Secretary of State Jon Husted said cyber attackers would have a hard time disrupting Ohio’s elections but expressed concern about what the federal government could do if it took over the state’s election computer systems. Husted, the state’s chief elections officer, wrote to congressional leaders Thursday asking that the House and Senate make clear that federal agencies cannot involve themselves in the election process. The letter was prompted by comments from Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson that his department would review whether state election systems should be considered as “critical infrastructure” under the Homeland Security Act of 2002. Such a designation would give the federal government ability to step in to protect those systems.
While Johnson has since made clear that the government intends only to study the issue, Husted said that his fear is that at some point, if the law is not clarified, the federal government might act.
“If you designate it as a critical infrastructure and take control of it, that is essentially taking control of the election,” Husted said. “I’ve had enough experience with federal government, federal regulations and the federal courts to know that unless you clearly state [that election systems are off limits] in the law you could see it someday.”
Full Article: Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted wants feds to butt out on running state elections | cleveland.com.