There is only one week until the 2022 midterm elections; voter confidence has never been more important.
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While the 2020 election was considered the most secure election in American history, confidence in our elections has split along partisan lines. Precipitated by the onslaught of mis- and disinformation about how elections are administered, this crisis of trust has fueled state laws that make it harder to vote, radicalized a population of election deniers, and ultimately endangered our democracy.
The Elections & Democracy team at the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) is working to combat this. We fight election disinformation, support technology that bolsters a fair and secure vote, and work to build a trusted and trustworthy democracy.
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Mis- and disinformation plague our election system. False or misleading information about the electoral process, election outcomes, political parties, political candidates, and the perceived legitimacy of election officials all play into whether or not an election result is trusted. Social media platforms have an outsized impact on this information distribution. While platforms enacted policies and procedures to combat mis- and disinformation during the 2020 election, many backed away from enforcement when the election was complete.
As a result, the period between the results and the swearing-in of elected officials was ripe for a spread of deceptive information— ultimately helping pave the way for the violence of the January 6 insurrection. Platforms can take a variety of steps to combat election mis- and disinformation year-round, and have the responsibility to do so.
Election officials also play a key role in protecting against mis- and disinformation surrounding elections. It’s critical that they maintain a trusted web presence to provide information about how to vote, and about election results. For example, election officials should make sure to get verified on social media in order to stand out from the crowd and cut through the noise to provide accurate election information. It’s also important for election websites to use the .gov top-level domain, which is only available to verified government entities. A new report from CDT and Georgetown University found that only 1 in 4 election offices are using .gov. This number represents only a modest improvement over the last two years, despite CISA making the .gov domain free during that time.
In addition to the prominence of mis- and disinformation and access to accurate information, voter confidence in the election relies heavily on the perceived effectiveness of the administration of the election itself. From ballot marking devices to ranked choice voting, any change in election administration has the potential to draw criticism, both credible and not. One key way to combat this criticism is to institute strong post-election audits. In a new report, we explore policy options for instituting audit standards, ensuring that post-election audits are used to improve—rather than diminish—voter confidence.
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READ
Report | An Unrepresentative Democracy: How Disinformation and Online Abuse Hinder Women of Color Political Candidates in the United States
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WATCH
The Big Lie’s Long Tail: Election Denialism in the Midterms and Beyond
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READ
Report | A Lie Can Travel: Election Disinformation in the United States, Brazil, and France (CDT report published by KAS)
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READ
No Simple Answers: A Primer on Ballot Marking Device Security
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Our elections are arguably the backbone of our democracy; they ensure that the people’s voice is heard in the halls of power, from the local to the federal level. They also rely on the confidence of the voters. By ensuring representation through combating mis- and disinformation online, providing trusted and accurate information, and instituting post-election audits, those in power can work to ensure that our elections remain free, fair, and secure.
CDT is working to make this a reality. Through our various workstreams, we ensure that election officials have the best information to make decisions, urge companies to be responsible members of our society, and provide guidance to elected authorities. Partners like you have been indispensable in this work. If you are not yet engaged and want to learn more, please reply to this email to join the conversation. You can help put democracy and human rights at the center of the digital revolution.
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![Graphic for a CDT report, entitled "An Unrepresentative Democracy: How Disinformation and Online Abuse Hinder Women of Color Political Candidates in the United States." Illustration depicting a woman's leg in kitten heel stomping on malicious social media posts while casting a shadow of the U.S. capital building.](https://d31hzlhk6di2h5.cloudfront.net/20221101/51/6c/63/4d/80e85866dd9b3d92e45a7000_193xauto.png "Graphic for a CDT report, entitled "An Unrepresentative Democracy: How Disinformation and Online Abuse Hinder Women of Color Political Candidates in the United States." Illustration depicting a woman's leg in kitten heel stomping on malicious social media posts while casting a shadow of the U.S. capital building.")
