Tim Harper
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tharper.bsky.social
Tim Harper
@tharper.bsky.social
Elections and Democracy Lead @cendemtech.bsky.social | Fmr Elections policy at Meta
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#CISA is still refusing to come clean on the results of its election security review. As I say in this @newyorker.com piece, keeping election officials in the dark only helps bad actors. But new information is emerging and a picture is taking shape. Let’s talk about it: 🧵👇 bsky.app/profile/newy...
In the past seven weeks, Donald Trump has been hard at work on his long-standing pet project: decimating free and fair elections. And, as with the rest of the President’s calamitous agenda, he is doing it in full view of the American people.
Trump Is Still Trying to Undermine Elections
Now that Trump has installed election deniers throughout his Administration, he has been busy dismantling the guardrails protecting voting and voters.
www.newyorker.com
Reposted by Tim Harper
I'm attending the @ncslorg.bsky.social Town Hall: 2025 Post-Election Recap and Insights. Join me on November 7.
www.linkedin.com/events/ncslt...
November 4, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Bomb threats at polling places in New Jersey today follow a troubling pattern. Election officials are now seeing coordinated threats not just in federal election years, but in off-year local elections too. This is becoming a consistent tactic to disrupt voting and intimidate election workers.
November 4, 2025 at 7:10 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
On the ballot today:

-NYC: Mayor
-Minneapolis: Mayor
-VA: Governor, Lt. Governor, AG, and state House
-NJ: Governor
-PA: State Supreme Court
-GA: Public Service Commission
-TX: TX-18 U.S. House
-CA: Prop 50

This is a reminder of how crucial it is to vote up AND down the ballot.
November 4, 2025 at 6:03 PM
LIVE THRED: The Senate is holding Sean Plankey’s nomination hearing to lead CISA right now.Lawmakers must demand answers on why CISA is scaling back even as cyber and physical threats to elections surge. My @cdt.org blog on the key questions for Plankey's hearing: cdt.org/insights/cis...
July 24, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
In this testimony on a CT deepfakes law, @beccabranum.bsky.social reminds us that some of the efforts to limit AI election risks introduce new threats to democracy, like limiting political speech and engagement cdt.org/insights/cdt...
CDT Submits Testimony on Connecticut Bill Creating Criminal Penalties for Election Deepfakes
Today, CDT submitted testimony to the Connecticut Joint Committee on Government Administration and Elections, urging modifications to H.B.6846 to protect users’ free expression rights. H.B.6846 would ...
cdt.org
June 26, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
The AI Elections Accord ended earlier this year. @alexreevegivens.bsky.social outlined in @justsecurity.org how companies should build a long-term approach to AI & elections www.justsecurity.org/107809/tech-...
The Munich Security Conference Provides an Opportunity to Improve on the AI Elections Accord
Ahead of the Munich Security Conference, one crucial issue is at risk of falling by the wayside: protecting democracy from abuses of AI.
www.justsecurity.org
June 26, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Blog from @tharper.bsky.social discussing cuts to CISA and its serious implications for election security: cdt.org/insights/wit...

+ a follow up from earlier this month: cdt.org/insights/cis...
With Outcome of CISA Election Security Review Looming, Agency Must Protect Critical Infrastructure
On Friday, February 14th, acting Executive Director of the Cyber and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Bridget Bean issued a memo to agency staff announcing that all election security work would b...
cdt.org
June 26, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Read our @cdt.org research about the use of AI in 2024's elections globally. The third case study uses interviews with 15 experts researching AI & elections to evaluate the impact of AI on elections so far, and how that should inform future work cdt.org/insights/ada...
Adaptation and Innovation: The Civic Space Response to AI-Infused Elections
With case studies also by: Laura Zommer and Kian Vesteinsson Introduction AI avatars delivered independent news about Venezuela’s contested election, allowing journalists to protect their identity and...
cdt.org
June 26, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Really important to keep our eye on the ball with AI & elections, even between cycles and especially as CISA is gutted. @stuartathompson.bsky.social + @stevenleemyers.bsky.social do that here. Recent related research from my @cdt.org colleagues below🧵 www.nytimes.com/2025/06/26/t...
A.I. Is Starting to Wear Down Democracy
www.nytimes.com
June 26, 2025 at 1:36 PM
A great Friday read by my @cdt.org colleague @isabelalinzer.bsky.social laying out how global civil society groups leveraged AI to combat AI threats in 2024
Russia’s AI-powered interference in Romania’s election is a serious warning sign, writes @isabelalinzer.bsky.social of @cdt.org. The threat from AI is growing—but with the right tools, attention and resources, it can help defend democracy, not just endanger it.
www.compiler.news/ai-democracy...
How to harness A.I. in the fight for democracy
Autocratic regimes are using artificial intelligence to attack democracies, stirring concern from Romania to Rhode Island. But the technology could also become a powerful tool to safeguard elections i...
www.compiler.news
May 23, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
CDT’s @isabelalinzer.bsky.social explores the murky legal and policy landscape surrounding political influencers—from campaign finance and FTC rules to platform enforcement gaps. With no clear definitions, transparency and accountability can suffer. cdt.org/insights/thi...
This is Not An #Ad: Political Influencers, Elections, and Information Integrity on Social Media
The rise of political influencers is among the latest ways that digital technology has changed how campaigns interact with voters and how voters engage with politics. CDT’s research in this area is designed to illuminate how the application of public and company policy to political influencers may affect the resilience of our democracy. To do […]
cdt.org
May 22, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
This is an excellent, well-researched and sourced piece about the real-world consequences of eradicating DHS' election security expertise, from @sashaingber.bsky.social. Vendors and others no longer trust the administration not to misuse sensitive info.

sashaingber.substack.com/p/election-c...
Election companies stop sharing cyber data with DHS
America's top vendors fear that data they submit on cyberattacks and vulnerabilities may be used against them. CISA has not provided them assurances.
sashaingber.substack.com
May 19, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Since Citizens United, dark money groups have spent at least $4.3 billion on federal elections. Our latest analysis from
@annalecta.bsky.social tracks dark money spending in the 2024 election cycle.
Dark Money Hit a Record High of $1.9 Billion in 2024 Federal Races
Spending by groups that do not disclose their donors has increased and become harder to trace.
www.brennancenter.org
May 8, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Reposted by Tim Harper
As CISA's Stakeholder Engagement Division braces for big cuts, an official in SED says more than 60 employees are resigning, including >50% of those who work on international partnerships (one of the offices Trump's budget would cut). www.linkedin.com/posts/gregor... (h/t @samsabin.bsky.social )
May 6, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Breaking and Analysis: Federal Court–in a Ruling Likely to Be Upheld on Appeal– Holds That Judge Griffin’s Attempt to Overturn the Results of the North Carolina Supreme Court Election Violates the Constitutional Rights of Voters and Orders Certification for Justice Riggs electionlawblog.org?p=149785
Breaking and Analysis: Federal District Court--in a Ruling Likely to Be Upheld on Appeal-- Holds That Judge Griffin's Attempt to Overturn the Results of the North Carolina Supreme Court Election Viola...
You can read the detailed analysis at this link. Here is the core holding: The court concludes that the retroactive invalidation of absentee ballots cast by overseas military and civilian voters viola...
electionlawblog.org
May 6, 2025 at 12:16 AM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Exclusive: Trump plans to sign a memorandum today targeting a major Democratic fundraising platform with help from AG Pam Bondi.
Trump to target ActBlue in presidential memorandum
The action is expected to come Thursday.
www.politico.com
April 24, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
My latest @npr.org story: A brain drain at the Census Bureau is roiling the federal agency in charge of producing #2030Census results, job numbers and other key statistics as the Trump administration continues to slash the federal government
Brain drain at Census Bureau has employees warning about the country's statistics
Staff departures and survey cuts are roiling the federal agency in charge of producing census results, job numbers and other key statistics as Trump officials continue to slash the U.S. government.
www.npr.org
April 17, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Scoop: Boyden Rohner, Assistant Director of CISA's Integrated Operations Division, is taking the Trump administration's early-retirement offer and leaving.

Rohner told IOD staff during a Monday afternoon town-hall meeting that featured a lot of employee questions & anxiety about looming CISA cuts.
April 16, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
SCOOP: sources tell me that the State Dept plans to eliminate its only office to counter foreign disinformation, as soon as today, delivering a win to foreign governments like Russia, Iran, and China—and the office's mostly conservative critics.

www.technologyreview.com/2025/04/16/1...
US office that counters foreign disinformation is being eliminated, say officials
Conservative critics have long accused the department of helping to censor the American right.
www.technologyreview.com
April 16, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Next week, are you in town for the Meta antitrust trial, the Google Search Remedy trial, or the IAPP privacy conference?

Lucky you, all the DC tech policy peeps will be gathered Tues eve at CDT Spring Fling - join us!

cdt.org/event/2025-s...
2025 Spring Fling
CDT is pleased to announce our 2025 Spring Fling, a celebration during IAPP’s Global Privacy Summit. Join us on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, 8:00–10:30 PM at Dirty Habit in Washington, D.C.—you won’t want...
cdt.org
April 15, 2025 at 3:59 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
The cyber team inside DHS's Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans will be cut from 20-25 to 8 by June as part of DHS HQ's massive downsizing, per a person familiar with the matter.
April 12, 2025 at 2:30 AM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Breaking: North Carolina Appeals Court, Over Strong Dissent, Sides with Judge Griffin in Election Contest, Gives Some Voters Chance to Cure Failure to Provide Certain Information to Election Officials (That Officials Did Not Demand) electionlawblog.org?p=149314
Breaking: North Carolina Appeals Court, Over Strong Dissent, Sides with Judge Griffin in Election Contest, Gives Some Voters Chance to Cure Failure to Provide Certain Information to Election Officials (That Officials Did Not Demand) #ELB
You can find the 2-1 opinion and dissent at this link. I’m at a meeting so no chance to read this closely right now, but it appears that the majority held that many of the ballots cast by challenged voters … Continue reading Breaking: North Carolina Appeals Court, Over Strong Dissent, Sides with Judge Griffin in Election Contest, Gives Some Voters Chance to Cure Failure to Provide Certain Information to Election Officials (That Officials Did Not Demand) →
electionlawblog.org
April 4, 2025 at 4:49 PM
Reposted by Tim Harper
Bombshell in North Carolina: the state's GOP-dominated Court of Appeals just sided with the GOP candidate in last year's supreme court race.

Their decision would toss roughly 60,000 ballots (!) that have been counted, & likely hand the election to GOP instead of incumbent Dem Justice who won it.
April 4, 2025 at 5:00 PM