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In a move that has raised concerns about election integrity going forward, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has placed 17 staff members on administrative leave. The affected employees include ten regional election security specialists and several members of CISA’s Election Security and Resilience team. These staffers were responsible for providing cybersecurity assessments, training election officials, and countering misinformation and disinformation campaigns.
The internal review focuses on CISA’s work in addressing foreign influence in U.S. elections, a responsibility assigned to other agency staff, according to an unnamed source familiar with the situation. The decision has sparked bipartisan concern among state election officials, who rely on CISA’s support to safeguard the country’s election systems.
“The most value that we’ve got from CISA has been the people that they have on the ground in our state that build direct relationships, not just with us but with the individual county clerks,” said Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams, a Republican. “They’re teaching them and helping them check their physical security and their cyber hygiene, and that’s been extremely popular.”
Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, echoed these concerns. “The agency has been a critical partner for state and local election officials. And I hope that leaders in the federal government who claim to care about election integrity will recognize that,” she said.
The move comes amid ongoing scrutiny of CISA by former President Donald Trump and his allies, who have accused the agency of exceeding its mission. Trump’s newly appointed Homeland Security Secretary, Kristi Noem, recently suggested that CISA had strayed “far off mission” and expressed a willingness to rein it in.
Despite the personnel changes, CISA has assured election officials that cybersecurity and physical security services will continue to be available. The National Association of Secretaries of State confirmed it has requested a staffing update, stating, “CISA has relayed to NASS that all cybersecurity and physical security services are expected to be available to state and local election officials.”
However, CISA’s absence from recent national meetings of election officials has added to concerns about its role in the upcoming election. The agency has been at the forefront of efforts to counter misinformation and foreign interference, including warning about Russian-linked disinformation campaigns ahead of the 2024 vote.
With just months until the next presidential election, the sidelining of key election security personnel has left officials questioning the federal government’s commitment to protecting voting systems from cyber threats and disinformation.
