Dear Supporter,
The entire national security community agrees that election interference in 2016 was only a preview of what's to come unless Congress acts. Yet the Senate has failed to move forward with critical election security funding for states.
Due to popular outcry, and people like YOU taking action, the House has already passed $600 million in funding to secure our elections – by replacing electronic voting machines with paper ballots in the next round of Congressional appropriations. But the deadline for the Senate to act is October 1 – less than 3 weeks away!
The evidence is clear: In 2016, Russia targeted voting systems in all 50 states and used social media to spread disinformation and disunity among the electorate.[1]
In response, the House recently passed HR 2722, which would allocate $600 million to states so that they can update electronic voting equipment with systems that use verifiable paper ballots. Paper ballots are the best protection against cyber-attacks attempting to change the outcome of our elections.
Without a paper trail, our voting system is extremely vulnerable to hacking and foul play. In 2018, 14 states used voting equipment that had no way of verifying vote counts in the event of a cyber-attack.[2]
The report and recent testimony by Special Counsel Robert Mueller implored lawmakers to focus on election security, but finger wagging and hand-wringing will not prevent another attack on our democracy. What we need is common sense legislation that gives states the resources they need to secure our votes.
We need your help making the case for it.
Voting is the lynchpin of our democracy – and we can't move the agenda on the issues that matter to us, from gun control to health care, without securing the ballot box.
Thanks for everything you do.
-- Rio Tazewell, Senior Campaigns Manager
Sources:
- "Russia Targeted Election Systems in All 50 States, Report Finds," New York Times, July 25, 2019
- "The scramble to secure America’s voting machines," POLITICO, August 28, 2019
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