WASHINGTON – Extreme partisanship combined with a complicated and highly decentralized voting system have led to a loss of faith in election results among some in the U.S., according to a bipartisan report released Tuesday that calls for greater transparency and steps to make voting easier.
The report noted that even in “normal times” elections are complex in a nation with thousands of voting jurisdictions and where the rules vary widely from state to state, and even between local governments.
“Of course, these are not normal times,” it said, noting that rancor and rhetoric have replaced problem-solving. “Nowhere is this more evident than with the partisan gamesmanship played over the very heart of this great democracy — the way we elect our leaders.”
The report by The Carter Center and the Baker Institute for Public Policy lays out 10 principles for trying to balance equal access to the polls with ensuring the integrity of election results.
Among other things, it recommends election laws that are clear and well-communicated, easy but secure voter registration, regular audits of local voting procedures and transparency in counting the votes.
In part, the report says its recommendations are an attempt to address “a tumultuous period of domestic unrest, one of the most polarized in American history.”
It’s roughly nine months until voters in Florida will cast ballots in the presidential election and the head of the elections office in Clay County is working to make sure people trust the process.
Following his 2020 election defeat, former President Trump has continued to falsely claim that the election was rigged and four years before that, the FBI found that Russia had interfered with the election. Those claims turned out to be untrue.
In 2024, voters are divided on the issue.
Voter Debra Chin told News4JAX she trusts elections, but Mario Reese said he doesn’t
“Just the people themselves. Some of them are not trustworthy,” Reese said.
Gary Ranno said he trusts the process despite the rhetoric.
“When you see all the stuff in the news about the fake counts and everything else, I think that people are voting. And the system is taking care of itself,” Ranno said, but Jacob Knafelc is on the other side.
“I just, I don’t know,” Knafelc said. “2020 seemed a little fishy to me...I want to [trust the election in 2024] but I just don’t trust the polling. It seems like we’re told one thing then when election night happens we’re told another.”
Clay County Supervisor of Elections Chris Chambless spoke Tuesday about the bipartisan study. He was in the airport on the way to Washington DC to meet with US Homeland Security to discuss securing US elections from threats.
“Of course they can be everything from network intrusion to physical security intrusion and a host of other different types of…whether it’s individuals that are wanting to intimidate election officials, whether it’s individuals who are wanting to attempt to gain access to our networks,” Chambless said.
Chambless said there’s a considerable amount of misinformation that has been put out there to sow mistrust in the election system, for instance, there are various documentaries made on the subject that he says aren’t accurate.
“We have put into place whether it’s aggressive auditing standards, two person control locks, seals, custody controls that are put into place to be able to combat those concerns. I think it’s very important for individuals to recognize that tabulation equipment is never, I mean never connected to the internet,” he said.
That’s been one concern of hacking. Chambless said Florida Supervisors of Elections have also made the entire process public and observable so anyone can watch how votes are counted.