The move puts the electoral system on par with the energy or financial sector. | Getty Images State officials blast 'unprecedented' DHS move to secure electoral system

State election officials on Monday denounced the Department of Homeland Security’s decision to label the country's electoral system as "critical infrastructure."

The move, which DHS announced on Friday, puts the electoral system on par with the energy or financial sector, industries considered vital to national security and economic stability.


On Monday, the National Association of Secretaries of State lashed out at the decision, saying it is “is legally and historically unprecedented, raising many questions and concerns for states and localities with authority over the administration of our voting process."

Secretaries of state oversee elections in most states. Several of these officials have expressed concerns that the "critical infrastructure" tag could presage a federal takeover of local elections.

“While we recognize the need to share information on threats and risk mitigation in our elections at all levels of government, as we did throughout the 2016 cycle, it is unclear why a critical infrastructure classification is now necessary for this purpose,” the group added.

DHS has countered that the label does not create new regulations for states — it simply makes the cybersecurity of polling places, election machines, voter databases and other election technology a formal priority for the agency.

In revealing the move on Friday, DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson also argued the designation sends a signal internationally that the United States values the digital protection of its elections.

Johnson's announcement followed the release of a declassified report on Russian election cyberattacks, including confirmation that Russian hackers were behind breaches of several state election offices.

Both NASS and the Obama administration stressed that there was no evidence of cyber-enabled vote tampering.

“No credible evidence of hacking, including attempted hacking of voting machines or vote counting, was ever presented or discovered in any state," NASS said.

Several state officials, most notably Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, harshly criticized the idea of a critical infrastructure designation when it was under consideration.

In its statement, NASS said that “no facet of government relies more on public trust and confidence than the American electoral process” and promised to “uphold these principles before all else.”