Group of Republicans unite to defend the legitimacy of US elections and those who run them

THE CHIEF ELECTION OFFICIALS IN THEIR STATE. IT’S THEIR JOB TO OVERSEE THE PROCESS, MAKE SURE PEOPLE’S VOTES ARE SECURE, AND MAKE SURE THOSE WORKING THE POLLS ARE SAFE, AND MAKE SURE THERE’S A TRANSPARENT AND FAIR PROCESS THAT THE PUBLIC TRUSTS. SCOTT SCHWAB IS THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE STATE OF KANSAS. HE’S ALSO THE HEAD OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECRETARIES OF STATE. IT’S NICE TO HAVE YOU IN OUR STUDIO. IT’S HONOR TO BE HERE. THANK YOU FOR JOINING ME. SO I GUESS, FIRST AND FOREMOST, HOW ARE YOU FEELING ABOUT THE UPCOMING ELECTION? WELL, WE’RE FEELING GOOD. MANY FOLKS ARE CONCERNED BECAUSE OF RHETORIC, AND I’M REALLY CLEAR TO EXPLAIN. THERE’S A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE CAMPAIGN SIDE AND THERE’S THE ACTUAL ELECTION SIDE. AND WE’RE ELECTION ADMINISTRATORS MOSTLY ABOUT 40 SECRETARIES OF STATE ARE WE’RE FEELING PRETTY GOOD ABOUT IT, BECAUSE IF YOU CAN GO THROUGH A PANDEMIC AND AND DO AN ELECTION, WE CAN DO THIS. ARE THERE SPECIFIC STEPS THAT YOU’VE BEEN TAKEN THAT YOU WOULD SAY ARE THE THINGS THAT YOU’RE DOING TO ENSURE, IN FACT, THAT IT’S SAFE AND IT’S ACCURATE AND IT’S VALID? AND THE THE, THE PUBLIC TRUSTS IT? YEAH, IT’S AN ONGOING PROCESS. RIGHT? WE’RE CONSTANTLY WORKING WITH OUR STATES ON LAWS AND ALSO MAKING SURE THINGS ARE FUNDED TO THE THINGS THAT THEY NEED TO BE. BUT OVERALL WE CAN’T. WE’RE RUN BY VOLUNTEERS. I MEAN, FEW COLLEGES HAVE DEGREES IN ELECTIONS. IT’S YOUR ELECTIONS RUN BY YOUR NEIGHBORS. IF YOU DON’T TRUST YOUR NEIGHBORS AND THERE MAY BE AN ISSUE WITH YOU, BUT BY AND LARGE, IT’S IT’S WE WE TRUST WHAT WE DO. AND OUR NEIGHBORS SAY THEY MAY BLAME ANOTHER STATE, FOR EXAMPLE, BUT THEY OFTEN LIKE THE WAY THEIR STATE RUNS THE ELECTION THAT IS ALMOST LIKE THE DEFINITION OF AMERICAN POLITIC RIGHT NOW. I KNOW YOU’VE BEEN MEETING WITH PARTNERS, INCLUDING THE FBI. WHAT KINDS OF CONVERSATIONS ARE YOU HAVING? WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM THOSE PARTNERS? SO, YOU KNOW, WHILE THE CONVERSATIONS SOMETIMES LIKE THE TOUCH SCREEN VOTING MACHINES, THAT’S REALLY NOT OUR CONCERN. WE’RE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT OUR POLL BOOKS AND OUR DATA. WHAT’S A POLL BOOK? SO WHEN YOU REGISTER TO VOTE, WE HAVE YOUR INFORMATION. WE HAVE WHERE YOU LIVE. SO WE KNOW WHAT KIND OF BALLOT YOU’RE GOING TO GET. OUR CONCERN IS IF A FOREIGN ADVERSARY WERE TO GET ACCESS TO THAT AND MANIPULATE THE DATA. SO NOBODY HAS THE RIGHT BALLOT. NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN THERE’S A LACK OF TRUST IN ELECTIONS. AND THEN WHEN YOU HAVE LACK OF TRUST IN ELECTIONS, YOU END UP DESCENDING INTO CHAOS. HOW WORRIED ARE YOU THAT THE ELECTION ITSELF GOES FINE. BUT WHEN PEOPLE THERE’S A NARRATIVE, IF YOU WILL, OF PEOPLE SAYING, WELL, THOSE RESULTS ARE COMPLETELY FABRICATED. YEAH. SO MY COLLEAGUES AND I WROTE AN OP ED PIECE SAYING, YOU KNOW, BOTH PARTIES ARE TO BLAME ON THIS BECAUSE STACEY ABRAMS IN GEORGIA HAD FIVE LAWSUITS. NONE OF THEM WON. AND SHE CLAIMED IT WAS VOTER SUPPRESSION IN GEORGIA. AND THEN GEORGIA AGAIN UNDER TRUMP SAID IT WAS VOTER FRAUD. IT SEEMS LIKE THIS PENDULUM ALWAYS SWINGS BACK AND FORTH DEPENDING ON WHO WINS AND WHO LOSES. WELL, WAS IT VOTER SUPPRESSION OR WAS IT VOTER FRAUD? BUT WHEN WE AUDIT OUR ELECTIONS, NOTHING CHANGES. I’M GOING TO USE KANSAS AS AN EXAMPLE. WE HAD THE FIRST ABORTION CONSTITUTIONAL VOTE AFTER THE DOBBS DECISION, AND IT LOST. AND THE GENTLEMAN WHO COULD NOT BELIEVE IT LOST PUT $180,000 ON HIS PERSONAL CREDIT CARD TO HAVE RECOUNTS, AND NOT A SINGLE COUNTY FLIPPED. NOTHING CHANGED. AND AND AFTER THAT HAPPENED, ALL THE VOTER FRAUD CONCERNS PEOPLE HAD BECAUSE THEY SAW SOMETHING ON THE INTERNET, THEY HEARD A STORY. OUR PHONES QUIT RINGING BECAUSE THEY SAID, WELL, IT’S I MEAN, YOU CAN’T ARGUE WITH THE RESULT THAT’S BEEN HAND COUNTED. A LOT OF THE NARRATIVE, THOUGH. AROUND JANUARY SIXTH, WHICH I THINK THERE IS NO OTHER SIDE COUNTER NARRATIVE, IF YOU WILL. WAS THIS ELECTION WAS A SHAM. WE’RE GOING TO STORM IT AND WE’RE GOING TO MAKE SURE THAT IT CHANGES. SO THAT’S THAT’S THAT WAS SCARY. I REMEMBER I WAS HOME WATCHING THAT UNFOLD AND IT WAS CRAZINESS. I CRIED THAT DAY. I LOVE OUR CAPITAL. UM, BEING SOMEONE WHO JUST IS A COLONIAL HISTORY BUFF, KNOWING HOW THAT CITY WAS. BUILT, IT JUST IT WAS A SAD DAY. HOWEVER, WE’RE STILL AMERICA AND WE’RE STILL THE GREAT IDEA AND AND WE ALWAYS HAVE DARK POINTS. I THINK IT WAS WINSTON CHURCHILL SAID THE AMERICANS ALWAYS DO THE RIGHT THING, BUT NOT TILL EVERY OTHER OPTION HAS BEEN EXPIRED AND, AND AND IT’S GOING TO BE OKAY. SOMETIMES BAD THINGS HAPPEN. SOMETIMES WE DO IT TO OURSELVES, BUT EVENTUALLY WE’RE STILL A GREAT COUNTRY AND I THINK AMERICANS STILL LOVE AMERICA. SCOTT SCHWAB, A SECRETARY OF STATE FROM THE GREAT STA

It was Election Day last November, and one of Georgia’s top election officials saw that reports of a voting machine problem in an eastern Pennsylvania county were gaining traction online.Video above: How Secretaries of State Work to Ensure Trust in ElectionsSo Gabriel Sterling, a Republican who had defended the 2020 election in Georgia amid an onslaught of threats, posted a message to his nearly 71,000 followers on the social platform X explaining what had happened and saying that all votes would be counted correctly.He faced immediate criticism from one commenter about why he was weighing in on another state’s election while other responses reiterated false claims about widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.“It’s still the right thing to do,” Sterling told a gathering the following day, stressing the importance of Republican officials speaking up to defend elections. “We have to be prepared to say over and over again -- other states are doing it different than us, but they are not cheating.”Sterling, the chief operating officer for the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, is part of an effort begun after the last presidential election that seeks to bring together Republican officials who are willing to defend the country's election systems and the people who run them. They want officials to reinforce the message that elections are secure and accurate, an approach they say is especially important as the country heads toward another divisive presidential contest.The group has held meetings in several states, with more planned before the Nov. 5 election.With six months to go before the likely rematch between Democratic President Joe Biden and former Republican President Donald Trump, concerns are running high among election officials that public distrust of voting and ballot counting persists, particularly among Republicans. Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, continues to sow doubts about the last presidential election and is warning his followers — without citing any evidence — that Democrats will try to cheat in the upcoming one.This past week, during a campaign rally in Michigan, Trump repeated his false claim that Democrats rigged the 2020 election. “But we’re not going to allow them to rig the presidential election,” he said.Just 22% of Republicans expressed high confidence that votes will be counted accurately in November, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll last year.“It’s an obligation on Republicans' part to stand up for the defense of our system because our party -- there’s some blame for where we stand right now,” said Kentucky's secretary of state, Michael Adams, who is part of the group and won reelection last year. “But it’s also strategically wise for Republicans to say, ‘Hey Republicans, you can trust this. Don’t stay at home.’"The effort, which began about 18 months ago, is coordinated by the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University and the center-right think tank R Street Institute. The goal has been to start conversations about trust in elections, primarily among conservative officials, and to develop a set of principles to accomplish that.“This has never been and will never be about Trump specifically,” said Matt Germer, director of governance for the R Street Institute and a lead organizer of the effort. “It’s about democratic principles at a higher level –- what does it mean to be a conservative who believes in democracy, the rule of law?"He said an aim is to have a structure in place to support election officials who might find themselves in situations like that of Georgia' secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger in 2020, when he supported Trump but rejected false claims that the election was stolen. Prosecutors in Georgia have since charged Trump and others, alleging a plot to overturn the results. Trump has pleaded not guilty.“You can be a Republican and you can believe in all the Republican ideas without having to say the election was stolen,” Germer said.A guiding principle for the group is that Republican officials should “publicly affirm the security and integrity of elections across the U.S. and avoid actively fueling doubt about elections in other jurisdictions.”Kim Wyman, a Republican who previously served as Washington state’s top election official, said it’s imperative when officials are confronted with questions about an election somewhere else that they don’t avoid the question by promoting election procedures in their own state.It's OK to say you don’t know the various laws and procedures in another state, Wyman said, but she urged fellow Republicans to emphasize what states do have in common -- "the security measures, the control measures to make sure the election is being conducted with integrity.”Kansas' secretary of state, Scott Schwab, a Republican who has participated in meetings organized by the group, said he believes there are certain aspects of elections that officials should feel comfortable talking about. But he said he would remain cautious of speaking directly about something specific happening in another state.“If I start going beyond my realm and my role, then they don’t trust me. And if they don’t trust me, then they don’t trust the elections in Kansas, and that’s pretty important,” Schwab said in an interview.Some election officials who have questioned election procedures outside their state have a different perspective.Secretary of State Mac Warner of West Virginia, a Republican who has questioned the legitimacy of the 2020 election, said the focus should be on improving policies, such as putting in place voter ID requirements across the country, not silencing those who have questions.“Our primary job as election officials is to build confidence, and that comes from strengthening protocols and not weakening them,” he said.Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a Republican who has raised questions about the way elections are run in other states, criticized what he called “activist lawsuits” and state officials who seek to change voting rules previously set by legislators.“The things that happen in other states that go wrong are not the result of some cloak and dagger, secretive cabal conspiracy,” he said in an interview. “That’s the far-fetched stuff that makes for great YouTube videos and what have you. But the real things that go wrong in other states, are out in the open, are in full public view.”Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, a Republican who is the state’s top election official and has been participating in the group's discussions, said avoiding criticism of other states and vouching for the legitimacy of election procedures is important for another reason: It can help reduce the threats and harassment directed toward election workers.A recent survey by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University's Law School found that nearly 40% of local election officials had experienced such abuse. It's caused many to leave their jobs. Of 29 clerks in Utah, Henderson said 20 are new since 2020 and nine have never overseen an election.“It’s one thing to suggest that someone could do something better. It’s another thing to impugn their integrity, their character, accuse them of cheating, accuse them of nefarious things that don’t happen,” Henderson said. “It’s exhausting.”

ATLANTA —

It was Election Day last November, and one of Georgia’s top election officials saw that reports of a voting machine problem in an eastern Pennsylvania county were gaining traction online.

Video above: How Secretaries of State Work to Ensure Trust in Elections

So Gabriel Sterling, a Republican who had defended the 2020 election in Georgia amid an onslaught of threats, posted a message to his nearly 71,000 followers on the social platform X explaining what had happened and saying that all votes would be counted correctly.

He faced immediate criticism from one commenter about why he was weighing in on another state’s election while other responses reiterated false claims about widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

“It’s still the right thing to do,” Sterling told a gathering the following day, stressing the importance of Republican officials speaking up to defend elections. “We have to be prepared to say over and over again -- other states are doing it different than us, but they are not cheating.”

Sterling, the chief operating officer for the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, is part of an effort begun after the last presidential election that seeks to bring together Republican officials who are willing to defend the country's election systems and the people who run them. They want officials to reinforce the message that elections are secure and accurate, an approach they say is especially important as the country heads toward another divisive presidential contest.

The group has held meetings in several states, with more planned before the Nov. 5 election.

With six months to go before the likely rematch between Democratic President Joe Biden and former Republican President Donald Trump, concerns are running high among election officials that public distrust of voting and ballot counting persists, particularly among Republicans. Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, continues to sow doubts about the last presidential election and is warning his followers — without citing any evidence — that Democrats will try to cheat in the upcoming one.

This past week, during a campaign rally in Michigan, Trump repeated his false claim that Democrats rigged the 2020 election. “But we’re not going to allow them to rig the presidential election,” he said.

Just 22% of Republicans expressed high confidence that votes will be counted accurately in November, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll last year.

“It’s an obligation on Republicans' part to stand up for the defense of our system because our party -- there’s some blame for where we stand right now,” said Kentucky's secretary of state, Michael Adams, who is part of the group and won reelection last year. “But it’s also strategically wise for Republicans to say, ‘Hey Republicans, you can trust this. Don’t stay at home.’"

The effort, which began about 18 months ago, is coordinated by the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University and the center-right think tank R Street Institute. The goal has been to start conversations about trust in elections, primarily among conservative officials, and to develop a set of principles to accomplish that.

“This has never been and will never be about Trump specifically,” said Matt Germer, director of governance for the R Street Institute and a lead organizer of the effort. “It’s about democratic principles at a higher level –- what does it mean to be a conservative who believes in democracy, the rule of law?"

He said an aim is to have a structure in place to support election officials who might find themselves in situations like that of Georgia' secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger in 2020, when he supported Trump but rejected false claims that the election was stolen. Prosecutors in Georgia have since charged Trump and others, alleging a plot to overturn the results. Trump has pleaded not guilty.

“You can be a Republican and you can believe in all the Republican ideas without having to say the election was stolen,” Germer said.

A guiding principle for the group is that Republican officials should “publicly affirm the security and integrity of elections across the U.S. and avoid actively fueling doubt about elections in other jurisdictions.”

Kim Wyman, a Republican who previously served as Washington state’s top election official, said it’s imperative when officials are confronted with questions about an election somewhere else that they don’t avoid the question by promoting election procedures in their own state.

It's OK to say you don’t know the various laws and procedures in another state, Wyman said, but she urged fellow Republicans to emphasize what states do have in common -- "the security measures, the control measures to make sure the election is being conducted with integrity.”

Kansas' secretary of state, Scott Schwab, a Republican who has participated in meetings organized by the group, said he believes there are certain aspects of elections that officials should feel comfortable talking about. But he said he would remain cautious of speaking directly about something specific happening in another state.

“If I start going beyond my realm and my role, then they don’t trust me. And if they don’t trust me, then they don’t trust the elections in Kansas, and that’s pretty important,” Schwab said in an interview.

Some election officials who have questioned election procedures outside their state have a different perspective.

Secretary of State Mac Warner of West Virginia, a Republican who has questioned the legitimacy of the 2020 election, said the focus should be on improving policies, such as putting in place voter ID requirements across the country, not silencing those who have questions.

“Our primary job as election officials is to build confidence, and that comes from strengthening protocols and not weakening them,” he said.

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a Republican who has raised questions about the way elections are run in other states, criticized what he called “activist lawsuits” and state officials who seek to change voting rules previously set by legislators.

“The things that happen in other states that go wrong are not the result of some cloak and dagger, secretive cabal conspiracy,” he said in an interview. “That’s the far-fetched stuff that makes for great YouTube videos and what have you. But the real things that go wrong in other states, are out in the open, are in full public view.”

Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, a Republican who is the state’s top election official and has been participating in the group's discussions, said avoiding criticism of other states and vouching for the legitimacy of election procedures is important for another reason: It can help reduce the threats and harassment directed toward election workers.

A recent survey by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University's Law School found that nearly 40% of local election officials had experienced such abuse. It's caused many to leave their jobs. Of 29 clerks in Utah, Henderson said 20 are new since 2020 and nine have never overseen an election.

“It’s one thing to suggest that someone could do something better. It’s another thing to impugn their integrity, their character, accuse them of cheating, accuse them of nefarious things that don’t happen,” Henderson said. “It’s exhausting.”

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