A staggering three-quarters of Americans say they’ve seen inaccurate news about the 2024 election “at least somewhat often.” In an effort to help journalists better distinguish fact from fiction, Public Rights Project recently hosted a media briefing featuring election officials from Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin and election experts. The conversation revealed the spectrum of obstacles faced by election officials and the shared confidence in a secure election system.
Panelists included:
Sara Tindall Ghazal, Georgia State Election Board (SEB) member
Michael Siegrist, Canton Township Clerk (MI)
Bob Harvie, Board of Bucks County Commissioner (PA)
Paulina Gutierrez, Executive Director, City of Milwaukee Election Commission (WI)
Carolina D. Lopez, Executive Director, Partnership for Large Election Jurisdictions (PLEJ)
Here’s a look at the key themes our panelists raised during the briefing.
Navigating Election Litigation
At any given moment, a court decision can upend tried-and-true election processes or require additional worker training in a short time span. Across battleground states, local election officials are responding to rapidly evolving legal issues to ensure voters have a free and fair election.
Pennsylvania’s Act 77 expanded voter access with no-excuse mail-in voting. The law, which was only enacted in 2019, lacks clarity on how counties should address ballot errors, such as a missing signature or privacy envelope. Without these specifics, counties have chosen whether to directly notify voters about a ballot error. As a result, there has been a high volume of litigation, up until Election Day, about what rules the counties should follow.
“The first use of this law was in the presidential primary in 2020 and almost immediately there were flaws found that red and blue counties have been asking the legislature to fix,” Harvie said.
Meanwhile, after a flurry of litigation in recent months, a last-minute court win in Georgia provided relief to local election officials who were facing the possibility of hand-counting ballots and other rule changes just 45 days before the election.
Clearing Up Misconceptions
Nearly all the panelists mentioned the scrutiny they face about “delays” in reporting election results. In many states, laws prevent election officials from counting early ballots until election day. Gutierrez noted that Milwaukee, where she leads election administration, is the largest jurisdiction in Wisconsin and likely to report results last in the state. The panelists stressed patience with the process.
“[Local election officials] are going as fast as they can and they're doing it accurately,” said Lopez, who works with dozens of large jurisdictions around the country. “And that's what's most important in this process, right? Counting every single valid ballot.”
Panelists also addressed a concerning narrative around election certification, which was top of mind for media attendees. Many have suggested that election officials should not certify the election, given concerns about fraud or misconduct. Acknowledging that there are varying degrees of understanding about certification, several panelists reiterated a key message: certification is mandatory duty by election officials, not something that can be avoided. There are other mechanisms, outside of the certification process, to address concerns.
Communicating Is Key
As the media — and general public — navigate the proliferation of mis- and disinformation, some local election officials like Siegrist are taking a proactive approach to countering conspiracy theories about voting equipment and noncitizen voting.
“We try to meet those individuals who are carrying that with them — and that distrust in the system — and address it proactively,” Siegrist said.
In Wisconsin, Gutierrez said despite lacking communication resources and budget, she’s found other ways to reach community members. She disseminates information across city departments and intends to partner with local media to swiftly respond to questions on election day.
Election Officials Are More Prepared Than Ever
Amid all of these challenges, election officials are ready for the 2024 election. Lopez, who works with elections administrations nationally, said robust contingency plans are in place to protect the election. Additionally, collaboration is happening at city, county and state levels along with the integration of tabletop exercises with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
“This is the most prepared election community ever,” Lopez said.
In Georgia, Ghazal said she feels confident the elections will run smoothly after the last-minute rule changes by the SEB were struck down by the courts. While an appeal is likely for future elections, administrators have clarity and certainty that the rules they were trained on are in place for this election.
Since February, PRP’s Election Protection Hub has supported hundreds of local election officials to navigate legal challenges. Additionally, we’ve worked to reinforce accurate narratives about election officials and election processes. It’s critical for the media to inform the public about election processes, but it’s also never been more important to remind each other about who is running our elections.
“They’re people whose kids are on your kids’ Little League team,” Harvie said. “They’re in the supermarket on weekends like you are.”
Public Rights Project’s Election Protection Hub provides rapid response legal support, technical assistance, training, and other services to local elections officials across the country.
