Election Security Fight Puts State Control at Risk

State election officials say the federal government has become a leading risk to election security as Washington seeks a larger role in state-run voting systems before the midterm elections. The dispute puts control of election administration—and trust between state offices and federal partners—at the center of preparations.

Republican Wesley Wilcox, supervisor of elections in Marion County, Florida, told POLITICO’s Morning Cybersecurity newsletter that there “is no sort of level of trust or anything else at this point in time” between his office and federal partners. Officials have spent years preparing for bomb threats at polling places, large-scale disinformation campaigns and state-backed hacking efforts. Now, some say federal actions pose another threat to their work.

A fight over who runs elections

The Trump administration has sought greater federal control over state election administration during its second term. In February, President Donald Trump called for Republicans to “nationalize” U.S. elections. An executive order restricting mail-in voting followed in March, alongside a nationwide effort to access voter rolls in every state and check them against a federal immigration database. The voter-roll effort has reportedly drawn scrutiny over the possible removal of eligible voters.

Democratic Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold called the federal government the leading risk. “Our No. 1 risk at this point is the federal government,” she said. That summer, the Department of Homeland Security flagged Colorado among 15 states to watch for “vulnerabilities in upholding election integrity.”

Griswold said federal officials wouldn’t be welcome inside Colorado’s Cyber Command Center, citing concerns about federal meddling in state election administration. The Colorado National Guard sets up the center every election to protect election infrastructure from cyber threats. The Department of Homeland Security rejected claims of a federal power grab, saying: “The assertion that DHS is attempting to exert more federal control over elections heading into the November midterms is totally false.”

The administration has also pursued a broader effort to relitigate the 2020 election. Federal agencies and state election offices have repeatedly called it “the most secure in American history.” In February, the FBI seized years-old ballots from Fulton County, Georgia. In a July address, Trump highlighted Chinese efforts to access voter rolls and risks involving voting machines, but offered no evidence that the 2020 election was stolen.

States left to secure the system

In 2025, the administration cut personnel and funding at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, including its election security work. That left states increasingly responsible for protecting their systems. CISA has since announced some of its first public election-security actions since the cuts. Released late last month, its 13-page plan outlines free resources for state and local election offices.

Some officials said the plan came too close to the midterms to help states prepare. Democratic Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said: “The latest CISA plan is a day late and millions of dollars short.” She added that states and localities would ensure a “free, safe and secure midterm election, despite absence or interference from the federal government.”

Trust and participation

Some state officials fear efforts to sow doubt about voting could weaken confidence in democratic processes and discourage people from voting. Delaware Secretary of State Charuni Patibanda-Sanchez said: “The biggest disservice to our country is to have people disengage with the civic process.” Her office doesn’t directly oversee elections, but she co-chairs the state’s Task Force on Free, Fair and Secure Elections.

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes told CNN that the Trump administration had stopped providing state officials with election-security briefings. Their accounts describe a widening dispute over federal authority, access to security information and responsibility for protecting election systems. State officials say they’ll have to secure the midterms even as cooperation with federal agencies has weakened.