running elections. How do we fix it . I understand the problem. It is us being mindful. It means myself as a state administrator, the other 49 people who do this work, they need to be knowledgeable about what we are telling them to do. We need to be very careful about not sending down directives or passing laws that would create federal standards that may be unattainable. The funding that comes is appreciated, but there are 70 Strings Attached<\/a> with the work that it takes to comply with the different standards attached to that funding. That makes the dollars much less useful. We spend so much time filling out forms. The concerns youre raising her at the opposite in of the spectrum. When i was in election official, when we were not receiving sufficient information. I think that federal officials have recognize their try to calibrate the amount and quality of education that is being divided to local officials. I have attended multiple meetings with officials who practically ask for feedback about the quantity of the contents. Ongoing work is required. We continue to listen. Thank you very much. I understand your testimony. I appreciate the candid testimony. It comes from a different source. I think you have to keep that in mind Going Forward<\/a>. A lot of problems are generated from the internet and the ability to hide behind the internet. That is one of my concerns. If any of you want to address that, maybe you want to address how we can better try and find and anticipate the threats before they happen. That is the proverbial needle in a haystack. Thank you. I think it is a great question. The intelligence gathering on the ground is really important. People might be spreading disinformation. They may have signs that they could be triggered in some kind of violent act or something along the lines of a threat. I think that intelligence gathering is critical to reducing the risk. I will now recognize the gentleman from rhode island rid we can hear you. Thank you. I think our witnesses for the testimony today. There is no such thing as perfect cybersecurity. I have set it many times myself. We should expect vulnerabilities will continue. The climate of rabbit disinformation, i feel like there is responsible disclosure about information. That is becoming more challenging. The very existence could be manipulated to undermine public confidence. To all of our witnesses, how our state and local officials thinking about me getting to the public about the vulnerabilities in election systems . How can elements of the federal government find opportunities for congressional action to help address this challenge . I will start. In ohio, we were the first state in the country to implement what is called a vulnerability disclosure policy. We were asking the good hackers to find wherever we had a vulnerability and let us know about it. We found where our errors were and we fixed them. I have wanted some more help from the federal government on the able to share our successes. When things go wrong, the public will generally know about it please. But we have not been always able to share our successes. The public should know when we have a day when the good guys won and the bad guys lost. Often as quickly as possible the classifying what can be declassified. Giving us a chance to tell authorities where we stopped the bad guys. That is something we should be able to do more of. Thank you. I agree exactly with what my colleague from ohio just said. When i first came to this office , we had just gone through an election where many Election Officials<\/a> across the country were not aware of what the federal government was aware of. There has been a terminus amount of work done since then. The work that the government according to counsel has done. To try to figure out what is the right approach. We want to be aware of any vulnerabilities. We want to address them immediately. We need that information yesterday, not tomorrow. The federal government has done a much better job about ackley the class quickly declassify things to our offices. We are getting so much better about sharing that information with each other. It is a delicate balance. We want to make sure once we detect a vulnerability that we have a plan to fix it. And that it will get the job done. We have to have that very careful balance. It is incredibly important. We need to make sure we have those plans in place. As a former secretary of state myself, we understand that. Its you noted in your testimony that despite funding for programs, none of these have yet been used for those purposes in an election. Could you and other witnesses share your insights about some of the difficulties in the application process . Is there more the department of justice can do . To help get this money out . There is now available to Election Officials<\/a> homeland grants. Just recently, the department of Homeland Security<\/a> reinstated Election Security<\/a> as a priority. However, that prioritization was not accompanied with a minimum of those grants on Election Security<\/a>. What Election Officials<\/a> are seeing and are concerned about is that their needs will be deprioritized. These funds are not you new. I have to recognize the gentleman from mississippi for five minutes. I apologize. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Our constitution gives the individual states the right to conduct their own elections. This is a central pillar of our government. Federal authorities must not infringe upon it. What can congress do to make sure we are providing a secure system without direct interference from the federal government in the process that i believe our Founding Fathers<\/a> intended to be controlled at a local and state level . Thank you for the question. I have enjoyed working with your secretary of state through our National Association<\/a>. You are right, there are 50 different ways of running elections throughout the country. The decentralized nature of the way we run elections is not a bug, it is a feature. It goes back to our very founding and must be protected. It is important to keep continue to provide those resources. I found it to be a positive working relationship with them. And then to resist the temptation of course. I think it is good to develop best practices and share them. I have shared some things we have done in ohio. For the federal government start mandating the way states run elections is a bridge too far in my opinion. Stick to helping us do our jobs better instead of telling us how to do them. There was legislation introduced in the house. Some of it was relating to voting. A couple of things that i find very troubling. It would do away with voter identification. And it would also do that. It also requires voters to present an id. Can you talk a little bit about the importance of having individuals register for some time before the election . Can individuals trust the outcome of that election . Is about finding that balance. You have to choose between convenient or secure elections. That is a false choice area we have elections that are convenient and secure. That is true in other states as well. These have worked in our state. They fit the makeup of our state. They might not work in other states and other child geographies. People are required to register before the election. Would be bad to the federal government to ignore what are state constitution says. Proving that a boater is who they say they are is an important thing. We do that in ohio through mandatory photo id. If you do not have it to you and produce alternative forms of identification because we do not want to leave anyone out of the process. But we want to know who voters are when they go out and make sure they are actually registered voters. These are commonsense safeguards. They work for ohio, mississippi. If you do not like it in your state, work with your state legislature. That is the best way to make election law, at the state legislative level. Thank you very much. I followed your testimony. You talked about the need for funding security upgrades. I am curious as to who that would include. Possible funding mechanisms that are associated. Are you talking about election commissions, poll workers . Who would be eligible to be a security upgrade . Thank you so much for the question. You heard the opening remarks. I am aware of other Election Officials<\/a> who have had to leave their home. Some have had local Law Enforcement<\/a> as critical security in their homes when they are under threat. Some of these officials cannot afford the recommended security enhancements to their home. I will now recognize the gentleman from new jersey for five minutes. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you very much. [indiscernible] there has not been as much engagement insecurity. Has that changed since the former election . After we partner with state and local governments on Election Security<\/a> . Thank you for the question. I want to give public props to dhs. I took advantage of their services. That goes along way to increase physical security. We are seeing more of that across the country from our colleagues. Those services are very valuable. So thank you. Thank you. In your testimony you explained that many Election Officials<\/a> are leading because of threat. Leaving elections to be run by inexperienced workers. Can you elaborate on the value of experienced election workers . What type of problems may occur if we are forced to rely on inexperienced work west workforce . Anyone can start. I would be happy to start with that. We recognize how important experience is. When i came into this office, i created a mentorship or grammar new Election Officials<\/a> department with someone from a similar that mentorship has been a Great Program<\/a> in ohio. Many people are benefiting from it. We have had challenges in routing and retaining those officials. That is a big deal. Beyond that, it is the burnout of the constant turn of the work they are having to deal with. I would add that as i continue to professionalize, there will be additional retention. They will have resources they can rely upon. I think we will see more retention. Please mute. I would add that the typical local election official the reality is these jobs are unrelenting. Our Election Officials<\/a>, unlike many of us, do not have the luxury of that. Regardless of a loved one being sick. I will note that he was in the hospital with covid. He continued working. Because there is no brakes when you are an election official. We need to help support them. Fully staff their offices. I think the witnesses for their answers. I yield back. I will now recognize the gentleman from North Carolina<\/a>. Thank you, mr. Chairman. I think all elected officials and everybody the country ought to condemn threats. Even the profane kind of vehemence directed against Election Officials<\/a> and everybody else. We have seen in recent we the same kind of invective and threats and assassination attempts against United States<\/a> Supreme Court<\/a> justices. We had the controversy last year with the department of justice. A memorandum about nationwide activities. That turned out to be not so many threats. Maybe we have not seen that type of reaction. Perhaps we should. We have not seen people condemned. That should be said across the board. Let me ask you quickly, do you agree with that . Yes, i think Political Violence<\/a> is a problem. And other officials, wouldnt you agree . Yes, sir. I noted a few weeks ago that the wisconsin Supreme Court<\/a> held that ballot prop boxes are illegal under state law. You spoke about the reasons for distrust. You attribute them to the big lie. That has a lot of currency. There is no recourse for it. But isnt proven by implication that ballots cast in wisconsin by absentee top box dropbox were illegal . Thank you for the question. I cannot speak to the ends and outs of the specific legality. What i can tell you is in states like mine, where we have 24 hour monitored systems that are permissible other state law, we do not see the level of concern and frankly the alleged fraud that has been level against other election systems. I am not trying to attribute one of the other. Im just trying to say, there are a variety of things that contribute to an atmosphere of this post about the election area one of which is allegations leveled that things were done illegally in certain races. I am using the wisconsin case as an example. That turns out to be validated by a later holding by the Supreme Court<\/a>. I think the challenge is that if we continue to litigate election law after an election has been certified and people have been installed in office, i think this is one of the challenges we are dealing with. Whether wisconsin can continue to use those, that is up to the youth wisconsin Supreme Court<\/a>. It does not affect the election. I think the elections done, there is done, theres no point in relitigating it. You cant. But the determination of that was illegal has some implications. It is a shared responsibility. That me ask quickly, in North Carolina<\/a> we have a situation where a partisan board of elections advocated for that when it was litigated in North Carolina<\/a>. They just voted to kick the green party off the ballot. They did a over an issue concerning signatures. They said they refused to verified signatures on ballot applications. Doesnt that sort of be inconsistent and breed mistrust . The rejection of a party from a it, doesnt that undermine trust in elections and Election Officials<\/a> . Time has expired but please answer as concisely as you can. Thank you for the question. I do not have the details through that. I can get back to you with information. I want to submit an article from the carolina journal. Without objection. I will now recognize the gentleman from new york. Thank you. Good morning to everyone. Thank you to all of our witnesses for joining us today. To discuss changing the Election Security<\/a> plan. I was like to offer my well wishes to our chairman and the gentleman from mississippi. We wish him a speedy recovery. A full and complete recovery. We hope to see him soon. I think i think the chairman and the ranking official to for calling this meeting. These are concerns we have raised for a number of years. The importance of addressing this now has only been underscored by the excellent work done by the generally sixth select committee. It is of paramount importance. How effective are these programs on physical Election Security<\/a> . What additional assistance would be most beneficial to you and individuals in your capacity . How can the role be expanded . So they can strengthen physical Election Security<\/a> . Thank you, congresswoman. I want to say that this is incredible. Primarily on the cybersecurity front. I know in most other states across the nation they also take advantage of the physical security tools and resources that are being provided. The very first piece of that puzzle is to conduct these assessments. We have been working together in my state to conduct that assessment. Without assessing the situation, we do not know exactly what we need. Like everything we have been doing on the siegrist ready front and the physical security front, as we go through elections and continue to see what we need and what circumstances we are dealing with, we have been able to sell it and adapt and improve the resources that are available to us. I do not have a specific recommendation at this point. Other than we should continue that work. As has already been mentioned, funding is critical. Elections are critical. In a state like mine, a little bit goes a long way to be able to secure our election environment. Is there anything you would like to add . I will keep it brief. I agree with what you have set about the services. I have a 200,000 squarefoot campus i am responsible for. The one thing i would add is that the use of the same assessment would be very critical and important. Thank you both. In your testimony you asked for congress to fund efforts to develop and conduct online Safety Training<\/a>. Can you elaborate on how you see this Program Operating<\/a> . Election officials personal information is often Available Online<\/a> area since there are consultants who can teach how to protect against those. They can go out of proactively assist Election Officials<\/a> with taking down the information and scrubbing it. Putting together a training that they can implement on their own is a step in the right direction. I will now recognize the gentlewoman from iowa. I think our witnesses and Ranking Member<\/a> for conducting this hearing. We have seen record numbers of people show up at the polls to vote absentee. We are finding that peoples confidence in the election does affect their willingness to come out and vote. It is an extraordinarily important topic. We recently confronted the challenge of nongovernmental agencies spreading election this information. They sent information that confused voters. It has been done with information. Accurate information out to the people of ohio. This concern first came to us from our county board of elections in a bipartisan way. They were getting concerned phone calls from voters saying they received multiple forms that were addressed to people who did not live at that residence for many years or were deceased. The real problem with these organizations as they were using bad data. There is nothing wrong with getting voting registration forms out or getting absentee ballot request forms out. We allow that in ohio. The problem is these organizations did shoddy work. It really confused voters. If they want to engage in some kind of absentee ballot request, work with us to make sure you have good data and youre using the right kinds of forms. We know voter rolls are not claim to that point. Iowa is facing a shortage of election workers. Do you believe this is a threat to your States Election<\/a> integrity . What can you do to help face these challenges . To the last question, we work really hard at that. That is part of the real problem. It is like hygiene. Brushing your teeth. You have to do it every day. We have implemented all of the creative programs. We have really worked hard on poll worker recruitment. Since we have many to staff. Thank you for that. After the 2016 election, we have heard part of this already on the other witnesses. Officials felt frustrated by the lack of coordination of the federal government by not providing enough details. The fbi change their policies regarding incident notification. Some have previously expressed the need for reporting of cyber incidents. Can you briefly discuss why this may be necessary . We need to know thing so we can act quickly. That is the bottom line and it comes to protecting. Time is always of the essence. In most cases they are immediately notified. The county board of elections needs to know. There is always room to continue. A notification on a friday night or saturday morning will result in action right then. That is why these things are so timely. Thank you. That includes our Election Officials<\/a>. Thank you so much for your testimony. I yield the rest of my time. I will now recognize the gentlewoman from new jersey. Thank you to the witnesses. I hope you are sharing information. With the rest of the secretaries of state. In such a way that they benefit from some of this information. These are issues we seem to be hearing about in other places. What do we need to do to be able to recruit poll workers, new election officers . How do we ensure to them that they will always be safe and supported . What does the federal government need to do . Either on election day or in offices in general. Thank you. First and foremost, he is one of our most active partners at the national level. We do share both best practices. I think we have seen some of that from dhs. And other Law Enforcement<\/a> partners. Election officials at all levels , that is a national ready. It needs to continue to get louder. Using all the platforms that the American Government<\/a> has available to it. In terms of recruitment, when i grew up, serving as a poll official, that was a typically considered civic duty. A sense of community was installed. I think we mightve got away from that. The more we can do that at all levels of government to send the message that being a part of the election process, particularly if you are someone who has questions or concerns about the integrity of our process, is a wonderful way to be a public citizen. And also make sure that our elections have integrity. Thank you. People want to know about the resources that are necessary. The productions protections that need to exist locally. So that election workers and poll workers have a system that has their back. So they are recognizing that, particularly in this next election. Thank you so much for the question. I would highlight that work. And other organizations that are working closely with state and local Law Enforcement<\/a>. So that Election Officials<\/a> can address many of the concerns that you highlighted. I would also say that Election Officials<\/a> have reported struggling to access some of the federal grant funds that are available for Election Security<\/a>. We talked about the Homeland Security<\/a> grant program. It was recently reinstated as a priority area. However, unlike other priority areas, there has not been that on Election Security<\/a>. It is a similar issue. Those funds are available to help better protect Election Officials<\/a>. There is no minimum to spend on Election Security<\/a>. What many have reported is they are struggling to obtain access for a variety of reasons. The notification of when they are identified. And other issues. We believe that requiring a minimum for Election Security<\/a> will alleviate many of those can turn and will help get federal funding to officials who need it. Thank you. I yield back. I will now recognize the gentlewoman from tennessee. Thank you to the witnesses for being here today. I do have a question. Not every state did as well as ohio. You spoke about your security. What you did to protect elections in ohio. Absolutely. This builds on our Second Security<\/a> directive. This is a 31 point checklist. We are giving them a few months to get it down. We put a strict new standard in place. That could harm the integrity of their process. Better vulnerability and disclosure for our vendors. So they can leverage that. And prohibiting election equipment. That is on the restricted list with the federal government. These are just some of the things we are doing. You can talk about several other items as well area like better vulnerability scans that are put in place. Those are the highlights. Tell me about that vulnerability scan. I read that. Tell me how it worked. What we are doing now is requiring the board of elections to lead to the vulnerability scanners inside the door. It is like a home in action. If you are buying a new home in the home inspector can only look at the outset of the home, they will find some new things. But if you actually let them into the basement and let them go into the attic, that is when they are really going to find if the house is in good shape or not area this new vulnerability scan that we are required to report brings the folks who are doing that inside. They can get inside the systems and really take a deeper look. It makes sense to me. You talk about Cyber Security<\/a> efforts. Tell me a little bit about what you are doing in ohio. It looks like you are requiring elected officials to include cybersecurity in their contract. That is how we enforce it with vendors. In many cases, these are boilerplate contract that have been used for many years. If you cannot abide by those terms, you cannot contract with the county elections. That is just another step that we are taking to make sure that these vendors can meet the cybersecurity standards that we set for boards. I heard about these things when i went to nashville and talked to the legislators in the early part of the year. With the dominion machines. They caught that because more people showed up to both than there were voting. There are measures in every state and every county. To make sure there is question about the integrity. That 31 point checklist was to make sure we were doing that in tennessee. I know my county went to paper ballots this year. That ensures state elections, in my opinion. I thank you for that. I will yield that, mr. Chairman. I will now recognize the gentlewoman from florida. Thank you so much, mr. Chairman. To all of our witnesses, everyone of you, thank you for your testimony today. Also thank you for what youre willing to do and what has proven to be unbelievably challenging circumstances. Thank you for protecting our democracy. We all should know that regardless of what state youre in, every person deserves to be able to cast their vote and have their vote counted. You said you are a former lawenforcement enforcement officer. I have also heard that you are a farm former Army Green Beret<\/a>. We thank you for that service. But i hope that is not the criteria this day for elections. Your testimony has been so valuable. But it has been painful. You talked about the level of threat. Crazy, unbelievable threats. They have an amplified after 2020. As a former lawenforcement officer who had a chance to interact with a lot of election workers, i have never heard the stories during my time that i have heard cents. You said the threats have been amplified. I think that is such a politically correct way of saying that. I would like to hear from you again in that particular area. Amplified in 2020. You have seen it before. That is what you have said. Could you just talk a little bit about what you have seen both or . Compared to after that . Thank you, congresswoman. In my experience, and almost 15 years of overseeing elections, i think every elected official at every level in this country knows what it is to have someone harass you, make a general threats against you. People get fixated on Election Officials<\/a>. Sometimes there are concerns about our personal safety. I dont know a single election official who has not gone through Something Like<\/a> that. In my experience, the level of but trail in the specificity of threats and having my personal information docs doxxed, those are things i have never experienced. I would say it has been amplified. Thank you so much. Thank you for the job you are doing in ohio area my experience is slightly more limited. I have only been the second area state since 2019. There have been a lot of folks who have gotten emotionally exercised about Election Administration<\/a>. We talked to officials last year. Of course pull up elections are political. But an Election Administration<\/a> must not be. Lets stop politicizing that. Thank you you for the question. I dont ever recall receiving a threat just for doing my job. For many Election Officials<\/a>, that is just not that reality today. They are receiving death threats. You are not advocating for armed officers. They are advocating for their own personal safety. Working to protect the integrity of our elections. Thank you for the question. I think it is a great one. Issues can be a real threat. Officers on the ground are not familiar with that. Awareness is very critical. We had Police Officers<\/a> respond to some scenes. We were not aware that there were criminal violation. The time has expired. I will route now recognize for five minutes the gentlewoman from texas. Welcome to the committee. Thank you. Thank you for holding this hearing today. Our country has a record high of voter turnout. We most ensure those who are voting are legally permitted to do so. Making it easy to vote and hard to cheat. I want to thank all of the poll watchers and our Election Officials<\/a> for all the work they do. We must condemn all threats against our Election Officials<\/a>. I know it is like to be there. I cannot imagine what they are going route. I believe we must provide them with this so they can do their job more effectively read some people say hispanic americans do not know how to use the internet. I can speak firsthand about both willingness and the capacity of my community and the Hispanic Community<\/a> around the country to make their voices heard. Border security, voter security, it is a National Security<\/a> and i am thankful to all the witnesses for taking the time to speak with us here this morning. If i may ask mr kelly, thank you for being here this morning. Can you talk about the physical safety of election workers and officials specifically in Orange County<\/a> . Thank you very much for the question. And yes maam, i absolutely can. I think vote Center Employees<\/a> as we call them in Orange County<\/a> or poll workers, the safety and security of them is paramount in what we do in every election. There are a number of things that we can do to increase the protections for instance, plainclothes officers in the field ready to respond very quickly to incidents at polling places, training that can help our vote Center Supervisors<\/a> deescalate issues is very important, but i can tell you that we were focused on security for those votes Center Locations<\/a> and our poll workers and keeping them a priority because they are the backbone of how we operate and its very important that we protect them. Thank you. Secretary larose, thank you for being here this morning. I know it has been i know it has been talked about already this morning, but can you go further into details about the organizations such as the Voter Participation<\/a> center sending out false information. What steps is your Office Taking<\/a> to stop this and other groups from spreading misinformation . Yeah, thank you so much congresswoman, appreciate the question. As i was starting to say earlier. Its really about public information. The voters deserve to know where their trusted source for elections information is. Thats why were constantly promoting, go to the official dot gov website that your secretary of state or your county board of elections operates in our case, its vote ohio. Gov. Thats where we want people to make sure that theyre getting their trusted source of Accurate Information<\/a>. But as it relates to to false information in general, listen, the best antidote to lies is truth and lots of it. And so we work to make sure that ohioans have access to that Accurate Information<\/a>. We partner with Community Organizations<\/a> from the Diverse Communities<\/a> throughout ohio to make sure that we get Accurate Information<\/a> out there. Social media is another one. And so these are all part of the efforts that really every secretary of state engages in so that voters know how to vote. And they know that they can trust their vote in the Buckeye State<\/a> at least, and thats something that were proud of. Thank you for your testimony. I yield my time back. Thank you. I will now recognize the gentleman from new jersey, mr malinowski for five minutes. Thank you, mr chairman, thanks to all of our witnesses for the work that you do. I want to start with you, mr larose and say at the outset, i was very impressed by your testimony and by the work that you are doing in ohio to protect the physical integrity of our elections, but also then to defend the integrity of our elections against all of the misinformation thats out there. That said, it seems weve still got a very, very big problem in terms of public perception. When Something Like<\/a> 40 of americans believe that the 2020 election was stolen, about 6070 of republicans. I saw a poll that suggested in ohio 62 of republican primary voters in 2022 believed that the 2020 election was stolen. I trust you agree with me thats a very dangerous phenomenon. I mean, if i were to believe that a president ial election was stolen, i would be losing faith in my democracy and the system of government in our country. Clearly that is the root cause of the threats of violence that many nonpartisan Election Officials<\/a> across the country are are facing. So, i guess my question for you is what, what more needs to be done . What should elected officials , responsible leaders in our country be doing to address that false belief out there and to restore the confidence of all americans in that our elections have integrity. Well, thank you, congressman and, and you know, in some ways, i guess i find the Silver Lining<\/a> to every cloud. The fact is that folks are interested in this topic right now at a level they wouldnt normally be. And so i view this as an opportunity to educate people about the safeguards that exist. And to make sure that that information is available in all parts of our state. Ill give you a couple examples. Weve worked with our county boards of elections and had them set up booths at their county fair where people can come and vote on their favorite deep fried fair food or whatever. Thats just the hook to get people to come over because when they do, theyll see a voting machine and they may be inclined to say, well, hey, is this the one with the secret foreign algorithm in it . And instead of laughing at that person, its a chance to engage with them and now teach them that the Voting Machines<\/a> are never connected to the internet. Theyre tested before each election audited after each election, etcetera. Weve worked with again, the Diverse Communities<\/a> from throughout the state to help empower those Community Leaders<\/a> to be sources of Accurate Information<\/a> about Election Integrity<\/a>. And you know what weve put out the challenge. If you believe that there are big problems in our elections, sign up to be a poll worker, put your money where your mouth is spend the long day of doing this , work. What we found is that when people do that, they come out of the experience saying, you know what elections are run honestly and reported accurately. Those are just a few ideas and those are things that were doing here in. In ohio, thank you. Thank you so much. And you know, im sure you also agree just very simply all of us as Public Officials<\/a> just need to tell the truth about our elections because when we dont, it encourages our constituents to lose confidence. Miss oliver, uh, you know, weve heard a lot about what happened in new mexico and i assume that a lot of the lies and misinformation that that led to those threats were spreading on the internet on social media platforms. I often say that the big lie is the virus, but facebook is the wind. And its not just that these things appear on the internet, its that the large Online Platforms<\/a> do write these algorithms that that basically connect every Single Person<\/a> with a propensity to believe in conspiracy theories with conspiracy theories. If youre on the right, it will push you further, right . If youre on the left, it will push you further left. The these Companies Design<\/a> their networks in a way that encourages the spread of information that makes us angry at each other. That increases our divisions from one another. Um, so i see you nodding. So i assume something that, that you agree with. We are a number of us are working in congress on legislation that would hold these social media platforms more accountable for the way in which they amplify and recommend information to the American People<\/a> to to deal with these kinds of threats. Is that something that you think would be helpful . Absolutely, congressman, thank you. I think thats a worthy effort and i think you know, just among my secretary of state colleagues, uh, you know, i think we all share that concern right . Both the mis and disinformation from the right and the mis and disinformation from the left. And in fact what we know for a fact when we all started heavily engaging in this cybersecurity work about five years ago um was that, you know, foreign entities particularly russia, iran, et cetera were taking advantage of those divisions. I have to interject, i apologize for i want to recognize the gentleman from texas for five minutes. Mr. Fluker. Thank you, mr. Chair and thank you to all the witnesses for your time today. Nothing is more important in a secure election with integrity. We are and we should be setting the standard the Gold Standard<\/a> around the world secretary larose, you talked about how you stopped the perpetrator in 2021 and how that work really began in 2019 with good preparation and i think thats key. So what are what actions or states or the federal government currently not taking right now that prevent us and protect any threats in the future to 4, 5, 6 years from now . Thank you, congressman. Of course the threats constantly emerging. The bad guys are are always coming up with creative new ways to do things. And thats why we cant one step that all states should take that weve taken in. In ohio is that your chief elections officer should have a cisoa. A chief Information Security<\/a> officer, somebody who focuses solely on that work of cybersecurity. You should have a vulnerability disclosure policy if you dont already, if theres a hole in your offense, you need to know about it. And the vulnerability disclosure policy is a way to do just that. Um again, there are a lot of other things like albert sensors that are available from our partners with dhs. If you dont have those at your county boards of elections, you should do that. That allows for that remote monitoring. So again, if something goes wrong on a saturday morning or a friday night in the middle of the weekend, you can know about it before everybody comes back to work on monday and you can mitigate the problem right then and there, those are just a few of the steps. But again, its about constantly its about constantly monitoring emerging threats and thats why our partnership with cisa is so crucial. Well, thank you for taking those steps and ensuring that we do have faith in the system and whether its real or perceived, we have to get to a point where we have faith in our election system, miss oliver. Its disturbing to read, thank you for your 16 years of work. And its really disturbing to hear your testimony, to read about the doxing, to hear about the threats that should never happen. And we should all as elected officials and as was eloquently mentioned, condemn that and im interested to hear, you know, not just how that made you feel, but how does it make you feel to now see Supreme Court<\/a> justices being doxed and groups encouraging people to go to restaurants and intimidate those individuals. Thank you, congressman. You know, violence has no place in our democracy, threats of violence and harassment, really undermine our democracy and and frankly it doesnt matter which party, what what level of public official. I think were seeing this become more prevalent. And so thats deeply concerning because as it becomes more prevalent, more individuals who may be inclined to engage in such behavior are looking at these examples and saying, well, if these folks are doing it, we should engage in that too. It might push folks over the edge to engage, it has no place in democracy period, no matter who were talking about. Youre right. Its very disturbing to see those that will not condemn those actions that wont hold people accountable for trying to use the force, the threat of force or any sort of intimidation and disturbing to hear your testimony. Thank you very much. Mr. Kelly. Im interested in your thoughts on you know, just the verification and knowing who is who, running a good election system and understanding and how important it is to verify whos voting. Do you believe that its should be a requirement to verify those who are voting in your elections . And would you like to see that centralized at the federal level . Thank you, congressman, for the question. Of course. I was operating under California Law<\/a> which did not allow for identification to be presented in person. And so as an election official i can kind of see the value in that in terms of showing your i. D. Just like when you fly on an aircraft, probably wouldnt be a bad idea to show at a polling place but thats above my pay grade and a policy discussion that Election Officials<\/a> shouldnt be making. Well. Mr. Kelly. I think its incumbent upon all of us. I mean this is a good hearing for us to come together as experts in the field. You guys as experts us asking the questions but you know i find it hard to believe. I mean those that are getting into the capital, they most likely have to provide an i. D. To get into the Capitol Building<\/a> to verify who they are and yet in states, you know if were not able to verify, i think your Voice Matters<\/a> and and i would say its its actually um you know, not above your pay grade, you are the expert in this and and need to be you know advocating for those policies. So i think its i find it hard to to look at some of the federal policies and proposals that are coming forward um to to say that we maybe dont need to have an idea. We dont need to show who we are. We dont need to prove that the system and give what my colleague on the other side of the aisle just said, which is the perception of a good system that has integrity and character. I know im past my time. So thank you to all the witnesses, with that mr chairman, i yield back. I will now recognize the gentleman from michigan mr. Meyer for five minutes. Thank you, mr. Chair, and thank you to our witnesses who are here today. I think something that has come up in a lot of the questions and testimonies that public trust and confidence in our elections is essential. And i think what we also saw in the 2020 election that that hinges strongly on having quick and accurate results. The longer it takes for results to be reported, the more time that is spent on that count. It allows the room for doubt disinformation and conspiracy theories to multiply that then further degrades public faith in our elections secretary larose, you know, there are several steps that stakes can take to states can take to make sure those Election Results<\/a> reported quickly and accurately, including the pre processing of absentee ballots, encouraging early in person voting if someone is not present to vote in person on election day. Can you describe what steps ohio has taken to make sure that your Election Results<\/a> can be reported as quickly and accurately as possible . And are there other actions that you have taken to improve the timeliness and accuracy of Election Results<\/a> . Yeah, congressman, thank you for the question. I wrote a Mission Statement<\/a> on my chief of staffs dry erase summer of 2020 and i said when ohioans go to bed on Election Night<\/a>, they will know and they will believe the results of the 2020 president ial election. We accomplished both of those missions. Its about logistics and and preparation. Its about making sure that you have the procedures in place to quickly tabulate, but to never sacrifice accuracy for speed. Thats the balance that weve struck here in ohio. And one of the reasons why we were able to report our results on Election Night<\/a> is that we process our absentee ballots ahead of time. I know your state doesnt do that candidly. Its something that you all should look at because we dont count ballots until the polls are closed on Election Night<\/a>. But we do process them ahead of time. We check the identification heck even taking them out of their envelopes and flattening them out so theyre ready to go through the scanner, thats a process that takes a while. And those are the kind of things that we do in ohio to make sure that we can deliver those results on election. And also again, that decentralized nature of how this is done, its done at 88 different county boards of elections and making sure that they have the tools necessary to get that job done has been one of our top priorities. I think the phrase in the army for that would be slow and steady, smooth, as fast. Very good, yes sir. Do you have any issues establishing and implementing those processes and and as you look to other states and as you travel around, you talk to other secretaries of state, um you know, our other states well equipped or or well suited to adopt similar best practices, or are there resource constraints along these lines that may require federal support . You know, the thing is if youve seen the way one state runs elections, then youve seen the way one state runs elections. Right. Theyre all different. And so a lot of those would require changes at the state level, but now is the time to do that well in advance of the next president ial election. And so if your state has laws that prevent the boards of elections from being able to process absentee ballots and get them ready to go and count them immediately as soon as the polls close, then thats something that you should look at. As far as constraints on resources. Some of this stuff isnt expensive to give you an example. In 2020 we directed our county boards of elections to consider spending some of their have a money or cares act money on a simple 1000 machine that cuts open envelopes are rural boards have been using the old slicer to cut it open. Its just a process improvement. Like 1,000 envelope slicing machine can be a big improvement, but yes, federal support is important and weve used it well here in ohio. And one last thing when we um were going into the 2020 elections in michigan and and obviously with large number of absentee ballots, there was, im not tracking how other states were dealing with us at the judicial level, but we temporarily had a judicial opinion that ballots could be received after the time polls closed so long as they were postmarked, you know, by the date of the election. Now weve seen similar processes like that in california in new , california, in new york. We have colleagues here in the house who had to wait several months in order to learn whether or not they had won or lost their primary in some elections or or general election as well. Can you speak to just what you have seen in terms i guess if you could just remark on that, i know i have 30 seconds left so we just love your quick thoughts. Some of the worst things that happen in Elections Administration<\/a> happened as a result of crisis opportunism at the things that go wrong. Elections generally arent some sort of cloak and dagger secretive operation. It happens in the plain light of day in a courtroom and those kind of last minute decisions are very problematic. Election law should be made at the state house. Never at the courthouse. Thank you, i yield back. The chair now recognizes the gentleman from new jersey. Mr. Van drew. Thank you, mr chairman, and Ranking Member<\/a> and thank you for the witnesses for testifying today before Committee Miss<\/a> committee. Ms. Howard, and your testimony, you assert that the loss of Election Administration<\/a> expertise and experience is likely to spur further disinformation and in and use a michigan countys mistakes in the 2020 election as an example of why having informed and knowledgeable Election Officials<\/a> is so very crucial. I agree with you that in order for your people to have faith in elections and for elections to occur smoothly, we need to have Election Officials<\/a> who are willing and able to correctly do their jobs. Its important. I also believe that people need to have confidence in their technology and in their equipment that is used to count their votes. You made one mention of dominion, and these dominion Voting Machines<\/a> in your testimony, but did not elaborate on the distrust in those machines. Its important to ensure that Election Officials<\/a> are using the very best Technology Available<\/a> and possible. Just last month, cisa published a report which highlighted issues with dominions technology. With one concern being that the authentication mechanism used is susceptible to forgery. Thats just unacceptable. We cannot live with that. We need Election Integrity<\/a>. In addition to having qualified Election Officials<\/a>, do you think its important to have machines and software that are secure and not susceptible to forgery. That is my first question. My next question is in my district there were thousands upon thousands of people who received multiple ballots in the mail, alex were people who used to live at that residence, ballots for people who used to pass who passed away. The list goes on and on. Id like to know what you feel about that new jersey carelessly sent out millions of live ballots to people who did not request them, which rightfully caused great concern among south jersey voters. Its no surprise that voters worry and wonder about the validity of voting. Do you think that states are sending out millions of unsolicited ballots which are often drawn from outdated voter rolls . And do you think that in any way it could possibly promote Election Security<\/a>. So those are my two questions and i thank you for your time. Thank you so much for your questions. So first ill say that no system is 100 secure. In the Election Security<\/a> sphere, we are all endeavoring to make our election systems more resilient. The three main prongs of the Election Security<\/a> stool, if you will, are to have paper ballots, post election audits where you actually go back and review um those paper ballots and solid cybersecurity practices across the board. Jamaican jerk so paper ballots i am sorry to interrupt just for a second. Im sorry to do that. When you say paper ballots, do you mean paper backup or do you mean that actually you prefer paper ballots system. Bank . Paper ballots. Okay. And youre gonna explain why . So the voting on paper ballots ensures that in the event that there are any questions about the accuracy of elections, you can go back to the record that the voter voted on and check and confirm the accuracy of the outcome thats been reported. And you saw post election audits conducted across the country after the 2020 election and again after the 2022 primaries. And you will see more and more audits conducted after the 2022 midterms. And so to your second question, you know, mistakes happen in elections. No election is perfect. However, Election Officials<\/a> have a number of safeguards built into all of the processes and all of the cycles in our election system. So they have safeguards built into the Voter Registration<\/a> process. They have safeguards built into the absentee ballot voting process. They have safeguards implemented in voting on in person on election day. So even in the event of mistakes or errors, these safeguards are put into place to protect um the integrity of our elections and to ensure that eligible voters cast a ballot. Real quick. I know i only have a couple of seconds. The gentlemans time is up. Thank. I will now recognize the gentlewoman. Ms. Titus. Thank you, mr. Chairman. I want to join all of you in wishing chairman Bennie Thompson<\/a> a quick recovery. We miss him and we hope hes doing okay. You know, weve heard all the testimony and i agree with it that Election Security<\/a> is a constantly evolving threat to uh our whole democratic process. The environment changes from one cycle to the next. In 2016, we were primarily concerned about russian interference. Then, in 2020, it was the former president s big lie, that kind of was the biggest threat to elections. And now during the 2022, we need to look at what is in the political environment that could again threaten our elections. And i believe its those domestic threats that are the most serious that we need to worry about. Last month, i wrote a letter to secretary mayorkas, many of the members of this committee signed onto it to raise concerns about the increased threat environment as a result of the Supreme Court<\/a>s decision to overturn the right to abortion. I cited an analysis from the Southern Nevada<\/a> Counterterrorism Center<\/a> that found that domestic violence, extremists motivated by the heightened political environment could threaten our midterm elections. And the report predicted that the threats would increase against our election workers. In fact, in 2019, the number of attacks in the u. S. Against abortion providers more than doubled and im afraid that our elections will be bear the brunt of that in the upcoming months. And then our election co workers could be the targets as well. I would ask secretary oliver if he has taken any steps to protect elections in new mexico against this heightened threat environment, postdocs decision, and how this committee can work with to get jess dhs to kind of navigate this threatening environment for our elections as we move towards november congresswoman. We certainly are. And and let me just say this um this, all of these potential threats that you just cited on the cyber front, you know, resulting from continued unhappiness with the outcome of the 2020 election. You know, in 2020 of course we were dealing with um civil unrest across the country um leading into elections. And so, you know, response to the dobbs decision, you know, you know, potentially could see similar things. So yes, to answer your question, we very much are we coordinate very closely with not only our federal Law Enforcement<\/a> but our state police and our local Law Enforcement<\/a> partners. We meet with them regularly. We set up virtual situation rooms in the lead up to and on election day to monitor not just the cyber environment to ensure that it is secure, but the physical environment of our votes are polling places and any place where voting activity or ballot processing activity is going on around the state. We continue to learn more and so we continue to develop more tools and plans for how to deal with that more effectively as each election passes. It sounds like new mexico is doing a good job. Some of the rest of us could learn from you establishing these best practices. Any one thing you could recommend that we ought to go home and talk about to our own state election departments. One great thing that were doing here in new mexico and i know some other states are doing this as well as weve also formed a partnership with our new mexico state air national guard. Their Cyber Task Force<\/a> comes and works on site with us during the election process as well. So weve added additional eyes and ears and expertise to monitor our cyber environment to ensure that thats safe and and its been a Wonderful Partnership<\/a> i recommended in every state. Well, well certainly do that. Thank you so much. The chair now it recognizes the gentleman from louisiana, esther higgins. Mr. Higgins. Thank you. Mr. Chairman. I thank our panelists for appearing before us today virtually. Mr. Chairman Election Fraud<\/a> is a as a reality throughout history of modern man across the world fraud and criminal behavior is as old as mankind itself, as old as mankind. It is mans tendency to succumb to fail your spirit. We are failed and fallen since adam and our elections are no exception to that. Read a quote from political article regarding the university of Pennsylvania Research<\/a> scholar immediately after president ial election. He said, how could this be . He researched exit poll numbers that he was familiar with that had been reported on the night of the election. And he says he went down a rabbit hole of Statistical Analysis<\/a> in search of explanations for the votes that seemed to have magically appeared a week after the election. He shared a draft of his finding with his colleagues, scholars all and a conclusion was that i quote, fraud was an unavoidable hypothesis. Close quote. His analysis wound up spreading widely drawing thousands of responses from around the country. People who believe as he did that the election had been stolen, quote from a political article, but its about the 2004 election bush and kerry. This was a democrat analyst understand. Ladies and gentlemen, my colleagues on both sides of the aisle Election Fraud<\/a> and compromise elections. Its not new. It is as old as man itself. What is new now is the digital age. Nobody had an iphone in the 2000 election. Bush and al gore, highly controversial, 2004. There was no facebook. Now we face a digital era where the theater of engagement has changed and nowhere more so than in our sovereign states responsibility to carry out solid elections every year that the American People<\/a> can depend upon. So the real challenge right now is how will our sovereign states present best models dealing with the perception amongst the american citizenry that our elections like integrity, that their votes will not count. This must be addressed at the state level. I for one do not support the federalization of our election. Were a representative republic of sovereign states. This is a this is a states role and therefore the best practices of those states amongst the sovereign state that have provided solid, secure election cycle after cycle. This must be shared and encouraged amongst your state partners across the country. So, as secretary larose, if youre prepared for a question , sir, as we saw at the 2020 election due to the covid pandemic, as americans are concerned. It was quite convenient, the pandemic, mail in ballots and it certainly presented challenges state by state. But how do we deal with this , millions and millions and millions of some, arguably outside the parameters of the law of that sovereign state wherein they were delivered. Theres a constitutional questions that will be settled. Ultimately in article three, adjudicated, and we will learn from our challenges of the 2020 election cycle. But i ask you secretary larose, during the covid pandemic, our country had to make a dramatic shift regarding how our country was forced to make a dramatic shift, found themselves making that choice on how to conduct elections. What were some lessons learned, sir, and how can that be shared with the rest of the country as we move towards this election cycle . To encourage americans that are indeed, our elections are indeed secure. And that actions have been embraced within the sovereign states to make certain that our elections are secure. The time has expired. The time has expired. But you can answer the question concisely, please. Yeah, ill answer the question briefly resist the the temptation for crisis opportunism. The way that your state has run elections has been put in place for a reason. Follow your state laws work with your state legislature to make changes if you need to dont allow the courts uh to make last minute changes in your elections and mind the logistics. Pay attention to the nuts and bolts of getting ballots to people that should have them and getting them back and not doing things that are sort of novel just because youre in a crisis. Thank you. I will now recognize i will now recognize the gentlewoman from texas. Miss jackson. Ms. Jackson lee. Yes, thank you very much. Mr. Chairman, and good morning to all of the witnesses. Let me be very clear of the importance of this hearing. And i will concisely take the ultimate reason though. Over the years, weve looked at the questions of Voter Registration<\/a> machines, cybersecurity, all important issues for this very focused committee on Homeland Security<\/a>. But the real issue is in the aftermath of the 2020 elections wrapped up in the big lie. And the continuation of the big lie is really the question of threats to the physical security of elections. With an increase in threats to elections officers and a heightened risk of officials acting improperly due to disinformation. That is simply what we are facing, in our ability to really carry legitimate hearing. Excuse me, legitimate elections , that are guided by as the previous witness, said by the laws of the state and not guided by misinformation, disinformation and violence. This is what were facing. I was appalled at the threat of the Elections Officials<\/a> in atlanta and georgia in the last election still unchecked today. Im appalled at the state laws that have criminalized anyone trying to be a Good Samaritan<\/a> with a glass of water. So mr. Oliver, let me ask you, as relates to Election Officials<\/a>. Protection funding often does not reach its intended target. What is hindering those funds for reaching the Election Officials<\/a> . Congresswoman, it is ok. I just want to make sure you met me. Yeah, congresswoman. I think theres a couple of issues. I think first and foremost one of the Biggest Challenges<\/a> we have, for example, in my state and i know many of my colleagues have shared similar concerns um because the funding that weve received so far, which by the way we are incredibly grateful for and i will never stop thanking you all for what you have allocated to the states to help in our work because it has come sporadically in Lump Sum Payments<\/a> and we dont necessarily know when or if there will be more funding coming. Weve had to be extremely diligent and thoughtful about making those funds last as long as possible to sustain the programs that weve built around Election Security<\/a> and cybersecurity. So often that means we are holding onto funds at the state level. You know, wait, waiting to see what we are going to continue to need in the future because we cant necessarily count on that additional funding. And then, madam congressman, i know congresswoman, i know that some states like my colleague in minnesota, for example, when the federal funding is allocated. He then has to go through the approval of the state legislature. And that timing doesnt necessarily align for when those funds are allocated and when the secretary can then get a hold of them. Thank you. Ive got only a short period of time. So i see the logjam that we need to address. Let me ask miss howard again on the question of Election Security<\/a> in the attack on election workers. I think your testimony mentioned that election workers are simply leaving their positions in my positions. In my time as a Public Servant<\/a> and going before the voters, it was an honor to be engaged in the election process. What are some of the things that we can do immediately to help fill these positions as well as prevent more workers from leaving . Im now in the midst of the Judiciary Committee<\/a> hearing trying to ban assault weapons. I dont know with this rise in gun violence, whether someone will think its important for their position to come to a pole poll with a gun. What should we do and how should the federal government be involved . I frankly believe we should be doing a lot more with persons on the ground, miss howard. Thank you for your work at the Brennan Center<\/a>. Thank you so much for the question. There are several things that congress can do. So First Congress<\/a> can allocate funding specifically for um training for Election Officials<\/a> about how to for their physical safety and they can allocate funding so that Election Officials<\/a> can enhance the security, their personal residences. Congress can also request specific training to Election Officials<\/a> to protect their personal security. In addition, congress can work with the multiple federal agencies and departments that are working to help protect our Election Officials<\/a> to make sure that their efforts are effective. I think just very quickly then in one second that i have and let me just stick with miss howard. I am sorry. Your time is expired and we do have a number of people. So i will submit it in writing. Thank you so very much. Um, i now recognize the gentleman from new york. Mr. Garbarino. Is mr. Garbarino here . Yeah. Online. Thank you. Chairman and Ranking Member<\/a> for holding this hearing. Mr. Secretary larose, i had a question for you. You talked briefly about your partnership with cisa and in 2019 when russian individual russia connected individuals attempted to hack your states system. Is that where that relationship started with cisa or did you have something going on before with them . And how did they help or how did the federal government assist you after your the attempted hack in 2019 . Yeah, i can tell you that i made it a priority from my first couple of days in office to get to know my parts and other and we work closely with the Cyber Security<\/a> teams in other states as well as my partners at at cisa and then down to the county level. So its about, its about laterally and up and down. So weve been working with them ever since i came into office. But that partnership paid off as you mentioned when our state, like many other states was the subject of a what what resulted to in a ransomware attempt. Okay. So with your, with, you know, working with cisa, and they are, you know, the head of cybersecurity. Cybersecurity structure, Security Agency<\/a> and now uh, the election system has been declared as Critical Infrastructure<\/a> from. So their job is to protect it from cyber and physical threats. What services does this to provide one of things that they could do better on, you know, whats good, whats bad about what your relationship with them . Yeah. So first of all, information flow has gotten a lot better. At one point in time, it was kind of like we had to pull information out of them and and i can tell you that thats gotten better over time and theyve been purposeful about that. Theres a whole variety of services that they offer down to a county level. Ive actually required as part of our security directives that 1. 02. 0 and 3. 0 that ive put out, weve required our counties to engage in those services. One question is just one of, of resources and sometimes there is a backlog in actually receiving those services. I noticed cisa has worked to address that. But if there was one helpful thing, it would be working to to increase the resources that system so that those Servers Services<\/a> can be delivered more quickly without the delay that currently exists. So theyre doing a good job. You just need to we just need to increase their uh their funding so they can they can do it better. And the team is this is incredibly purposeful that from the director on down. In fact she took the time to come visit us in ohio personally just two weeks ago and we appreciate the partnership with them. Yeah, we have a very good working relationship with her, the director recently as well, but we think shes doing a great job over there. I appreciate that. I am going to yield to my colleague, mr. Pflueger from texas. I know he had some more questions. Thank you, thank you for the time and nothing is more important than the the integrity of our elections right now. And there is distrust in the American Public<\/a>. There is a distrust and remind my colleagues that in fact a former gubernatorial candidate in the state of georgia still wont concede the election for governor there. You know, the distrust here and ill focus my questions with ms howard you mentioned safeguards a number of times safeguards for elections to make sure that theyre secured to make sure that the trust, the public has the trust. So on the subject of identification zeids would you say that the use of ieds to register the use of ieds to ids to register, the use of ids to actually vote and prove who you are . And the use of ids to then match up when youre counting those votes would be a safeguard that would enhance that trust in the Election Integrity<\/a> in all states. [indiscernible] no i understand that. I want to i want to hear your take on safeguards because youve speak with Great Authority<\/a> on this. Oh im so sorry, thank you. Thank you for the question. I think whether or not a photo id is critical is depends upon the other safeguards that are in the system. You cannot just look up one piece. In states like new york or new jersey where ballots can be mailed without actually requesting them. Wouldnt that be a good safeguard to add that id . Then matches up the person who is voting or a signature . So in many states the absentee ballot process requires that the voters sign the return envelope. Some states require an additional witness signature on there. So again it depends on all the other safeguards that are in the process. So would you say in your comment previously you said all states have different different takes on it are you for the federalization of our election system. So i think that there have been important federal laws that protect the safeguards that protect every american, every citizens right to vote. So for instance in have a which was passed after the 2000 election. It included mandatory provisional ballots be offered to individuals um that have issues at the polls on election day as a safeguard. I think the safeguards that we need can be based around an id that tells you who that person is. Especially in states that dont have the signature requirement or that mail ballots to people who might not have asked for them. The American Public<\/a> deserves that. We have to have a system that has integrity and that we trust and right now there is a great distrust in our election system. Thank the gentleman from new york for yielding the time. The chair now recognizes mr. Clyde. The gentleman from georgia. Mr. Clyde for five minutes. Thank you. Chairman torres, the safety and well being of Election Administrators<\/a> and a robust secure election infrastructure is paramount to a functioning republic. In recent years, Election Security<\/a> has become an even greater concern because of the radical changes and quote flexibilities that were allowed and attributed to covid19. For example, the Supreme Court<\/a> in pennsylvania ruled just weeks before a president ial election. The ballots should be accepted as late as the friday after election day. Even ballots without a postmark. This was of course a direct encroachment on the authority of the Pennsylvania State<\/a> legislature which enacted strong Election Integrity<\/a> regulations and voter id. And this certainly caused much confusion for Election Administrators<\/a> and for the voters. This issue hits right at home with my constituents as our very own secretary of state, unilaterally altered georgias statutory requirements requiring the authentication of absentee ballot signatures with an unlawful consent decree. Understandably, people are concerned with the administration of the 2020 elections because partisan officials bypassed the legislative process, effectively changing the rules of the game as the game was being played. According to the documentary 2000 mules, thousands of ballots were illegally harvested by political operatives and placed into drop boxes in at least five states, which is a direct violation of state laws, which clearly say that you can only return ballots for immediate family members. To be sure, our local Election Administrators<\/a> are not to blame for the poor decisions of some state elected officials that cast doubt on our Election Integrity<\/a>. I applaud the efforts of Election Administrators<\/a> in spite of rapidly changing guidance to administer elections in accordance with the constitution and state laws and i agree that their safety is paramount. Nevertheless, these constantly changing election laws from left leaning judges amid a president ial election rightfully led to voters having questions and frustrations about the integrity of the elections. Strong election laws like georgias sb 202 will do a lot to ensure confidence in elections across the country. But hand recounts of paper ballots by local Election Officials<\/a> would go a long way to further the confidence of concerned voters. In fact, i think that in my home state, every election should have an automatic 10 recount of random counties to act as an audit of the results. So, miss howard, to your comment . I think that what you said about the need for election audits is absolutely correct. Well, i believe stronger election laws that restore confidence in our election process will reduce the threats of Violence Toward<\/a> Election Officials<\/a>. I believe that local Law Enforcement<\/a> is the first and best line of defense for these types of threats and we make sure that those who commit unlawful acts of violence are prosecuted at the state level. Its no secret that my democrat colleagues have exploited these threats to justify a federal takeover of elections. Make no mistake. This hearing will be used as a platform by the democrat majority to push for total federal control like mr. Sarbanes preventing election subversion act of 2021. With that being said, i will direct my first question to mr. Larose. Mr larose, as you know, the democrats so called election subversion. Bill h r 40 64 would set forth burdensome requirements for federal elections. For example, it prevents meaning for meaningful poll observer access by mandating an eight ft foot minimum distance in order to observe ballot counts across the country. Im aware that there have been threats against Election Administrators<\/a> in the state of ohio. Is local Law Enforcement<\/a> equipped to investigate and arrest the individuals who made these kind of threats, sir . More than adequately equipped. We send a memo to all of our partners before each election making sure that not only do they know the rights but a responsibility to safeguard poll workers and voters, everyone involved in the process. We have gotten elected officials to be of whipped with the Police Radios<\/a> through our say system in the case of an emergency so we can communicate directly with Law Enforcement<\/a> area enforcement. Local Law Enforcement<\/a> is more than adequately equipped. Next question, how would such a federal regulation imposing an eight foot observer distance impact your constituents confidence that the poll observer could do their work effectively . Well, observation is crucial, but really what that is is micromanagement. For somebody in washington to think that they need to tell 88 county boards of elections in ohio and how many hundreds of other county boards of elections across the country how far away observers should stand is the height of federal government arrogance in my opinion. Thank you. I believe that local control is best when it comes to things like this. Miss howard, as you may be aware of poll workers at a large Polling Center<\/a> in detroit michigan blocked the windows with cardboard pizza boxes to bar observer access to the 2020 election . Do you believe it is appropriate for windows to be blocked so that the views of observers are obstructed. Thank you for your question. Im not familiar with the allegations about what happened in detroit, but i will say in general there are laws in michigan and many other states which allow for observers at various different processes, various different points of the election process. And those observers authorized under law should not be obstructed. The gentlemans time has expired. Thank you. I yield back. And i now recognize the gentleman from florida. Thank you, mr chairman. Very timely topic as we head into a very important election in this years midterms and i think its something that we all have grave concerns about. Of course Election Integrity<\/a> is a driving issue and i think as a fundamental right to go out and vote, we need to really ensure that peoples ballots are being counted as they intend them to be counted when they are cast. And so i know folks across the country are really watching this and members have been coming and going so for our witnesses. Im just gonna ask a couple of questions to make sure that i understand exactly where yall stand on this. So ill start with miss oliver, do you believe that a government issued id complete with a photo should be required to vote . And this question will go to all witnesses. But i will start with miss oliver. Thank you, congresswoman. We do not require that here in new mexico. It is one option. Excuse me, how can you verify the identity of an individual without a photo id that is government issued . They are required to provide other identifiable information. Again, a photo id is an option for voters. They can also provide other forms of documentary id or give a verbal confirmation of personal private information to verify their identity. That doesnt seem particularly secure so we might want to work on that. Mr. Kelly. I remind myself that i am retired so i can give my personal opinion. Now i dont believe it would be a bad thing to provide an id to increase voter confidence. I dont know ultimately what problem it solves in some cases but i dont think it would be a bad idea. Miss howard, i think that its hard to look at one piece of the election. Just a yes or no maam. Do you believe that a government id complete with a photo should be required to vote . And mr. Larose . Congresswoman, the simple answer is yes and most americans believe that as well and we should make sure everybody can get one easily and that we maintain accurate voter rolls. Absolutely. I think its very curious that of the four witnesses that we have here today. Three have said in some form or fashion that no photo id it should be required to vote that a verbal confirmation. Is all that is to suffice that a person is who they say they are. I mean i can go out and say that im Jennifer Aniston<\/a> but that doesnt make me Jennifer Aniston<\/a> as much as i would like it to be. So we need to i think one uh if were talking about this issue start with the basic premise of verification. You need a photo id to cash a check. To live life. We require drivers licenses with photos to drive a car. There are basic things that we have to do in life that require photo id. I dont think that this is discriminatory in any shape, way form or fashion. And i would love to see our local officials work to really make sure that it is as accessible and easy to get a government issued id complete with a photo so that we dont have these questions down the road. Im gonna go to my second question, do you believe that Third Party Political<\/a> organizations that are funded by Political Parties<\/a> should be prohibited from signature verification . And i will start with you mr. Larose. Excuse me. Yeah, in ohio, that work of signature verification is done by sworn Election Officials<\/a> from both parties and observed by the public if they wish to observe , thats where signature verification should be done. Thats how we do it in. Do it in ohio. Excellent, thank you, mr. Larose. Ms. Howard. Thank you for the question. You know i think that secretary larose brings up an important point. The signature verification procedures that im aware of are done by Election Officials<\/a>, many of whom are are sworn in and sworn to uphold the state and institution. Mr. Kelly . I believe in the exact same thing secretary larose said. Miss oliver . I agree with secretary larose and i will just quickly add that in my state and many we do allow Political Party<\/a> observers of that process. I appreciate that. For miss oliver and mr. Larose, im sure you all are aware of the eric system, the system that allows states to talk to each other, so if a person who is registered to vote in florida passes away in ohio, the two states can talk to each other to make sure that those voter roles are updated. Do you believe that each state should employ the use of the eric system . And ill start with you miss oliver. Absolutely. We use it here and we encourage it everywhere. Thank you. Mr. Larose. Great tool for Fraud Prevention<\/a> and gives us a way to catch people that try to vote in multiple states even though thats rare. We can catch them now using eric every state should consider using it. I appreciate it. My time has expired so i will submit my remainder of my questions for the record. Thank you. I yield back thank you. I yield back. The chair now recognizes the gentleman from kansas. Mr. Turner. Thank you. Mr. Larose, thank you so much for being with us today. Its its good to see you. I want to talk about a couple of things with you. First of all, the vulnerability disclosure policy im interested in that. Could you talk about what that is and what that looks like and how its implemented . Congratulations on being the first state, by the way. Well, thank you. And it was written up by a number of publications at the time because it was kind of a novel thing. I enjoyed being able to stand in front of groups in 2020 and say im the guy that runs ohios elections and im asking people to hack me now. Of course youd get gasps and youd have to then explain it to people. What im saying is the good guys and gals. The white hacker, white hat or ethical hackers out there. Sometimes they call themselves security researchers now, which is a more warm and fuzzy sounding thing. But the fact is there are folks out there that love to do this, to find vulnerabilities there, motivated by patriotic purposes to try to find where those vulnerabilities exist and to tell us about them so you can see our vulnerability disclosure policy. If you go to ohio s o s dot gov or vote ohio dot gov and go right to the bottom of our website. It says vulnerability disclosure policy. And if you click on that, it says, hey, good guy hackers. If you find something, tell us , now you cant vandalize our site, you cant cause some sort of a breach. But if you tell us, well not only fix the problem, but well recognize you. We had a great ethical hacker on our stage and our Election Officials<\/a> conference and we gave him a big award and thats the kind of thing that other states should be doing as well. I appreciate that. As youre aware, sis offers a cisa offers a vulnerability disclosure policy platform to help federal agencies. Is this in your opinion . Something that could engage in or should engage in with states, and localities as well. Would that be helpful , congressman. Anything we can do to encourage and even incentivize this is good. We work currently with the private sector provider that helps get the word out to the Hacker Community<\/a> that hey, listen, ohio wants to use your expertise and will recognize you for your efforts, but to do that through system would be a great tool as well. I read that in one of your counties, they have 551 workers that need 846 for the poll watchers. And im curious how do you plan to close that gap . This is a problem that states across the country are having and what do you think the potential implications are for Election Integrity<\/a> and security . Yes. So we will close that gap , congressman. Its something that, that weve been focused on really from the very beginning. You know, weve done Creative Things<\/a> like recruit High School Seniors<\/a> through what we call the youth at the booth program. Weve worked with my fellow veterans asking them to answer a second call to duty right to continue fulfilling that oath that they took to preserve and protect the constitution. Weve worked with businesses encouraging them to give their employees a day for democracy. Give them a free day off and uncharged day off to be poll workers. So those are kind of were doing, but were also holding our boards of elections accountable . The reason you know, that number is because we publicly reported now and so those county boards of elections that dont have enough poll workers, they get the scrutiny and the pressure to make sure they get their by election day. It sounds like youre doing a lot of exciting things there. How many other states are, are implementing the vulnerable vulnerability disclosure policy . Do you have any idea . I believe its in the Single Digits<\/a> at this point, but it is growing okay. And what about the ideas that you talked about. The youth in the booth and things like that . Are you sharing these in your your professional organization or anything . So other other states have the opportunity to benefit from your experience . Yeah, for us, its the National Association<\/a> of secretaries of state. My friend and colleague from new mexico was an active participant and former president of that organization. We got together just a couple weeks ago in baton rouge and we were exchanging ideas uh and this is exactly what we do. So yeah, we love to steal each others good ideas. And hopefully my colleagues around the country steal some good ideas from. I appreciate that. Mr. Your department would produce an Election Security<\/a> playbook in conjunction with officials. Can you talk more about this in the impetus your outlet your office put on collaboration. It is key as i talk about the secretary, we are all rowing in the same direction that we are collaborating and sharing information so we can tackle this problem. Thank you, congressman. Collaboration was a big part of what we did in Orange County<\/a>. I partnered at the table with fbi, local, state officials, Law Enforcement<\/a> and we came up with the playbook and design with responses on election day period leading up to election day. If you dont have the collaboration leading up to those important elements, you are going to have gaps, theres no question about it. One of the quick things is doing things like maintenance and increasing that maintenance effort before balance go out so that you can improve voter confidence. Thats important. I appreciate that, my time has expired. I yield back. Thank you, we are at the end of our hearing. Before i conclude i do want to ask each witness, whats the most important action that we in congress can take to fundamentally enhance Election Security<\/a> . Thank you again mr. Chairman, thank you for having me here today, i think it has been a very important discussion, and i think i will note we share differing political views. I think there have been a lot of pieces throughout the conversation, and hopefully that you all in the American Public<\/a> increased confidence in our election process. Research chairman, continue to support us as Election Officials<\/a> in our state. I think many commenters today have noticed the importance of allowing state and the constitutional requirement to allow state to conduct elections. We do so many things in common to ensure the integrity of our elections, but continue to support us in our efforts and particularly with it doesnt have to be a lot, but ongoing funding so that we can protect our critical election infrastructure, which is a part of our National Security<\/a> infrastructure. Thank you so much. Was the most important thing we can do in congress . Mr. Chairman, i echo the secretarys comments. Thank you for the meeting. I believe funding is important in improving physical security and election offices will go along way and that assistance is badly needed. Then, raising awareness on the issue. It is very important did that not only the American Public<\/a> become aware, but local Law Enforcement<\/a> leaders and elected officials across the country. Thank you so much for holding this hearing today. I think the most important thing that congress can do is to provide additional funding for Election Officials<\/a> and to require the currently available funding to have the minimum stand for Election Security<\/a>. Thank you so much mr. Chairman. We each have an important responsibility from the county level Election Officials<\/a>, state officials, to you all at the federal level. The first thing is, allow us to do our jobs and dont try to do our jobs for us by setting the specific rules surrounding Election Administration<\/a>. But do support us with the great resources that you offer now. Consider growing those resources. One additional thing is that voter list maintenance is one of the most important responsibilities we have maintaining that very dynamic list thats constantly changing. Its hard. Federal government has resources thats not always made available to the stay as far as verifying citizenship data and death records. So more dataflow as it goes to maintenance would be helpful. I think the witnesses for their excellent testimony and the members for their question. Numbers of the committee may have additional questions for the witnesses that we ask you to respond expeditiously in writing to those questions. The chair reminds you that the committee record will remain open for 10 business days. Without objection, the committee stands adjourned. Coming up thursday on cspan, the houses back at 9 00 a. M. Eastern to take up a bill that ensures access to contraceptive. At 8 00 a. M. , the january 6 committee holds another hearing for president trumps actions during the u. S. Capitol attack. On cspan two, the Senate Returns<\/a> at 10 00 a. M. To continue debate on legislation to assist the production of computer chips in the u. S. And on cspan three, the house Homeland Security<\/a> committee holds a confirmation hearing for david to continue as head of the transportation security administration. 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