Almost two-thirds of election officials fear politicians interfering in their work: survey

Most local election officials fear for the safety of their colleagues and 62%, nearly two-thirds, are worried that politicians will try to interfere with the way they or others do their jobs, according to a new poll by Brennan Center for Justice and released Wednesday. .

The survey, which HuffPost had early access to, was based on responses from 928 local election officials between February 23 and March 28 of this year and showed that they have widespread concerns about security and political independence. Sixty-two percent of officials said they were very or somewhat concerned that “political leaders are engaging in efforts to interfere with the way you or your fellow election officials across the country do your jobs,” according to with the survey. Thirteen percent they were concerned that they would face “pressure to certify election results in favor of a specific candidate or party.”

As HuffPost reported, election offices across the country have taken steps to increase election security since 2020, when Donald Trump’s lies about the legitimacy of Joe Biden’s election inspired a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol and multiple attempts to overturn the elections. results.

Perhaps most notably, the poll revealed that election workers faced shocking rates of threats, harassment and abuse.

More than one in three respondents said they had been harassed and abused because of their work as a local election official, and 16% said they had been threatened. Of those who suffered threats, 61% said they had been threatened by telephone and the same number had been threatened in person.

Additionally, 70% felt that the level of threats has increased since 2020, 54% said they were very or somewhat worried about the safety of their colleagues or employees, and 27% said they were worried about being attacked at home or at work. . Four in 10 employees said they were very or somewhat concerned about being doxxed or having their personal information “published online with the intent to threaten [their] security” as the survey defined it, and 23% were worried about being “scammed” – being the target of a fake emergency call that sends a SWAT team to the victim’s home.

In response to the wave of hate fueled by Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, many election administrators and experienced election officials left the field.

Twenty-seven percent of poll workers said they personally know at least one or two poll workers who have left their jobs, at least in part, due to fear for their safety, increased threats or intimidation – a 50% increase from 2023 , according to the poll. The number of people who saw “too many” poll workers leave their jobs for these reasons doubled, from 4% to 8%. These departures are likely to continue beyond 2024: 20% of respondents said they are unlikely to continue serving in the 2026 midterm elections.

This shift in the election workforce brings with it a drop in institutional knowledge: 2024 will be the first presidential election in which a quarter of election workers will work, according to the poll. And nearly half of election workers told researchers they were very or somewhat concerned that new local election officials might themselves believe debunked conspiracies about voter fraud.

They have reason to be concerned: Most Republicans falsely believe the last presidential election was illegitimate. Election authorities across the country are taking never-before-seen steps to ensure the security of the electoral process – including strengthening defenses against threats ranging from shootings to hacking attempts and mail containing fentanyl.

According to Brennan Center research, 92% of local election officials have taken at least some critical steps to increase election security since 2020. More than half, according to the research, have implemented cybersecurity measures, including multi-factor authentication and registration single. in credentials for devices. Forty-four percent updated polling place contingency plans and 40% improved the physical security of election offices or polling locations.

The Brennan Center produced its poll by emailing an invitation to participate in the poll to a list of 11,678 local election officials created with assistance from the US Vote Foundation. The survey’s margin of error was 3.1% and the data was weighted by region and jurisdiction size.