Nevada: Elections head in Washoe County resigns, underscoring election turnover in key state | Gabe Stern/Associated Press
The turnover among election officials in Nevada continues as Washoe County Registrar of Voters, Jamie Rodriguez, abruptly resigns less than a month before the Feb. 6 presidential preference primary. In her resignation letter, Rodriguez expressed a desire to pursue opportunities outside of elections and spend more time with family in preparation for the crucial 2024 election cycle. This adds to the eleven of Nevada's 17 counties that have seen turnover in top county election positions since the 2020 election. Rodriguez's departure comes after an extensive audit in Washoe County revealed issues of rapid turnover and understaffing that hindered election processes. The state has faced resignations due to threats, lack of support, and challenges in implementing changes like the universal mail ballot system. Read ArticleNew Hampshire: New Dominion voting machines may not be widely available for 2024 election | Amanda Gokee/The Boston Globe
New Hampshire’s aging AccuVote voting machines need to be replaced, but an updated voting machine from Dominion might not be ready for the 2024 election in November. Secretary of State David Scanlan said when the ImageCast devices were conditionally approved, the New Hampshire vendor that services the machines, LHS Associates, said they believed they would be ready in time for the election, as did VotingWorks, a second voting machine company that received approval. Both machines have to undergo state and federal testing before receiving full approval. The testing of VotingWorks machines is on schedule, according to Scanlan, who anticipates three to four machines will be in place in 2024. But during a December meeting of the Ballot Law Commission, the president of LHS Associates Jeff Silvestro said Dominion might not be able to complete all of the testing required by the state of New Hampshire in time. Read Article
North Dakota: Laboratory for a Suite of MAGA-Driven Election Reforms? | Greg Simbeck/WhoWhatWhy
A proposed ballot measure in North Dakota, led by Lydia Gessele, aims to mandate hand counting of all ballots in elections, with several other major proposed changes, including new restrictions on mail-in balloting, a mandate for all in-person voting to take place on Election Day, and the elimination of tribal government-issued IDs and long-term care IDs as valid identification at the polls. The proposal is part of a broader movement influenced by unsupported claims of election rigging in the 2020 election. Verified Voting comments on the proposal, highlighting the importance of safeguards in voting technology and expressing concerns about widespread expansion of hand counting impairing election administration and undermining public confidence in U.S. elections. The measure faces opposition from Republican officials, including the current Secretary of State Michael Howe, who argues that hand counts are less standardized than using scanners. Read ArticlePennsylvania elections chief: Fixes coming to avoid errors that plagued Northampton County | Tom Shortell/Lehigh Valley News
Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt has expressed confidence that Northampton County is addressing the issues that led to problems in the 2023 general election. The issues, which involved voters casting emergency ballots due to problems with the ExpressVote XL voting machines, were attributed to human error rather than flaws in the voting system. Schmidt mentioned that the state is stepping up training and assistance for county election officials to prevent similar errors in future elections. The state is also revisiting guidance on logic and accuracy testing, considering the importance of manual testing, and establishing a training office for county election officials.Read ArticlePennsylvania: As 2024 election approaches, voting officials worry state isn’t prepared for misinformation | Kate HuangpuSpotlight PA
As the 2024 presidential election approaches, election officials in Pennsylvania are urging the state to update its century-old Election Code and make critical adjustments to mail voting processes to fortify the system against baseless fraud claims. The election directors are proposing changes like clarifying mail voting rules, allowing poll workers to count ballots before Election Day through pre-canvassing, updating the Election Code to reflect technological advancements, and imposing penalties for false claims and harassment of election officials. However, there is skepticism about the state legislature's willingness to pass such changes, and the political divide on election issues persists. Read ArticleTexas: Travis County GOP unable to secure resources for hand counting in primary election | Grace Reader/KXAN
The Travis County Republican Party in Texas was unable to secure the necessary resources to hand count early voting ballots in the March primary election, despite ongoing negotiations with the Travis County Democratic Party. Only Republican mail-in ballots will be hand-counted, while early voting ballots will not undergo the same process. The deadline for the GOP to gather volunteers and resources was December 31, and it was not met, according to County Clerk Dyana Limon-Mercado. Read ArticleWisconsin judge rules election clerks can accept absentee ballots missing parts of witness address | Jessie Opoien/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
A Dane County judge in Wisconsin ruled that election clerks in the state may accept absentee ballots with incomplete witness addresses, as long as they can determine how to reach the witness from the available information. The decision came in response to a request by a Madison voter and the liberal group Rise Inc. to revise guidance provided by the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) on handling incomplete addresses. The ruling establishes a uniform standard and is expected to reduce the rejection of absentee ballots. The decision may be appealed and could reach the state Supreme Court. Read ArticleNational: China, Russia, Iran and Cuba all tried to meddle in 2022 US congressional elections, intelligence assessment finds | Katie Bo Lillis/CNN
A declassified intelligence assessment released Monday revealed that foreign government efforts to target the 2022 U.S. midterm elections appeared to increase compared to the 2018 elections, involving a diverse and growing group of foreign actors. While there was no known order from any foreign leader to undertake a comprehensive, whole-of-government influence campaign like Russia in 2016, the report identified China, Russia, Iran, and Cuba attempting to meddle in congressional elections. China, with high confidence, was assessed to have tacitly approved efforts to influence specific midterm races, aiming to intensify efforts to influence U.S. policy and public opinion in its favor. Russia sought to denigrate the Democratic Party and undermine confidence in the elections, targeting specific demographics. Iran aimed to exploit social divisions and undermine confidence in U.S. democratic institutions, with efforts limited by competing priorities. The report highlighted that foreign actors avoided technically challenging efforts to change actual votes, focusing on damaging the public perception of election integrity. Read ArticlePennsylvania: Increase in ballot errors linked to loss of election worker experience | Carter Walker/Votebeat
Counties in Pennsylvania have experienced an increase in election administration errors impacting voters' ballots, with 16 errors reported by 12 counties in the November municipal election, more than double the number of errors from any other election since 2019. The errors, including instructions to vote for the wrong number of candidates and races left off the ballot, are linked to turnover and the loss of experience at local election offices. The errors have raised concerns about voters' trust in elections, especially in anticipation of a highly contentious presidential election in 2024. Election experts and the Department of State acknowledge that the increase is associated with new election administrators and staff turnover. Read ArticleNational: 2022 federal elections in the US not tainted by foreign interference, officials say | Eric Tucker’/Associated Press
A declassified U.S. government report released Monday states that foreign hackers did not alter vote totals or compromise the integrity of federal elections in the United States last year. The report, prepared jointly by the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security, identified instances of hackers linked to Iran, China, and Russia connecting to election infrastructure, scanning state government websites, and copying voter information. However, there is no evidence that these cyber activities had any impact on the election or vote totals. The report did not examine foreign efforts to shape public perception or influence voters' opinions but focused on assessing the impact of foreign government activity on election infrastructure. Read ArticleNational: GOP voter-fraud crackdown overwhelmingly targets minorities, Democrats | Justin Jouvenal/The Washington Post
In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, Republicans in six states established or expanded election integrity units to address alleged voter fraud. However, analysis by The Washington Post found that these units obtained only 47 convictions during a period when tens of millions of votes were cast. Moreover, the analysis revealed that the units overwhelmingly targeted minorities and Democrats for prosecution. Of the defendants whose race or ethnicity could be identified, 76 percent were Black or Hispanic, while registered Democrats constituted 58 percent of those charged. The cases pursued often collapsed, with 42 out of 115 cases resolved ending in dismissal, acquittal, or dropped charges. The Post's findings have raised concerns among experts and advocates, who argue that the units have been a waste of money and may undermine democracy. Read ArticleNational: Some Trump fake electors from 2020 haven’t faded away. They have roles in how the 2024 race is run | Gabe Stern/Associated Press
Six Republicans, including Jim Hindle, who were allegedly involved in attempting to overturn the election outcome in Nevada, have been indicted by Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford. Hindle, who oversees elections in heavily Republican Storey County, replaced the interim clerk and remains in his role despite the charges. The trend of fake electors retaining influence over elections is observed in battleground states like Wisconsin, Arizona, and Pennsylvania. In Wisconsin, Bob Spindell, involved in the 2020 fake elector scheme, remains on the bipartisan election commission, while in Arizona, fake electors Jake Hoffman and Anthony Kern hold powerful legislative roles. Read Article