Amid growing scrutiny of elections and declining trust in election officials, Cameron County (Texas) Elections Administrator Remi Garza stresses the importance of promoting voter involvement throughout the election process.
“Hopefully, through engaging transparency and consistency, people will come to understand that there’s no giant black box determining the fate and future of every candidate in United States,” Garza said.
Garza attributes his career in elections to the universe’s sense of humor. In 1995, Garza began working in local government with a Cameron County judge before transitioning to private consulting. During this time, he gained experience with local budgets and election processes and would often comment on changes he would make if he was in charge.
“I always say the universe has a sense of humor because during all that time, when issues and trouble would come up, I would say, ‘Well, if I were in charge, I would do this, or, if I were doing it, this is how I would have done that.’ Then, they tapped on my shoulder and said, ‘Well, if you think you know how to do better, why don’t you give it a try?’ So, I did.”
When the role of local election administrator became available, Garza sought appointment. By this time, his experience as a consultant, along with watching his parents run for office and fulfill other election roles, had given him insight into almost every aspect of elections – except for the role of administrator. Garza saw this opportunity as a chance to expand his expertise and serve his community in a new capacity.
Cameron county is one of several counties that consolidate all election duties under the role of administrator. In Texas, election duties are often split between the county tax assessor and the county clerk. The county tax assessor maintains the voter list and voting history and trains deputy registrars. County clerks are responsible for conducting elections, including early voting, managing polling places and preparing reports for the Secretary of State. Under Texas law, counties can also choose to appoint an election administrator – a position that consolidates the roles of tax assessor and county clerk.
When asked about the appointment of election administrators, Garza said he thinks the “separation of being completely disinterested in the outcome of elections as you administer them is…beneficial to the system.”
Residents of Cameron County have a “long tradition” of serving in the military, according to Garza. An estimated 400 to 500 ballots are cast in the county by those who vote under
The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, as known as UOCAVA, during presidential elections. These voters often struggle to successfully cast their ballot, so Garza and his staff do everything they can to support them throughout the voting process.
“It’s the same sort of philosophy of making sure that the minute they decide to participate, they can, assuming there’s no deadline they’ve missed already,” Garza said. “I really do everything I can — and my staff does, too — to exercise that discretion in the favor of the voter.”
According to Garza, communication is paramount in supporting UOCAVA voters. His office ensures that “lines of communication are open” and that staff are proactive in following-up with voters via email to make them aware of requirements under the law.
Garza and his office also focus on ensuring voters can exercise their right to vote by-mail. By-mail voting, which is available for those aged 65 and older and those with disabilities, became central during the 2020 and 2022 elections. Garza said his staff is “tuned into” the needs of those voters, whether contacting them when they have a family member with them or helping mail packages.
“If [my staff] had the opportunity, they called people to tell them that there was a problem with an application,” Garza said. “They also volunteered to take the application back to the voter, and they did that a number of times. Unless there’s something that prohibits it, they were willing to do it.”
Garza appreciates the dedication of his staff because “voting is considered a birthright ” and ensuring voters can successfully navigate the ballot request process is a critical step in helping them exercise this right.
“The stakes are so high. If you make a mistake on a filing with the County Clerk’s Office, you can go back and refile something,” Garza said. “In voting, you very rarely have a chance to go back once you’ve cast your ballot — it’s a one and done situation. Ultimately, once you cast that ballot, that’s it.”
Garza sees the right to vote as foundational to the nation in that it offers citizens the chance to understand democracy and their roll in their communities. He encourages voters to “participate at any level in the election process” and to remember that “the people running elections are your neighbors, friends, teachers, coaches and more. Get to know a mile in their shoes before you decide that you’re going to criticize.”
For Grace Bannasch, election administration was a profession she didn’t know she wanted. After recovering from an illness that rendered her housebound, Bannasch picked up the Shutesbury town newsletter in search of a job. A Shutesbury native, Bannasch was familiar with the news and events in the newsletter. Nestled amongst the reminders for the upcoming elections was a message from the town clerk; Shutesbury needed an assistant clerk. Bannasch, looking to get back on her feet while also prioritizing her health, soon applied for the position.
Although Bannasch had minimal experience with local government, she possessed a strong desire to learn — Shutesbury, after all, was her home. Bannasch has lived in the small Massachusetts town her entire life. She had walked the halls of the high school and accompanied her parents to vote at Town Hall from a young age. This shared sense of community, combined with her desire to learn about local government, made Bannasch the right candidate for the job.
Under the guidance of the town clerk, Bannasch learned the responsibilities of her new role and fell in love with the office. Over time, her commitment to the position grew and when the clerk announced their retirement, Bannasch ran for the position. She has held this role to this day.
According to Bannasch, her passion for the office stems from interactions with the community. Shutesbury, a small town in western Massachusetts, boasts a population of around 2,000. Because of the town’s size, the conduct of elections bears a strong communal nature with long-respected practices and traditions.
For example, paper ballots remain the primary means of casting a vote. Since 1934, voters have used a wooden ballot box placed in the town hall to cast their votes. This box is operated by a hand crank that prompts a bell to chime once the gear has been turned and the ballot is cast. Bannasch said absentee voters often tell her how “drearily unfulfilling” it is to simply drop their ballot in the mail after the gratification of the box’s bell.
In small towns throughout the United States, local government and community organizations rely on a myriad of volunteers — Shutesbury included. Each election night, Bannasch coordinates seasoned volunteers as they process and hand count ballots.
“Small town elections are a communal effort,” Bannasch said. “The people have a strong connection to our voting traditions that has fostered a high level of institutional, shared knowledge within the community.”
The slow-paced life that characterizes Shutesbury often stands in direct contrast to the daily life of the town clerk. Throughout Massachusetts’ history, town clerks were often the first government office created by formal colonial settlements. Clerks became responsible for orderly duties, such as counting votes, taking minutes during town hall meetings and keeping records. Over the years, these responsibilities have grown. Today, Bannasch is not only the primary election official but is also responsible for distributing trash bags to residents, issuing marriage, birth and death certificates, and maintaining public records — some of which date back to the 1600s — among other duties.
As the primary holder of public records, Bannasch is responsible for responding to public records requests, which are similar to Freedom of Information Act requests. In a typical election year, a town clerk in Massachusetts receives a handful of requests throughout the election cycle. In 2020, however, this all changed.
Starting in May 2020, approximately 6 months before the presidential election, public records requests began to pour into the clerk’s office. By the time the November election had arrived, Bannasch received multiple, almost identical, public records requests each week. Without an assistant clerk for support, the responsibility of responding to these requests fell solely on Bannasch’s shoulders.
During the 2020 election cycle, the sheer volume of records requests proved burdensome on many public officials throughout Massachusetts. These requests, however, were not the only challenge Bannasch faced. Conflicting public health guidance surrounding COVID-19 protocols deterred long-standing volunteers in Shutesbury from offering their time to help with election night duties. As the primary holder of the town’s records, Bannasch knew who the town’s new residents were and subsequently reached out to get them involved.
The 2020 election cycle was also the first to follow the statewide implementation of vote-by-mail procedures. Prior elections required Bannasch to devote approximately three weeks of work to preparing for the election. With the implementation of vote-by-mail, this time commitment increased to around three months. During this time, Bannasch was responsible for educating voters on changing procedures, preparing ballot materials and coordinating election day volunteers.
The persistent demands of the clerkship have not stopped Bannasch from leaving her mark on the office. Upon assuming the role of town clerk, Bannasch worried that her struggles with completing paperwork would hinder her ability to succeed.
“I have a degenerative disease that affects my central nervous system, “Bannasch said. “I also have a diagnosed learning disability. At first, I was worried that the problems I had with paperwork would prevent me from being able to perform or succeed. But then I found out this office has custody of our paperwork, so I’ve been able to redesign it and make it accessible.”
This work has included incorporating plain-language instructions and providing explanations for each question on the town-level census. Since incorporating these changes, both response rates and user experiences have improved.
For those interested in becoming an election administrator, whether in a small town or a large city, Bannasch said honesty is most important.
“Always be honest,” Bannasch said. “I have made mistakes — it’s going to happen. I’ve felt embarrassed and wanted to pretend it didn’t happen. Despite these feelings, each time I have gone straight to the voter. I’ve explained to them what happened and what was done to rectify the error. Each time I have been met with understanding.”
Colorado Deputy Elections Director Hilary Rudy is no stranger to elections. Growing up, Rudy’s mother worked as an election official at the county level for 26 years. Although she was exposed to elections from a young age, Rudy had no interest in pursuing a career like her mother’s. She was more interested in pursuing a career in law. However, while attending law school, Rudy realized she wasn’t fully satisfied with her current studies. In 2005, after a recommendation from her mother, Rudy interned with the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office and discovered her love for elections.
Upon completing law school, Rudy stayed with the Secretary of State’s Office and began working full-time as a legal analyst in 2006. In the spring of 2008, she became a score legal analyst, where she focused on migrating counties to a new statewide voter registration system, which was set to roll out before the 2008 U.S. presidential election.
“It was a pretty big shift,” Rudy said. “Before the score system, there were 64 independent systems that the counties used. Moving 64 counties to a single centralized system was a really significant change heading into a presidential election.”
Fast-forward to today. Rudy has since stayed with the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office and now serves as the deputy elections director. Her role entails overseeing the various elections teams that provide direct support and oversight to Colorado voters across all 64 counties. Each team is active at different points throughout the election cycle, which keeps Rudy busy.
As deputy director, Rudy is also tasked with implementing training programs throughout the year.
“Training is definitely one thing I love personally,” Rudy said. “I really enjoy working with our trainers to develop and deliver content to help our election administrators do their jobs.”
The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office coordinates roughly 18 asynchronous online training classes on topics such as issuing provisional ballots, accommodating military and overseas voters and canvassing in elections. In addition to online training, Colorado also offers in-person regional training twice a year, where counties can come together to discuss complex issues like contingency planning.
Given her long tenure in elections, Rudy has been responsible for implementing many procedural changes resulting from federal legislation, most notably the Help America Vote Act of 2002. She also spoke highly about the improvement in ballot access for voters due to many state-level changes that she’s observed over the past decade.
“We’ve seen consistent changes in Colorado at the state level over the years that are really focused on making elections accessible for voters,” Rudy said. “For us in Colorado, that meant a shift toward mail ballot delivery since 2013. We’ve also seen changes in voter registration processes, such as moving from a 30-day hard deadline to no local durational residency requirements, same-day voter registration and a real-time statewide voter registration system.”
This progress, however, has not come without any setbacks. Like many states, Colorado has also been impacted by the rise of misinformation and disinformation surrounding elections. In addition to providing accurate and up-to-date answers to FAQs on the state’s election website, the Secretary of State’s Office runs consistent media messaging alongside local election offices.
“There’s a lot of disinformation about election processes, eligibility and how elections are conducted, and the challenge has been how to ensure voters are looking at trusted sources for information,” Rudy said. “I think speaking with unity and providing accurate information is really important right now. Getting national leaders and election officials to be that unified, trusted point of information would help build that trust in elections.”
Public scrutiny of elections has really taken a toll on election offices across the country. In Colorado, Rudy noted a significant uptake in office phone calls from frustrated voters as well as threats directed toward the secretary of state. The nature and volume of these threats has caused her to worry about her own safety.
“We monitor threats regularly, but I’ve testified in some pretty high-profile cases on behalf of our office, and I’ve seen some social media chatter about myself,” Rudy said. “It made me think about my own personal safety a little bit more. I’m not going to let any of that back me down, and I’m fortunate that I haven’t faced the kinds of threats that many of my colleagues across the country have faced.”
Nevertheless, Rudy is “committed to transparent and accurate elections” even amidst public scrutiny. “I believe in elections, and I believe in democracy,” she said.
Enhanced public scrutiny of election officials has raised concerns and fear in election officials across the country to the extent that many seasoned election officials have stepped down. However, Colorado has not had a significant retention problem in the last four years. According to Rudy, the turnover she has seen has mostly resulted from term limits or retirement rather than turnover due to scrutiny.
“We’ve had a little bit of turnover here in the secretary’s office, but nothing significant,” Rudy said. “We have a great depth of election experience in our office. In the county offices, we see some turnover as well, but here in Colorado, we’re seeing more systematic turnover to deal with term limits and regular retirements. Overall, the turnover is consistent with what we would expect, even in the county offices.”
Retaining seasoned election officials is especially important when serving a large population of military and overseas citizen voters, also referred to as UOCAVA voters. Colorado has roughly 40,000 UOCAVA voters and that number is steadily rising. Even with the help of subject matter experts, reaching UOCAVA voters remains a challenge in Colorado and across many states.
“Most of our UOCAVA voters are well outside of Colorado, and finding the right communication method to ensure they know they are eligible to vote in non-federal elections has been challenging,” Rudy said. “We’ve found that there seems to be a small education gap between what our UOCAVA voters think they’re eligible for and what they’re actually eligible for.”
Communication is critical when trying to reach UOCAVA voters. Rudy noted that her office is constantly seeking out innovative ways to get accurate and timely information about upcoming elections to overseas voters. She has found that a combined approach of social media, mail and email has been most effective. According to Rudy, Colorado counties reach out to their UOCAVA voters at least once a year before an upcoming election to ensure they know an election is coming up and confirm their location is still the same. The Secretary of State’s Office also sends emails to remind UOCAVA voters about upcoming ballot delivery timelines and instructions before an election.
“One thing in Colorado that we’ve really focused on is how do we get that ballot to [UOCAVA voters] quickly and ensure they have the information they need to participate,” Rudy said. “I think our online ballot delivery system has been very popular over the years, and we expect to continue to see pretty high use of that system.
In addition to UOCAVA outreach, Colorado is actively working to make voting more accessible for urban and rural voters. Overall, Colorado’s vote-by-mail system works well for most voters. However, some communities have lower voter registration and turnout rates than others. One such community is the city and county of Denver, which “deploys community leaders to talk about voter registration and working directly with the community to discuss how to receive your ballots.”
Election officials in Denver County also sought to improve voter participation by expanding ballot drop boxes and establishing vote centers. However, in one neighborhood, Denver County lacked the proper infrastructure to do so.
“[Election officials from] Denver County, Adams County and Arapahoe County worked together to co-locate a tri-county vote center and a tri-branded drop box in the last election,” Rudy said. “So even with a voting model that generally works pretty well for most voters, we had to think about making sure the infrastructure is also there for voters to have the option to utilize a drop box to drop off their ballot.”
2020 was a shock to election offices across the country. While adjustments were made in every office, Colorado’s adjustments looked different. During the 2020 election, many states made pandemic-related changes to election procedures to ensure voting access; however, Colorado’s adjustments sought to protect election officials.
“Colorado was well positioned going into 2020 because we were already an all-mail ballot state. We didn’t need to make any big changes in conducting elections. However, we did make many changes to protect the election officials who were working during the election,” said Rudy.
Throughout the pandemic, Colorado required election officials and poll workers to wear sneeze guards and face masks in accordance with public health guidance. Many staff members also transitioned to remote or hybrid work arrangements. Although the pandemic has ended, these adjustments have remained in place.
“In the State Office, we’ve continued a hybrid work model because we found that it worked really well for our team during that period, and it may be one of the reasons we have high retention in the workspace,” said Rudy.
If there’s one thing that 2020 taught election officials, it is the importance of preparing for the unexpected. Heading into a federal election year, Rudy and her colleagues have developed contingency plans not only for weather-related events, but also physical threats. For example, in 2023 election officials in several states received letters containing fentanyl. Although briefly touching fentanyl cannot cause an overdose, many of these envelopes contained threatening messages. These letters have caused Rudy and her colleagues to reevaluate how they plan for and respond to such threats.
Rudy and many of her colleagues have persevered despite many challenges in recent years through flexibility and a passion for democracy. When asked about her highlights from working in elections, Rudy noted working with interns and mentorship as her top highlights.
“One thing that I am proud of is working with interns. I get to mentor future leaders in elections and I’m very proud of that.”
When Rudy is not working or mentoring, she enjoys playing softball and lifting weights. Although her work consumes most of her time, Rudy’s positive work ethic is fueled by her sincere admiration for elections and service. When asked about her favorite part about working in elections, Rudy stated, “I come from a long line of opinionated women, and I was told at a young age, if you don’t say it, nobody hears it. Your opinion only matters if you use it. So, I think my favorite part about working in elections is that one person, one vote, can change an election. And that’s powerful.”
Karen Brinson Bell is no stranger to public service. In 2019, she was selected as the North Carolina State Board of Elections Executive Director. Brinson Bell’s father was the mayor of her small, eastern North Carolina hometown when she was born and worked in government for most of his career, which inspired her to study political science and mass communications at the University of North Carolina Ashville. After college, she initially worked in journalism and nonprofits before becoming a trainer and recruiter for a regional real estate company.
Her training background prompted a friend to recommend she apply for a new temporary position working in elections with the North Carolina State Board of Elections. She applied for the position and was hired as a district elections technician, serving twelve counties in Western North Carolina from 2006-2011. The job became available because of the Help America Vote Act of 2002, which provided states with funding to replace dated voting equipment. Karen’s position was focused on training staff on the new voting equipment and supporting the counties in whatever form they needed.
“There was a county where the director’s husband had a massive heart attack the night before the election, and she only had a seasonal part-time worker,” said Brinson Bell. “That person got the election going, and I came in that night to help out. So, you know, whatever was needed is where I stepped in, and that prepared me to be a county elections director.”
After her time as a district elections technician, Brinson Bell went on to serve as the election director for Transylvania County, a small county outside of Asheville, from 2011-2015. From there, she went on to work for a software elections vendor who provided software services for inventory management and poll worker assignments to counties while also consulting on ranked-choice voting election administration. Brinson Bell’s deep understanding and expertise in ranked choice voting election administration led to her involvement with the formation of the Ranked Choice Voting Resource Center, now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. North Carolina was the first state to utilize statewide ranked-choice voting since the early 1900s in the 2010 runoff election. It was during this time, and assisting Hendersonville, NC, with ranked choice voting elections, that Brinson Bell established herself as a subject matter expert in this field.
“There was a time when I was one of the most experienced election administrators in ranked-choice voting in the country,” she said.
Shortly after her consulting work, Brinson Bell was appointed as the North Carolina State Board of Elections Executive Director in June 2019. As an election director, she serves as the chief election official in the state and has oversight of all 100 county boards of elections. This includes overseeing the conduct of elections, voter registration, election reporting, candidate filing and campaign finance. To streamline election information and campaign finance reporting across counties and the state, the North Carolina Board of Elections developed an in-house system called SEIMS beginning in 1998. Brinson Bell and her team set out to revamp and modernize SEIMS in the coming year thanks to recent funding aimed at updating the in-house system.
“In 1998, our very own in-house development team developed a state election information management system, we call it SEIMS,” she said. “It was one of the first statewide voter registration systems, and it’s something that we have continued to build out. We essentially have 13 modules now provided to the counties so that all counties are linked through the SEIMS system.”
Brinson Bell is the fourth elections director for North Carolina and the only elections director to have had first-hand experience at both the county and state levels. She credits her experience with the county for shaping her approach to training her team.
“We call ourselves Team 101 because we have 100 county boards of elections and one state board all working together,” she said.
One way Team 101 works together is through the “HUBS” program, an acronym that stands for “help us become successful.” Each hub is focused on a different area of election administration.
“For example, there’s a hub for in-person voting and absentee voting by mail, and each hub is made up of subject matter experts within our agency who directly work in that subject area. We try to make sure there is a mix of experts from large and small counties to ensure we have varying perspectives coming to the table,” said Brinson Bell.
Finding innovative ways to train and share knowledge amongst her colleagues at the state and county levels is one way Brinson Bell helps communicate updates or changes in the elections administration process. With over 19 years of experience in the elections space, she has witnessed many changes in the administration of elections. When asked about what changes she’s witnessed over the years, she noted technology as the most significant change.
“When I worked in field support at the district level, I did not have a smartphone; we had to use a real map,” said Brinson Bell.
“Once I moved to the county level, they still had two typewriters in the office, and I remember saying we have got to move forward. Now, we have electronic voting equipment, electronic voter registration database systems, and other electronic processes, and I’ve seen a positive progression of technology in that regard.”
Technology also played a significant role during the COVID-19 Pandemic, when many election processes had to move to an electronic platform and election offices nationwide had to incorporate virtual elements into their typical workflow.
“Our counties started utilizing Teams and Zoom for meetings, training and conferences. We started having virtual huddles twice a month to keep officials apprised of new procedures, laws or court proceedings. We also had outside organizations like the EAC and CISA provide virtual training for us. That was really helpful,” said Brinson Bell.
Another change she noted was how the complexity of elections has changed over time. The increasing use of technology in elections also necessitates complex cybersecurity requirements and a greater understanding of new voting equipment and election laws to better serve today’s voters. Today, Brinson Bell believes election administrators have to take on more roles than compared to the past.
“There is just so much. The complexity of the laws, the technology and, in my state, the sheer volume of our registered voting population is more than 7 million voters now,” she said. “I also think elections becoming classified as critical infrastructure has just put elections in more of the spotlight now. We as elections officials need to be fluent in more complex procedures.”
The complexity of election administration has presented challenges in the election space. Brinson Bell cited the increase in administrator turnover as one of the biggest challenges that North Carolina and many other states face. In particular, county election directors across North Carolina have seen the most turnover in recent years.
“We have experienced a change in county election directors 60 times since January 2019. Some of that comes from harassment, hostility and the overall increased tension of working in elections,” said Brinson Bell.
She believes that “more consistent funding across the board” could help states mitigate this issue. More funding would allow counties to hire more people to help implement new changes and help ease some of the stress for election officials.
“Some of the turnover is due to a lack of adequate funding. Jobs are more technologically complex than election administration positions used to be. We need more funding to ensure we have enough people, tools and subject matter expertise to conduct elections as effectively and securely as possible,” said Brinson Bell.
Conducting a federal election during a global pandemic was challenging. However, it also presented election officials with an opportunity to pivot and learn about emergency preparedness.
“I recall telling the counties that we would need to wear another hat and become public health experts,” said Brinson Bell. “Here in North Carolina, we started having statewide exercises with the county emergency management and law enforcement team to work proactively and not reactively. We were able to build a good relationship with them, and in 2022, we developed a law enforcement guide for election laws, and in 2024, we started a course on elections for law enforcement.”
Not only does North Carolina have a large, registered voting population, but it also has one of the largest military populations in the country. Although the state’s large military presence is not reflected in its smaller number of UOCAVA voters compared to the overall voting population. Nonetheless, Brinson Bell believes that it is crucial to ensure a smooth voting experience for military voters in her state.
“It’s of utmost importance for us to ensure that military voters can exercise their right to vote, and that is what pushed us to create the UOCAVA portal on our state website,” she said.
The UOCAVA portal is designed to make voting information, deadlines, forms and other voting materials more accessible to servicemembers and overseas citizens. North Carolina law allows for electronic transmission, so these voters can also use the portal to request and return their ballot. In addition to creating the portal, North Carolina has revised their website to be concise and straightforward by removing confusing election terminology. For example, using words such as military and overseas citizens rather than the term UOCAVA. Election officials in North Carolina also visit military bases to conduct in-person training on voting as a servicemember. Brinson Bell also noted that utilizing social media has not only helped reach domestic voters but also communicate voting information to UOCAVA voters as well.
“We utilize social media campaigns and our website to help build voter confidence by giving them accurate and digestible information.,” said Brinson Bell.
Not only does Brinson Bell serve North Carolina voters in her role as Executive Director, but she is also actively involved with many national organizations focused on elections. She serves as the incoming President of the National Association of State Election Directors and sits on the conference planning board for the Committee for Election Science Reform and Administration. She is also involved with the Election Assistance Commission and the Bipartisan Policy Center Elections Task Force. When she is not serving in one of her many roles, Brinson Bell enjoys spending time with her family, traveling and attending North Carolina State basketball and football games.
Wayne Bena likes to say his best friend’s daughter’s birthday party launched his career in elections. While at the party, Bena spoke to the then Sarpy County election commissioner, who was considering retirement, about her role in local elections. Pulling from his experience in the state legislature and private practice, Bena thought his skills would be the “right fit” for the role. In 2010, he was appointed Sarpy County election commissioner and has worked in elections ever since.
Sarpy County is Nebraska’s third-largest county and home to the Offutt Air Force Base. Having grown up in the area, Bena knew about some of the stress military families face.
“While not from a military background myself, I understood it by having a lot of friends who were in the military that moved frequently,” Bena said. “When I got to my job in elections, I realized all the different protections and different things we did to help military families and overseas citizens with their vote. It was very important to me, especially being in a place where we had a big concentration of military members, even if they weren’t residents of our state. I knew if I took care of my folks, other states would take care of our folks that were there.”
Lessons learned from working at the county level were pivotal when, in 2017, Bena joined the Nebraska Secretary of State’s Office as the deputy secretary of state for elections. In this role, he continued his support of military and overseas voters, due in large part to his belief that “there’s nothing more pure than getting a ballot out to those that need a little more assistance because of where they are.”
Through legislation, Bena helped expand access to National Guard members and utility workers who are working out of state for national disasters. Inspiration for the legislation came from Mississippi, a state where Bena learned from leaders to better understand what was possible from a legislative and practical standpoint.
The bill, LB 843 (2022), focuses on changes to Nebraska’s election laws, including revising Section 32-939 to extend UOCAVA protections to Nebraska National Guard members while out of state. Additionally, a new section was added to allow emergency response and utility workers to request an early voting ballot if they are working outside of Nebraska 45 days before an election.
This was just one example of the changes Bena implemented while in office. He said expanding audits after elections is important to increasing the transparency of elections with voters. Bena added that cybersecurity is an emerging challenge in election administration.
“While elections have always been secure — on state levels and going down to the locals — there’s an enhanced look at where some vulnerabilities could be and how we can work with our state, local and federal partners to fill in any gaps,” Bena said.
Additionally, Bena said voters are looking for more ways to cast their ballots, and that adaptations are needed to ensure laws remain flexible while maximizing the number of votes counted by election night, even with rising concerns about security.
“It is not as complicated as long as you have the laws in place to be flexible and allow your election officials enough time to count your ballots on election night and have as many votes counted as possible before the end of the night,” Bena said. “Because, the next day, that’s when everybody starts asking more questions — why are there more results? Each state is different on how ballots are counted, but if you can have laws that allow for flexibility in regard to the administration on the back end, you can get more done on election night to be able to count the most ballots as possible.”
To answer questions about voting safely during COVID-19, Bena and his team relied on the flexibility of both election laws and local election officials. They decided to send early ballot applications to registered voters while still offering in-person voting. Additionally, Bena made sure to provide poll workers and offices personal protective equipment and started the Step Up campaign to recruit new poll workers. This work resulted in the most ballots cast in the state’s primary history.
“Our laws allow that flexibility to be able to adjust regardless of how people voted to be able to have results,” Bena said. “Just having that election was a great accomplishment for the state, but to have the most ballots cast in the history of a primary was a kind of cherry on top.”
Bena attributed some of the success during COVID-19, and in other elections, to the commitment made through legislation, offering all voters early voting, recruiting new poll workers and providing personal protective equipment for those working in elections to assist all of Nebraska’s 93 counties. In 2020, Bena also helped implement a statewide election equipment update.
“We tried to find ways to level the playing field for counties that may not have the same type of funding as other counties for the same type of services,” Bena said.
Bena and the Nebraska Secretary of State’s Office won the inaugural National Association of State Election Directors Innovators Award in 2019 for the state’s use of the Albert Network Monitoring and Management system, which protects voter registration systems used by state and local government entities from cyber threats.
“While the technology is not unique, how Nebraska deployed the technology was unique, and we were fortunate enough to get a little recognition for that,” Bena said.
Nebraska has approximately 2,704 uniformed and overseas voters, who often experience difficulties receiving or sending election materials. Using technology such as email and the Voter Information Center allows election officials to transmit these materials to voters in a timely manner. Bena said Nebraska laws that enable the use of electronic ballot return help reduce the overall anxiety that overseas voters may feel about the voting process.
For example, a Nebraskan who was locked down overseas during the pandemic reached out to Bena’s office due to an inability to scan and return a document. Bena worked with the voter to ensure the ballot was returned by taking a picture with a tablet and sending it electronically.
“It’s finding ways within the margins of the law to be able to get that ballot back in order to be counted,” Bena said. “Every way that we can figure out how to help somebody is very meaningful.”
Before serving as Director of Elections for Washington, Stuart Holmes grew up surrounded by technology. His mother worked as Benton County, Washington’s IT Director, exposing him to technology at a young age. “I remember the days of figuring out dial-up and AOL with her,” Holmes recalled. “Growing up around computers, I figured I would follow the same career path as my mom.”
Stuart Holmes set out to follow in his mother’s footsteps and attended Columbia Basin College, where he studied Network Administration. In May 2005, Holmes’ began working as an archival specialist for the Benton County Auditor’s office where he oversaw digitizing various records. During his time there, Holmes had a front-row view of all the behind-the-scenes work election officials had to do.
“I was sitting there scanning documents and watching them do their jobs and was just fascinated by it,” Holmes said.
Technology slowly made its way into elections, resulting in the creation of a full-time election assistant position at the Benton County Auditor’s office. As modern voting equipment was being introduced, Holmes embarked on this opportunity to combine his background in technology with his newfound passion for elections. At the auditor’s office, Holmes became an election specialist in 2007 and then an election supervisor in 2009. Establishing himself in elections work, Holmes was then promoted to election administrator after becoming a certified election and voter registration administrator through the National Association of Election Officials. Today, Holmes serves as the Director of Elections under the Washington Secretary of State.
With over a decade of experience in elections, Holmes has witnessed many transitions in the elections space. One of the most significant changes that he echoes, along with many election officials, is the evolution of security concerns.
“Cybersecurity has been an area of focus since roughly 2005. However, we’ve entered this new era where the risk matrix is changing, and we need to keep up with that. Every few months, a new security concern arises. It could be cybersecurity today, physical security tomorrow, and something else down the line. Right now, it’s battling misinformation. That’s what makes the job fun! It’s never boring, and we must keep up with the flow.”
Rising security concerns have challenged election officials across the country. Many offices struggle to retain election administrators due to the high pressure and high burnout environment of the field. “In elections, you’re either going to get in or get out real quick. It’s not for everyone.,” said Holmes.
When asked about how to help mitigate some of these security concerns, he listed funding and more in-person interactions as two essential pieces.
“Funding is super important. There’s a lot of funding currently focused on cybersecurity efforts. Still, we also need funding for technology hardware, physical security, and finding more ways to collaborate and share solutions to common problems.”
He also suggests more in-person interactions as a tool to help combat misinformation and disinformation about elections.
“Everything is virtual now. We live stream, post on social media and communicate primarily through technology. A lot goes on behind the scenes that most people don’t get the chance to see. I think we need to coordinate more office tours, for example. Coordinating communication with county partners to come to observe in person what really occurs during a typical election operation. Showing people all the work that goes into an election and all the people working to ensure their vote is secure could help build trust in elections.”
However, Holmes identified one topic that has prevailed over the years: paper-based voting. He noted that “having a physical record of the voters’ choices has not changed along with everything else around that like accountability, auditability and transparency, which are all steadily being improved.”
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, technology has become a crucial part of elections. More and more voters rely on the internet, news sources and social media to get election information. Technology has made it easier to capture multiple languages, create accessible voting for people with disabilities and help increase communication between election offices and voters. “People just expect technology to be a part of their lives at this point,” said Holmes. However, he noted that while we “should embrace technology”, he also believes we need to “embrace its constraints” as well.
New technology means more technological expertise is required, according to Holmes.
“We get very reliant on these intricate systems that require a subject matter expert, and when those individual leaves, all of a sudden, you’re like, holy smokes! How do we use this system we’ve come to rely on without that expert? We need to do a better job of making sure we also come up with analog solutions.”
Technology has also allowed for greater communication and outreach to voters covered under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA). Reaching UOCAVA voters and ensuring they have all the information needed to cast their vote comes with its own set of challenges, and the state of Washington has roughly 85,000 registered UOCAVA voters.
“One of the main challenges we face is getting an accurate mailing address (for a UOCAVA voter). Even with an accurate mailing address, it can be difficult to know if the ballot actually made it to the voter. Electronic ballot submission has been really helpful in combating this. With so many bases, we try to develop strong partnerships with the voting assistance officers at each base to ensure they relay accurate voting information,” said Holmes.
A large UOCAVA population also means there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to effective communication. Holmes noted that “trying to reach younger military personnel in particular can be difficult in one fail swoop.” To help identify preferred communication methods for different voting populations, Holmes and his staff actively seek out opportunities to reach these voters.
“I have a staff member whose job is primarily dedicated to reaching out to younger voters, UOCAVA voters, voters with disabilities and even voters who might need information in different languages.”
Additionally, Holmes’ office has a Community Engagement Program that actively works with underrepresented communities to teach them about elections and voting as well as how to interact with the government.
“Not only is it important to talk about elections, but people also need to understand how city councils and school boards work,” said Holmes.
The Community Engagement Program was established in July 2022 and facilitates tours for election offices and military bases. The office recently completed its first major community project, commissioning murals in three major cities throughout the state. The murals are centered around educating community members on the restoration of voting rights.
2020 was a significant election year for election officials across the country. One of Holmes’ key takeaways from the election was, “to spend a lot more time planning and coordinating for the unexpected.” As we enter another election year in 2024, Holmes re-emphasized the importance of safety for election officials.
“The ability to feel safe when you perform your job during an election is so important. Something positive that did come out of 2020 was state legislatures also acknowledging the importance of safety for election officials. Going into 2024, we need to prepare for anything and everything while also focusing on execution.”
Aside from working in elections, Holmes makes time for hobbies as well. He enjoys photography, watching movies, hiking and trail running with his dog, Charlotte. When asked if he could give any advice to those interested in working in elections, he said to start with a goal in mind.
“Set a long-term goal for where you want to go. It took me ten years to get to the Secretary of State’s office. Take the appropriate steps to get to your goal and be ok with being turned down for positions. I was turned down for deputy director twice. Having a goal will keep you moving in the right direction.”
Driven to serve, Nevada County Clerk-Recorder and Registrar of Voters Natalie Adona started off her career in elections as a poll worker while pursuing her bachelor’s degree at the University of California, Berkeley. Then, she heard that the City and County of San Francisco had temporary positions for voter registration processers. Deciding to further pursue work in elections, Adona applied.
At her interview, Adona was asked about her interest in elections. She described her experience as a poll worker and her work as a research assistant on poll worker training with the Election Administration Research Center at the UCB campus. Although she applied to be become a voter registration processer, the election’s manager offered an alternative suggestion.
“They said well, you did all this research didn’t you? Why not train poll workers?”, Adona said.
She accepted the position and went on to begin her first foray into election administration.
“Something clicked in my mind that said oh, I get it now. This is cool! I think I’ve found what I want to do,” Adona said.
The excitement came to a sudden halt when the housing crisis of 2008 started to affect local government offices. Many county offices started downsizing, eliminating the possibility that Adona’s position could become permanent. This led Adona to pursue internships in elections research with nonprofits, such as Project Vote and Maplight.org. Adona went on to earn her Juris Doctor from the American University Washington College of Law in 2014, her Master of Public Administration from the American University’s School of Public Affairs in 2015, and began working with Democracy Fund in Washington, D.C.
Following her grandfather’s death in 2019, Adona moved back home to Nevada County, California, where she assumed a new role as an Assistant Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters under Greg Diaz. In the last years of his tenure, Diaz tried to convince Adona to run for office as the Nevada County Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters.
Adona repeatedly said she was “not the running type.” But given the challenges to election administration and the loss of institutional knowledge in the state, Adona filed to run anyway.
After a grueling campaign, Adona was elected on June 7, 2022. Running for office “was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done,” Adona said.
After years of working in the election space, Adona witnessed many changes, including the implementation of a statewide voter registration database in California. “While most states use a top-down method, where the state filters voter registration information to the counties, California is a bottom-up state, where counties keep a local voter registration database that filters up to the state level,” Adona Said.
As a result, “there is a constant flow of data, meaning that we have to focus on synchronization to ensure the data is the same between the counties and the state,” Adona said.
Another change was the addition of same-day voter registration — both in-person and online. Allowing for online same-day voter registration expanded access to UOCAVA voters who often face unique voting challenges abroad.
“It didn’t seem fair that our UOCAVA voters couldn’t register the same day simply because they couldn’t physically do so in person,” Adona said. “That big adjustment had a very positive impact.”
Coming from a military family, Adona believes it is essential to ensure that overseas voters are granted the same opportunity to vote. However, reaching overseas voters can be challenging for small offices.
“My county has about 500 registered UOCAVA voters and although that’s not a large number, it’s still difficult to determine what exactly they need,” Adona said. “Currently, we are trying to make a trifold that includes information on ballot tracking and other voting information to include in their voting materials that get sent out.”
Adona noted the increased difficulty in communicating voting requirements to overseas voters.
“It’s already difficult explaining the rules to domestic voters, so we’re hoping that condensing down the information will help ensure that our UOCAVA voters know what’s available to them,” Adona said.
Another adjustment that Adona, and many election officials, have observed over the years is the increased complexity of elections. Upon returning to California, Adona noted changes to the primary system, as well as in the voting equipment and technology that were used.
“Elections have become more complex and, thus, require more technical expertise than they used to,” Adona said.
While some might see these changes as negative, Adona views them in a positive light.
“With new equipment comes new system certification standards, new regulations for conducting elections and new training,” Adona said. “Our election officials and poll workers are becoming more and more knowledgeable, which adds to the enhanced security of elections over the years.”
In recent years, elections have been bombarded by misinformation and disinformation campaigns, leading to distrust in elections and election officials. As professionals and experts in their field, election officials are tasked with reassuring the public that voting equipment and technologies are secure despite the claims leveled against them.
“If I could put something on a list of things I never thought would happen, it would be California becoming a hotbed for misinformation and disinformation,” Adona said. “I never imagined misinformation and disinformation would have such a negative impact on elections in my state and across the country.”
Combating misinformation and disinformation can be challenging for any election office. Offices have struggled in recent years with worker retention due to increased concerns regarding their personal safety, which is one of the negative, downstream impacts that false information has had on elections.
“My office is very small; we only have three full-time staff and around fifteen temporary staff,” Adona said. “When misinformation and disinformation hits our office, it really puts a strain on the staff and our daily operations.”
Adona said funding is the number one resource to help address the challenges associated with worker retention and election safety.
“Funding, funding, funding! Misinformation and disinformation have riled people up in such a way that it’s becoming more and more dangerous,” Adona said. “Funding is critical to help address not only physical safety but also the safety of the ballots and the overall well-being of the workers themselves. Elections are a fundamental element of democracy and need to be treated as critical infrastructure which requires money.”
Although there are many challenges that come with her position — security, tackling misinformation and disinformation, and high worker turnover — Adona still speaks fondly about elections.
“I have the best job in the world!” Adona said. “Seeing how excited people are to tell me that they voted brings me so much joy. Elections are one of the greatest and most important jobs in the world. Even on my worst day, I wouldn’t want to do anything else.”
Raised in a family focused on giving back, and pulling from a successful career in business, Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate recognized the power of government action.
At age 29, Pate became the youngest member of the Iowa Senate and embarked on a path toward his current role. Following the conclusion of his first of two spells as secretary of state in 1998, Pate continued his service to Iowans as mayor of Cedar Rapids and president of Iowa’s League of Cities. He also served at the national level with the U.S. Conference of Mayors, with a specific focus on housing.
“I was raised in a family where my folks really underscored public service and giving back,” Pate said. “If you’re going to be fortunate enough to do well in life, you need to give back. We live in great communities and great states, but not everybody has the same successes, and you want to try to bring some of that back to them.”
Throughout Pate’s tenure in each role, he saw the impact that he and his staff were making. Similar to his broad reach as secretary of state, his role as president of Iowa’s League of Cities allowed him to be a difference maker for the residents, he represented in more than 900 Iowa cities.
“That was an eye opener,” Pate said. “You’re talking about towns as small as a couple of 100 people compared to our larger cities, and trying to balance out how we help all those communities have the resources and knowledge they need to be competitive.”
Nearly eight years ago, Pate returned to the Iowa Office of the Secretary of State. This time, he entered with increased attention on elections due to rapid changes in technology. According to Pate, he needed “jumpstart” those effort in the office, especially given the rise of social media and voting by mail.
Pate stressed the need for a trusted source for elections, whether it through his office or the local elections commissioner.
“The big concern I had then, and I have today even more so, is if the public loses confidence in the integrity of our election for whatever reason — whether it’s foreign interference or even local — then our republic has fallen,” Pate said. “And they wouldn’t have done it without firing a single shot. That’s alarming to me.”
Pate promotes a “trusted source” approach, which includes voter I.D. laws, random audits of elections and public pretesting of tabulators. While he said there are still hurdles, being transparent has led to increased trust and support by the public.
Increasing overseas voting and the role of military voters was also an important goal for Pate, who promoted a 120-day extension for certain service members. He added auditing occurs for military members requesting absentee ballots, accounting for how military service has changed. Included among these members are an influx of reservists and guardsmen who have been posted overseas.
“They are voters. They have a lot of involvement and commitment to their local communities because they know the candidates in their town,” Pate said. “They still want to stay in touch with that. We work hard with the local command and make sure those folks have what they need. I’m not going to just count on somebody handling it from the military or the Department of Defense. I want to do what we can on the local level to give them that information.”
Iowa Safe at Home is another program endorsed by Pate, offering address confidentiality for victims of domestic violence and other crimes. Through the program, victims can register their addresses with the Office of the Secretary of State, protecting what would otherwise be public information from potential bad actors.
“I can report now that we’re seeing a significant uptick of folks who are survivors of very unfortunate situations that have come out of the dark to rejoin their communities and are stepping up and voting again,” Pate said. “I think Safe at Home is a big part of that.”
Iowa has one of the highest voter turnouts in the country, which Pate attributes to Iowa’s community and length of life as well as a civically minded culture. Pate said he supports a curriculum for students to understand the importance of Iowa’s caucus system. Students, in turn, help educate their parents. Teachers can also use an Elections 101 curriculum to provide modules showing the importance of elections.
Before the formal election, youth from across the state participate in a youth straw poll. The Office of the Secretary of State provides a digital copy of the official ballot or students can vote using an online poll. Results are reported in real time.
“I find the straw poll very intriguing because we do it ahead of the adult election and these young people across the state are pretty darn close to being on the mark of what the results will be,” Pate said. “When we dug a little deeper, we found out you can attribute it to — believe it or not — people still talk over the dinner table. This shows me that the parents and kids are talking about it.”
Education outside of the classroom became a key component of Pate’s role as secretary of state, especially given the rise in misinformation. Pate said it is not his role to censor free speech, but instead ensure Iowans know when and where to vote, among other key points. This is done through voter ready websites and online voter registration, as well as partnering with organizations like the NAACP and the NRA to promote voter toolkits.
“I believe myself and my colleagues are the referees,” Pate said. “We administer the laws of the land and make sure we offer as much transparency as we can. That consistency and transparency is what the voters need and expect to have confidence in the elections process. The more I, and my peers, can make sure that is out there, upfront on a regular basis, the more successful we will be on both encouraging people to vote and believing in the results.”
Pate and his office partner with numerous federal organizations to monitor the security of Iowa’s elections at every level. The FBI, CIA and even white hat hackers are among them. Local offices are often smaller and are handling more than just elections, according to Pate. As a result, the statewide office may need to handle trainings, recruiting poll workers or security measures.
“I’ve been able to push out that security to our local level because you’re only as good as your weakest point,” Pate said. “With 99 jurisdictions out there, we wanted to make sure they had the same kind of protection. We have endpoint protection for them, which means 24 hours a day we’re monitoring their systems for outside intrusions so no one can manipulate our voter databases.”
Growing up in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Secretary Maggie Toulouse Oliver always wanted to work in government. However, like most election officials, Secretary Toulouse Oliver didn’t grow up dreaming of one day becoming an election administrator. Her passion for elections grew as she gained more experience working on campaigns, voter education and outreach. Now having worked in elections for over two decades, Toulouse Oliver has leveraged her work experience to become the 26th Secretary of State of New Mexico.
Following the American – led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Jeffrey Danovich found himself among the many military men and women deployed to the country’s Northern region as part of the “War on Terror.” While serving in the Nineveh Province, Danovich was assigned to his battalion’s government legal team, where he worked as a Civil Affairs Operator with the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). Following the CPA’s dissolution in 2004, Danovich was selected by his battalion commander to become a Voting Assistance Officer (VAO).
As a VAO, Danovich quickly became well-versed in every aspect of military voting. The program, managed by the Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP), is designed to ensure citizens covered by the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) are aware of their voting rights and know how to exercise them – no small feat. For Danovich, this meant completing online training, in-person workshops and becoming versed in state-specific election rules, processes, and deadlines pertaining to the voters in his unit.
For Danovich, the role of VAO was a collateral, rather than primary duty. This required him to complete many of the position’s responsibilities in his downtime. Although many deployed VAOs find themselves in similar situations, the nature of Danovich’s battalion posed a unique challenge. Put simply, his battalion was divided into three smaller units that were stationed throughout the Province. Managing transportation to and from the different units according to various election cycles soon became an inescapable reality.
Over the course of his deployment, Danovich spent numerous hours in the back of a Humvee to fulfill his responsibilities as a VAO. “What little downtime deployed service members have is spent catching up on sleep, sending an email to family or reading a book, etc. Upcoming elections and how to vote in them are not at the forefront of their minds. That’s where my role came into play. It was my job to make a seemingly convoluted process as easy as possible for our soldiers,” said Danovich.
Upon returning stateside, Danovich attended George Washington University where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Political Science. Shortly thereafter, he decided to leverage his experience as a VAO to re-enter the field of elections. Danovich has since worked for the District of Columbia Board of Elections, the Open Source Election Technology Institute and the Fulton County Government in Atlanta, Georgia. Through these roles, Danovich has trained poll workers and poll managers, managed mobile voting units and performed Logic and Accuracy Testing, among other things. In August 2021, he accepted a position with the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office as the Election Training Administrator.
Danovich has worn many different hats throughout his career in elections; however, his sustained and close contact with poll workers has made clear to him the mounting threat to their safety. Throughout the U.S., poll workers complete numerous tasks that are pivotal to any given election. Despite their centrality to the electoral process, the recent proliferation of disinformation has led poll workers to experience an increasing number of threats and abuse. “Because of the constant threat posed to poll workers, many of the folks who work the polls on Election Day are leaving. We are losing some of our best and brightest,” said Danovich.
Although poll workers experience some of the most significant impacts of election disinformation, they also play a crucial role in combatting it. Those working or volunteering at the polls on election day have extensive knowledge of precinct procedures and are trusted members of the community. This uniquely positions current and former poll workers to serve as reliable sources of election information within their communities.
In regard to the importance of poll workers, Danovich stated that, “One of my biggest takeaways from the 2020 election is that many of our fellow citizens are willing to step up in a crisis situation. The spread of misinformation is currently one of the biggest threats to the conduct of our elections. My colleagues throughout the country and I have sought to mitigate this by encouraging more and more people to become poll workers.”
In the coming months, Danovich will begin to transition into his new role with the Secretary of State’s Office. While he looks forward to the opportunity to shape elections policy at the state level, Fulton County always will hold a special place in his heart – after all, who else can say they found love in a polling place? Through all the turmoil that characterized the 2020 Presidential election, Danovich happened to exchange contact information with an observer who wanted to know more about the conduct of elections. Semi-formal conversations over dinners quickly turned into something more and nearly a year later, the two have never been happier.
