On cyber, local elections officials are ‘natural risk managers,’ says former CISA official
On cyber, local elections officials are ‘natural risk managers,’ says former CISA official
https://statescoop.com/local-elections-cybersecurity-cdt-geoff-hale-qanda/
Publish Date: 2026-03-25 17:06:00
Source Domain: statescoop.com
Geoff Hale got his start in defending the nation’s elections infrastructure from cyberattacks in 2016. “I guess I can thank Russia for that,” he said, pointing to his work at the National Protection and Programs Directorate, which was two years later to be transformed into the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Department of Homeland Security division granted an expansive remit on coordinating and rallying technical and intelligence resources in response to cybersecurity threats, foreign and domestic.
He recalled Russia’s successful cyberattacks in 2016 against the Democratic National Committee, but also lesser known cyber activity aimed at state governments. Much has changed over the past decade, including the level of support offered by the federal cyber agency created during Donald Trump’s first presidency. Federal support for state and local governments has been slashed broadly, including for programs that would aid local election officials as they prepare for the midterm elections and the 2028 presidential race.
Aiming to provide local governments additional cyber support, the nonprofit advocacy group Center for Democracy and Technology last month announced a new initiative, led by Hale. In a recent interview, he described the nation’s altered political backdrop and how his organization hopes to play a helpful role.
This interview, which can be found in full on StateScoop’s Priorities Podcast, has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Colin Wood: How will you lead this new initiative to aid local election officials with their cybersecurity?
Hale: It’s really a focus on election infrastructure, the progress that has been made over the last decade in securing election infrastructure. By that you mean the office systems, the government networks, the voting systems, your voter registration databases, your e-pollbooks and everything that is IT related that an election official may rely on to administer…
