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| N.J. Attorney General Gurbir Grewal |
Jonathan D. Salant reports for NJ.com
WASHINGTON — New Jersey’s voting machines are among the nation’s most vulnerable to hacking, and state officials asked Congress for more money to protect their equipment.
Republicans who run the show in Washington said no.
Both the House and Senate declined to allocate millions of dollars in grants to states when they passed spending bills funding the Election Assistance Commission for the 12-month period beginning Oct. 1.
“This is going to be an ongoing need and election officials are going to need a regular stream of funds to combat the threats and defend their systems,” said David Becker, executive director and founder of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, a Washington research group.
The debate over helping states guard against voter hacking came as top officials in President Donald Trump‘s administration warned that Russian attempts to interfere with U.S. elections didn’t end in 2016.
“In regards to Russian involvement in the midterm elections, we continue to see a pervasive messaging campaign by Russia to try to weaken and divide the United States,” National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said at the daily White House press briefing. “We also know the Russians tried to hack into and steal information from candidates and government officials alike.”
State Attorney General Gurbir Grewal sought more federal help.
“I strongly believe that the federal government should be doing more, not less, to ensure our democratic institutions are free from foreign intrusion, and I’m disappointed that Congress disagrees,” he said.
Grewal and 20 other state attorneys general had written to key congressional Republicans last month, urging them to approve a new round of state grants.
“The existing Election Assistance Commission grants are simply insufficient to provide for the upgraded technology needed,” the attorneys general wrote. “More funding is essential to adequately equip states with the financial resources we need to safeguard our democracy and protect the data of voting members in our states.”
