Category Archives: Election Assistance Commission

Some EAC Commissioners Lack Security Clearances

April 1, 2019, 7:32 amelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Eric Geller with the scoop (but full story behind paywall): Scoop: Half of @EACgov commissioners lack security clearances, and no one on the commission had a clearance during the 2016 or 2018 elections: https://t.co/ebhbumzVFCAn EAC member without a clearance… Continue reading

“Fantastic! The EAC Is Officially Four Again”

February 7, 2019, 8:33 amelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Doug Chapin: Yesterday, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) was formally restored to full membership for the first time in nearly ten years with the swearing in of two new recently confirmed Commissioners. … Full membership puts the EAC… Continue reading

EAC Now Has Full Complement of Commissioners

January 2, 2019, 4:49 pmelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Via Eric Geller of Politico: The @EACgov will have a quorum! Background: https://t.co/5qIuvrb8Gs https://t.co/SgLWbSeu5W — Eric Geller (@ericgeller) January 3, 2019

The Hill: EAC Commissioners Expected to Be Confirmed Soon, Giving the Agency a Quorum Again

December 27, 2018, 11:09 amelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

The Hill: The agency has been unable to tackle major policy actions since March when one of the commissioner’s terms expired. And that came on the heels of criticism for not initially taking election interference seriously in 2016. But two… Continue reading

“Improve Elections, Fully Confirm Election Assistance Commission Before 2020”

December 4, 2018, 9:49 amelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Matt Weil for BPC: It’s hard to make progress when you have both hands tied behind your back a third of the time. Voters want more secure and better functioning elections, and Congress can act right now to accomplish that.… Continue reading

“To Protect Election Integrity Common Cause Calls for Up-or-Down Votes on EAC Nominees”

December 3, 2018, 2:53 pmelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Release: Today, Common Cause called on the Senate Rules and Administration Committee to fully staff the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) and hold up-or-down floor votes on the two pending EAC nominees before the end of year. In a letter… Continue reading

The EAC is MIA on Election Cybersecurity, and We Can Blame Kobach’s Former Underling, Brian Newby, and EAC Commissioner Christy McCormick, Who Served on Trump’s “Fraud” Commission

November 5, 2018, 5:18 pmelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Devastating for an agency that’s had such promise, from Jessica Huseman: One of the EAC’s commissioners has dismissed the threat of foreign governments undermining American elections in private meetings with state election officials, and often personally appealed to individual… Continue reading

Correction: President Trump Nominates Benjamin Hovland to Seat on Election Assistance Commission

October 8, 2018, 7:01 amElection Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

The announcement is here. (Via Political Activity Law.) Apparently he is being paired with a Don Palmer nomination from back in June. No word on whether Commissioners Hicks and McCormick are being renominated. This post has been corrected.

“Elections Very Small Agency Tackling Very Big Problem of Election Meddling”

April 5, 2018, 7:39 amelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Bloomberg BNA: One of the federal government’s smallest agencies is taking on one of the country’s most pressing problems: foreign meddling in U.S. elections. The Election Assistance Commission, which has an annual budget of less than $10 million and about… Continue reading

Matthew Masterson, Blocked for EAC Reappointment by Speaker Paul Ryan, Will Continue to Work on Cybersecurity Voting Issues at DHS

March 26, 2018, 2:38 pmelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Smart move by DHS to hire @mastersonmv to work with election officials on cyber security as his term on Election Assistance Commission ends. Sign of how seriously some in administration take this issue. https://t.co/evFkreAqxG — Pam Fessler (@pamelafessler) March 26, … Continue reading

Released Emails Show Coordination Between DOJ and Pence-Kobach Fraud Commission over Voter Fraud Allegations, with Communications Between John Gore and EAC’s Christy McCormick

March 14, 2018, 9:13 amelection administration, Election Assistance Commission, fraudulent fraud squad, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

TPM: The chair of the Republican Party in Chicago last year passed on allegations of voter fraud to a member of President Trump’s now-defunct voter fraud commission, using a top Justice Department official as intermediary, newly released emails reveal. The… Continue reading

“Ryan move to replace election agency leader stirs outcry”

February 25, 2018, 9:12 pmelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Very bad news from Politico: House Speaker Paul Ryan faced Democratic criticism Thursday after choosing not to renew the term of a federal agency head who has helped lead the charge on securing elections from hackers. Matthew Masterson, chairman of… Continue reading

Red Alert for Election Administration: Matthew Masterson May Be Out at EAC

February 22, 2018, 12:08 pmelection administration, Election Assistance Commission, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Reuters Exclusive: The head of a federal agency who has helped U.S. states protect election systems from possible cyber attacks by Russia or others is being removed from his post by Republican House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan and the… Continue reading

EAC to Hold Summit in January Ahead of 2018 Election Season

December 21, 2017, 11:21 amelection administration, Election Assistance CommissionRick Hasen

Announcement via email: When: Wednesday, January, 10, 2018, 09:00 AM – 03:30 PM Where: The National Press Club Holeman Lounge 529 14th Street, NW, 13th Floor Washington, DC 20045 Details: Ahead of the 2018 midterm elections, the U.S. Election Assistance… Continue reading