Six members of the House of Representatives have introduced the Congressional Task Force on Election Security, which they say will be forum where members of Congress and experts on physical security and cybersecurity challenges will identify election infrastructure issues and safeguards needed to ensure election integrity.
Led by Committee on Homeland Security Ranking Member Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and Committee on House Administration Ranking Member Robert Brady, D-Pa., the task force will also include Reps. Zoe Lofgren, D-Ca., Cedric Richmond, D-La., Val Demings, D-Fla., and Jim Langevin, D-RI.
Reps. Thompson and Brady commented on the membership of the committee in a news release, saying that the security of election systems should not be a partisan issue, but a top priority for everyone. If nothing is done, “we make it easy for Russia — or anyone else — to meddle in our elections and undermine public confidence in democratic institutions.”
“I believe that the Task Force has an important role to play in examining the threat to elections, including to auxiliary systems such as those used for vote tallying, and examining solutions like risk limiting audits to protect their integrity,” said Rep. Langevin, co-founder and co-chair of the Congressional Cybersecurity Caucus, in the same press release.
The committee is “eager to work together” on the protection of election systems in order to prevent a repeat of the 2016 presidential election. The membership of the task force has been established, but they continue to “welcome the support of members on both sides of the aisle.”
Rachael Kalinyak is an editorial intern with Network Solutions.
