With federal election help cut, states build their own Election Day defenses

As Americans vote in the midterm election, state and local officials are running Tuesday's election with less federal help than they had before. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has seen staffing and program cuts that disrupted the support network states relied on, according to Nextgov ².

The administration's fiscal 2027 budget proposal would eliminate CISA's election security program, including information-sharing help for states. Congress would have to approve that change ².

What states say they lost

Michigan Deputy Secretary of State Aghogho Edevbie told lawmakers in April that local election officials had lost contact with CISA staff they once relied on ². A key information-sharing group for election offices, the Election Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center, lost its federal funding in March 2025. It now offers limited services through paid membership, NPR reported ³.

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes put it bluntly ³.

From Channel GOPEl-Sayed: Medicaid cuts timed for after midtermsAbdul El-Sayed · 146 plays · captioned, with the source named

DHS is actively sabotaging elections by not funding these programs

Democrats press DHS

On Sept. 3, Sen. Alex Padilla of California and Rep. Joseph Morelle of New York wrote to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and acting CISA head Nick Anderson. Padilla is ranking member of the Senate rules committee and Morelle is ranking member on the Committee on House Administration. They asked DHS to restore more than $39.6 million in election security work that Congress directed in the fiscal 2026 DHS spending bill, passed in April ³.

Their letter cited "the removal of hundreds of CISA personnel and attempts by the Trump administration to slash the agency's budget." DHS and CISA did not immediately respond to NPR's request for comment ³.

The administration's answer

On Sept. 17, CISA released a 2026 Election Infrastructure Security Plan. It names CISA's 10 regional directors as election security advisers. CISA works with ODNI on monthly classified briefings for critical infrastructure stakeholders reaching more than 70 secure locations ². Mullin said the plan "will be implemented in full" ².

Election security is national security.

Nextgov noted the plan does not say how many employees will do the work, how much money it has or how often election-specific briefings will happen ².

Why it matters

That matters because elections in America are run state by state, and the rules differ widely. Twelve states and Washington, D.C., do not require voters to show identification, while most other states require a photo ID ¹. Local officials, not Washington, must handle those differences on Tuesday.

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act would have added document requirements for registering to vote. It passed the House in February but stalled in the Senate in June, and President Trump later conceded it was "probably not going to happen" ¹.

What happens next is up to Congress. Lawmakers must decide whether to restore the election security money in the fiscal 2027 budget process ². Voters who run into problems Tuesday should ask a poll worker for a provisional ballot, which may be available in the photo-ID states if identification can otherwise be confirmed ¹.

The Record

1. Mar 1, 2025The Election Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center lost federal funding and now offers limited paid services ³.
2. Sep 3, 2026Sen. Alex Padilla and Rep. Joseph Morelle asked DHS to restore more than $39.6 million in election security funding ³.
3. Sep 17, 2026CISA released its 2026 Election Infrastructure Security Plan; Secretary Mullin said it will be implemented in full ².

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<h2>With federal election help cut, states build their own Election Day defenses</h2> <p><em>By The GOP Files Campaign Desk. This article first appeared on <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/story/with-federal-election-help-cut-states-build-their-own-election-day-defenses">The GOP Files</a> on Tuesday, November 3, 2026.</em></p> <p>As Americans vote in the midterm election, state and local officials are running Tuesday&#39;s election with less federal help than they had before. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has seen staffing and program cuts that disrupted the support network states relied on, according to Nextgov .</p> <p>The administration&#39;s fiscal 2027 budget proposal would eliminate CISA&#39;s election security program, including information-sharing help for states. Congress would have to approve that change .</p> <h2>What states say they lost</h2> <p>Michigan Deputy Secretary of State Aghogho Edevbie told lawmakers in April that local election officials had lost contact with CISA staff they once relied on . A key information-sharing group for election offices, the Election Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center, lost its federal funding in March 2025. It now offers limited services through paid membership, NPR reported .</p> <p>Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes put it bluntly .</p> <blockquote><p>DHS is actively sabotaging elections by not funding these programs</p><p>&mdash; Adrian Fontes, Arizona Secretary of State, Democrat</p></blockquote> <h2>Democrats press DHS</h2> <p>On Sept. 3, Sen. Alex Padilla of California and Rep. Joseph Morelle of New York wrote to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and acting CISA head Nick Anderson. Padilla is ranking member of the Senate rules committee and Morelle is ranking member on the Committee on House Administration. They asked DHS to restore more than $39.6 million in election security work that Congress directed in the fiscal 2026 DHS spending bill, passed in April .</p> <p>Their letter cited &quot;the removal of hundreds of CISA personnel and attempts by the Trump administration to slash the agency&#39;s budget.&quot; DHS and CISA did not immediately respond to NPR&#39;s request for comment .</p> <h2>The administration&#39;s answer</h2> <p>On Sept. 17, CISA released a 2026 Election Infrastructure Security Plan. It names CISA&#39;s 10 regional directors as election security advisers. CISA works with ODNI on monthly classified briefings for critical infrastructure stakeholders reaching more than 70 secure locations . Mullin said the plan &quot;will be implemented in full&quot; .</p> <blockquote><p>Election security is national security.</p><p>&mdash; Markwayne Mullin, Homeland Security Secretary, Republican</p></blockquote> <p>Nextgov noted the plan does not say how many employees will do the work, how much money it has or how often election-specific briefings will happen .</p> <h2>Why it matters</h2> <p>That matters because elections in America are run state by state, and the rules differ widely. Twelve states and Washington, D.C., do not require voters to show identification, while most other states require a photo ID . Local officials, not Washington, must handle those differences on Tuesday.</p> <p>The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act would have added document requirements for registering to vote. It passed the House in February but stalled in the Senate in June, and President Trump later conceded it was &quot;probably not going to happen&quot; .</p> <p>What happens next is up to Congress. Lawmakers must decide whether to restore the election security money in the fiscal 2027 budget process . Voters who run into problems Tuesday should ask a poll worker for a provisional ballot, which may be available in the photo-ID states if identification can otherwise be confirmed .</p> <p><em>Read the original, with every source linked, at <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/story/with-federal-election-help-cut-states-build-their-own-election-day-defenses">thegopfiles.com</a>. Republished under The GOP Files' <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/republish">free republishing terms</a>.</em></p> <img src="https://thegopfiles.com/api/rp/with-federal-election-help-cut-states-build-their-own-election-day-defenses.gif" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border:0;width:1px;height:1px">

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Sources

1. The Hill, “Do you need an ID to vote? Maybe not, in these states” (2026-11-03). thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/6158979-do-you-need-an-id-t
2. Nextgov, “CISA pledges election security support after cuts weakened ties with states” (2026-09-24). nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2026/09/cisa-pledges-election-secu
3. NPR (via OPB), “Democrats demand Homeland Security officials fund election security ahead of midterms” (2026-09-03). opb.org/article/2026/09/03/democrats-demand-homeland-securit

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