As States Consider Online Voting in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Federal Agencies Issue Guidelines that Warn of Online Attacks Posted on May 12, 2020 (June 15, 2020) Election Protection The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) have drafted new guidelines outlining the severe dangers of returning ballots electronically – through fax, email or web portal – stating that the practice is a “significant security risk” andRead More
Free Speech For People Publishes Guide for Safe Voting During COVID-19 Pandemic Posted on April 7, 2020 (June 18, 2020) Election Protection Free Speech For People published today a report entitled: “Safe Voting During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” in collaboration with Dr. Joia Mukherjee, a physician, clinical researcher, and educator trained in Infectious Disease, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, and public health at the Massachusetts General Hospital and the Harvard School of Public Health, and Mark Ritchie, an election managementRead More
Alyssa Milano Features Free Speech For People’s Election Security Work on Sorry Not Sorry Posted on April 7, 2020 (May 19, 2020) Election Protection Free Speech For People President John Bonifaz and Senior Advisor on Election Security Susan Greenhalgh appeared on Sorry Not Sorry, a podcast hosted by actress and activist Alyssa Milano. “This may be our most important episode of the podcast yet.” Milano says, “Please listen wherever you get your podcasts. You will be shocked. You willRead More
Late Night Hosts Tackle Election Security And The Need For Hand Marked Paper Ballots Posted on February 26, 2020 (June 18, 2020) Election Protection Last year John Oliver, host of Last Week Tonight With John Oliver, dedicated one of his weekly segments to election security and spoke to the dangers of Direct Recording Electronic machines (DREs) on his show. “DREs…are very bad. If something goes wrong with one of them, you would basically never know because you can’t auditRead More
NEDC & Free Speech For People Issue Joint Statement on the Iowa Caucus App Failure Posted on February 4, 2020 (May 28, 2020) Election Protection Last night’s failure of the smartphone application used by the Iowa Democratic Party illustrated in harsh relief exactly why we should not use voting technology that is internet connected. The Iowa Democratic Party (IDP) initially wanted to employ a smartphone app to allow voters to cast their selections over the Internet. Fortunately, smarter heads prevailedRead More
Election Security Experts Highlight Major Flaws In Los Angeles County Voting System Posted on January 26, 2020 (June 18, 2020) Election Protection Free Speech For People and the National Election Defense Coalition recently submitted public comments to California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, regarding the proposed certification of Los Angeles county’s Voting Solutions for All People 2.0 (VSAP) election system. The joint letter addresses the system’s non-compliance with California Voting System Standards. The letter states: We haveRead More
Free Speech For People Files Brief in Case Demanding Election Security Emails Posted on January 15, 2020 (May 29, 2020) Election Protection Free Speech For People filed a motion for summary judgment in National Election Defense Coalition v. Lawson, a case challenging the Indiana Secretary of State’s refusal to disclose election security-related emails exchanged with the National Association of Secretaries of State. Secretary of State Connie Lawson was the 2017-18 President of the National Association of SecretariesRead More
Tell Mitch McConnell: We need election security! Posted on September 17, 2019 (June 18, 2020) Election Protection In 2016, Russia interfered with our elections to help elect Donald Trump. According to multiple current and former officials, foreign powers are already attempting to meddle in the 2020 election as well. And our election systems across the country remain vulnerable. Yet, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell recently blocked two bills meant to safeguard ourRead More
FSFP & Allies Issue Letter Urging Congress To Hold Hearings On Election Security Posted on August 30, 2019 (June 18, 2020) Election Protection WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 28, 2019) – Following the findings in a recently released report from the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), a coalition of government watchdog organizations, including Free Speech For People, FreedomWorks, National Election Defense Coalition and Public Citizen, sent a letter to the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee onRead More
New Development In Petition To Re-Examine ES&S ExpressVoteXL Voting Machines Posted on August 23, 2019 (June 12, 2020) Election Protection Last month, Citizens for Better Elections, Free Speech For People, National Election Defense Coalition, and Protect Our Vote Philly petitioned the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on behalf of Pennsylvania voters to re-examine the ES&S ExpressVote XL voting machine due to concerns about security, privacy, verifiability, and accessibility. The Secretary agreed to act expeditiouslyRead More