On the eve of Election Day 2018, the top federal agencies in charge of overseeing protecting the country’s election infrastructure said there is “no indication of compromise.”
“At this time we have no indication of compromise of our nation’s election infrastructure that would prevent voting, change vote counts, or disrupt the ability to tally votes,” Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, and FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a joint statement Monday night.
The statement did caution that American voters should be aware that foreign actors — “Russia in particular” — continue to try and influence “public sentiment and voter perceptions through actions intended to sow discord.”
“They can do this by spreading false information about political processes and candidates, lying about their own interference activities, disseminating propaganda on social media, and through other tactics,” the statement said, urging voters to remain informed and report anything suspicious.
Last month, DHS, DOJ, the DNI, and the FBI issued a similar joint statement saying they were “concerned” about ongoing campaigns by foreign actors ahead of the midterm elections, specifically by Russia, China, and Iran.
“These activities also may seek to influence voter perceptions and decision making in the 2018 and 2020 U.S. elections,” the October statement read.
However, the agencies said they had no evidence of any compromise or disruption of election infrastructure.
[Related: Justice Department to closely monitor potential voter fraud in Tuesday’s midterm elections]
President Trump has often cast doubt on U.S. intelligence agencies’ findings that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election.
Special counsel Robert Mueller is investigating the interference. His team has so far indicted 26 Russian nationals and three Russian companies in a sprawling set of allegations that include election interference charges.
The statement from federal officials comes a day after Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, a Republican, announced an investigation into a failed attempt to hack the state’s voter registration system and said he was investigating Georgia’s Democratic Party — but offered no evidence to back up the claims.
A lawyer representing election-security groups received a tip from a woman who said it was possible to change voter information in Georgia’s online registration system.
Both Kemp’s office and the FBI were alerted, and the FBI is reportedly investigating.
The woman also separately informed the Georgia Democratic Party, which has called Kemp’s investigation a “political stunt.”
Kemp is running against Democrat Stacey Abrams for governor of Georgia. Kemp has faced backlash for maintaining the office that oversees Georgia’s election while running for governor.
In September, Trump signed a broad executive order that would allow for the federal government to impose sanctions on foreigners who seek to influence U.S. elections.
