Contact: Rep. Kathy Bernier
September 18, 2018 (608) 266-9172
Cyber-Security, Infrastructure and Information-Sharing Among Discussion Points
Madison — Election security before the midterm elections is at the forefront for policymakers. In the last two weeks, Rep. Kathy Bernier (R-Lake Hallie) has attended two national conferences focused on election security.
The first conference, hosted by the bi-partisan National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), in Indianapolis, titled “Elections Security: States Teaming Up,” was designed to connect policymakers from states in the Great Lakes region to better understand the current election security environment and to exchange ideas on how to strengthen state laws regarding how Americans vote. The meetings specifically focused on potential foreign and domestic cyberthreats, the human factor in securing elections, voter registration systems, voting itself and communications strategies.
The second conference, hosted by Missouri Secretary of State, Jason Kander, in St. Louis, brought together Secretaries of State from across the nation as well as other chief election officials for a two-day conference titled “National Election Security Summit.” National, state and local election authorities joined officials from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Election Assistance Commission, Elections Infrastructure — Information Sharing and Analysis Center, security professionals, election experts, and other industry leaders to learn and share tangible best practices. These security discussions provided attendees useable steps to mitigate threats and identify vulnerabilities as election authorities gear up for the 2018 mid-term elections.
“These conferences were timely and provided a wealth of information and shared best practices,” Rep. Bernier said. “The expertise and professionalism of election administration personnel across the country is hard to deny. There are some really smart people working on these issues. They really do have a passion for protecting our Republic and outsmarting enemies who might attempt to disrupt our elections.”
During the meetings, Rep. Bernier and attendees worked with election experts to navigate assistance available from federal and other resources. A key theme was the role all public officials play in bolstering voter confidence in elections based on best practices and setting security standards for the future. “As Chair of the Assembly Campaigns and Elections Committee, I have scheduled an Informational Hearing related to election and cyber-security for September 26 th ,” Bernier said. “I feel Wisconsin citizens should have an opportunity to hear how our election officials are effectively dealing with threats.
It will also give election officials a chance to highlight safeguards already in place and to show Wisconsin is fully prepared to execute a secure election this November.”
