Political appointees at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security sought a secret federal test of a voting machine in 2025, ProPublica reported, as states prepare for the Nov. 3 midterms.
The appointees wanted the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to obtain and examine the machine, with findings intended for the White House, according to ProPublica, which cited two former administration officials. The agency was also instructed not to tell the manufacturer if the test uncovered vulnerabilities, the report said.
Career staff repeatedly said CISA could not perform the test, partly because specialists had been laid off. The appointees eventually abandoned the request, and no test took place, ProPublica reported.
Staff were concerned about political interference, according to the report. One former official separately told ProPublica that findings might be kept for use against election results unfavorable to the administration. CISA’s published guidance describes a process for coordinating the disclosure of vulnerabilities with affected vendors.
White House spokesperson Lauren Bis defended President Donald Trump’s election security record in a statement to ProPublica. DHS and CISA did not respond to the outlet’s questions.
The account comes as states weigh their election security needs. DHS announced a CISA plan Sept. 24 listing voluntary, free services for state and local officials, including threat sharing and vulnerability scanning. Election officials told The Associated Press that some assistance previously available to them had not been available, leaving states to arrange other security work.
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon estimated that private penetration testing would cost his office about $250,000, AP reported. The next federal election is Nov. 3.
