Voters head to the polls this fall amid the “highest levels of political violence in the U.S. since the 1970s,” and “rising domestic tensions,” according to a new threat assessment, warning that those protecting the political process should be on high alert.
Despite being a so-called “off-year” for elections, officials need to be on guard, said the bulletin from the Center for Internet Security (CIS), a nonprofit focused on cybersecurity that partners with government and law enforcement.
Particularly when “high-profile” races or controversial issues are on the line, election infrastructure becomes an even more attractive target, according to the bulletin.
“Physical and disruptive threat-related activity will increase if specific races or ballot measures gain widespread contentious public attention, or if foreign adversaries assess an election outcome would provide a strategic advantage,” the bulletin said of the voting process.
“The highly volatile threat environment, coupled with a realignment of federal resources devoted to cybersecurity and election security, require election officials and state and local law enforcement to review security protocols and plans,” according to the bulletin.
It’s a uniquely powder-keg moment, the bulletin said, with partisan tensions seething and political violence having broken out at home and abroad. Meanwhile, rapidly evolving technologies continue to offer new tools for would-be foes.
“Typically, in off-year elections, we do not see significant levels of cyber and physical threat-related activity directed at election officials and the election infrastructure. This year is not typical,” said John Cohen, the former intelligence chief at the Department of Homeland Security and now an ABC News contributor.
“Over the past several years, there have been sustained levels of cyber attacks and acts of targeted violence directed at state and local governments. We have witnessed acts of political violence,” said Cohen, who is also the executive director of CIS’ program for countering hybrid threats.
“Election and law enforcement need to be prepared for foreign and domestic threat actors viewing the 2025 elections as an opportunity to sow discord, undermine confidence in government institutions and incite violence,” Cohen added.
While election officials in states holding high-profile elections on Tuesday are concerned about ongoing threats against election workers, they are not currently tracking any specific election-related threats, according to a recent ABC News survey to all 50 states and followup conversations with officials in New York, New Jersey, Virginia, and California.
But the risk is not some imaginary boogeyman: very real-world threats have reared their head. Officials should take steps to triage potential trouble ahead of time, said the assessment, which included itemized recommendations.
In Minnesota in September, a mayoral campaign office was vandalized with a “threatening message, stating, ‘Somali Muslim – this warning is no joke.’” That same candidate had already “faced prior threats” — including being on the alleged “hit list” written by Vance Boelter, the suspect charged with gunning down two Democratic state lawmakers and their spouses in Minnesota in June.
In Colorado that same month, a “Molotov cocktail-like device” was “thrown into the county office,” damaging Dominion Voting systems in two election offices, the bulletin said. A former sheriff candidate was charged with the targeted firebombing.
This November’s elections come at the close of an already turbulent year, where a rise in political violence included the assassination of Charlie Kirk and the firebombing attack on the Pennsylvania governor’s residence. The year prior, then-presidential candidate Donald Trump faced two attempts on his life. Election Day 2024 also saw several bomb threats that briefly closed polling sites in key swing districts including Atlanta and Milwaukee, which the FBI said appeared to originate from Russian email domains.
The threats are not only physical, the bulletin noted. One key part of any campaign is voter outreach — these days, often over email and text. But those requests for engagement and donations also create opportunities for scamsters to get in on the grassroots effort with phishing attempts and impersonation.
“Threat actors conduct phishing campaigns to target or exploit heightened attention surrounding elections, including incidents reported to CIS throughout 2024,” the bulletin said — adding, it continues this year. “Malspam” — generic spam containing malware — is used “often including impersonations of known individuals or organizations, alongside requests to open malicious documents.”
In Texas last month, a “fake voter registration scam” targeted voters over text messages “to collect personal information,” the bulletin said.
Information operations intended to manipulate voters and undermine trust “could increase” also as November voting begins, the bulletin said. Fake news sites from foreign adversaries like Russia are already posting what they call “breaking news” about mail-in ballots, polling changes and race outcomes, the bulletin said.
ABC News’ Lucien Bruggeman contributed to this report.
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