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1 1 (October 29, 2020)

handle is hein.crs/govdcjh0001 and id is 1 raw text is: * Congqrcessionai Research Service Public Confidence in Elections October 29, 2020 Since the 2016 election cycle, election officials have warned about ongoing efforts to undermine public confidence in American political institutions. They also have consistently reassured Americans that there is no publicly available evidence that foreign or domestic interference have changed or likely could change official election results. This CRS Insight discusses recent policy issues and selected factors that could affect public confidence in voting and elections. Recent Concerns About Election Confidence Recent congressional attention to public confidence in elections and voting has focused on two topics. First, discussions of campaign and election security tend to emphasize the risks of foreign interference. Second, oversight (such as in Committee on Iouse Administration and Senate Committee on Rules and Administration hearings) of voting changes responding to COVID-19 and related litigation, and of support for or opposition to different voting methods, tends to emphasize domestic issues. Because these foreign and domestic concerns are related but distinct, Congress might consider them separately or jointly in the future. On both topics, federal agencies have issued guidance to election administrators and voters in 2020. Some of this information warns about deliberate attempts to undermine public confidence, while other outreach seeks to educate the public generally about elections processes and resouies. Election officials also have cautioned that the period between preliminary election night results and certification of official results c ould be ac c ompanied by public c onc ern about irregularities, provide opportunities for disinformation campaigns, or both. The U.S. Election Assistance Commission provides information about state-specific requirements and general tips for topics such as voter registration and early voting. Recent warnings about foreign interference can be traced to the 2016 election cycle. A2017 Intelligence CommunityAssessment; the investigation led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller; and congressional investigations (for example, the one conducted by the Senate Intelligence Committee) found that Russian operatives, in particular, used disinformation, misinformation, or similar tactics in attempts to undermine confidence in Americ an campaigns and elections. More recently, federal agencies have issued other statements advising voters to be alert to potential disinformation or simple confusion during the 2020 general elections. For example, on October 20, Chris Krebs, Director of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov IN11527 CRS NSIGHT Prepared for Membersand Commi rtoes o f Con g ress --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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