Need for Government Support
The federal government has historically been an important partner in strengthening election security. Much of that work was funneled through the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), a Department of Homeland Security agency that offered resources such as intelligence briefings on foreign interference and physical security assessments of election offices. In 2025, as the federal government began to withdraw support for election security services — primarily by making drastic cuts to CISA’s election security work — the Brennan Center found that a majority of election officials worried about the lost guidance, training, information sharing, and incident-response support. A year later, federal assistance in state election preparations has not been restored, and the federal government has increased its meddling in elections through ballot seizures, lawsuits, and executive orders.
Seventy-five percent of local election officials said their state or local government has not provided additional resources to address these federal cuts. Broad majorities said that a suite of election security services provided by the government would be beneficial, with 86 percent saying election security training would be beneficial and 83 percent saying the same about receiving best practices and guidance on emerging security threats. CISA previously provided these services. Additionally, officials reported that they need more funding: 80 percent said their annual budget needs to grow to keep up with their election administration and security needs over the next five years.
Overall, officials’ satisfaction with federal support decreased from 53 percent in 2024 to 45 percent in 2026. Satisfaction with local government rose from 86 percent in 2024 to 92 percent in 2026.
Preparation for the Midterms
Even as election officials grapple with a loss of federal support, they are busy with the behind-the-scenes preparation to make sure elections run smoothly. Eighty-nine percent of officials plan to coordinate with at least one other local or state agency or department to prepare for a safe and secure election in 2026, with 80 percent planning to coordinate with law enforcement. Fifty-four percent plan to coordinate with state or local IT agencies.
Planning for unprecedented scenarios is part of every election official’s job. Seventy-one percent have planned for at least one of several scenarios that could disrupt election administration, including requests for access to voting machines and voter data and changes to Postal Service policies or procedures.
Local election officials remain committed to their roles. Respondents cited serving their communities and ensuring a smooth electoral process as the top reasons for taking on the job.
Safety Concerns
Since at least 2020, scores of local election officials have been scapegoated by political leaders and others unhappy with election results, resulting in unprecedented attacks. Their concerns about safety remain high. In total, 32 percent of officials said they had been threatened, harassed, or abused, compared to 38 percent in 2025. Of the 14 percent who reported being threatened, 65 percent had been threatened in person, most commonly at their offices.
Nearly 1 in 4 officials said they are concerned about being assaulted at home or at work. Fifty-two percent reported concern about the safety of their colleagues and staff. And more than half worried that threats, harassment, and intimidation would make it more difficult to retain or recruit election workers in the future.
Political Interference Concerns
As in recent years of this survey, the Brennan Center’s 2026 survey found that the share of election officials worried about political interference remains high. Half said they are very or somewhat worried about political leaders interfering with how they do their jobs, and 45 percent are concerned about politically motivated investigations of election officials.
Some election officials’ concerns might stem from the Trump administration’s actions in 2025 and early 2026. In March 2025, the president issued an executive order purporting to take control of aspects of election administration that the Constitution leaves to the states and Congress. (The Brennan Center and other groups successfully challenged the legality of key aspects of the 2025 executive order.) Federal agencies have taken unprecedented actions against state and local election officials, such as the Department of Justice demanding that election officials across the country turn over their complete voter rolls, which contain voters’ personally identifying information.
President Trump has also directed politically motivated investigations of his political opponents while intervening on behalf of allies who have undermined elections. Last year, he issued an executive order targeting his former CISA director Chris Krebs for denying false claims that the 2020 election was rigged, and he has launched investigations against perceived political opponents. He also issued a blanket pardon to more than 1,500 January 6 defendants who had sought to overturn the 2020 election results.
Since the survey was first fielded, there has been additional high-profile meddling by the administration: Trump issued another executive order on elections, this time seeking to rewrite mail voting rules, and the FBI seized hundreds of boxes of ballots and other sensitive election materials from the 2020 election in Fulton County, Georgia.
Artificial Intelligence
As in other sectors, local election officials are increasingly using AI. Sixteen percent reported using AI in their work, twice as many as in 2025. The most common uses were for routine tasks like drafting social media content and press releases and creating graphics.
Amid this uptick in usage, the share of officials who said they want guidance from government agencies about using AI in election administration has also increased significantly — from 31 percent in 2024 to 46 percent in 2026, compared to just 19 percent who said they do not want such guidance.
At the same time, most election officials expressed concern about the new technology. Sixty-three percent were concerned about AI making their job more difficult or dangerous. And even more, 74 percent, reported concern about the spread of false information online about elections making it more difficult or dangerous to do their job. The Brennan Center has written about the use of AI to spread false information about elections. And, in line with Brennan Center’s recommendations, Arizona State University launched the AI + Elections Lab to help election officials “explor[e] how AI can multiply capacity, identify vulnerabilities and help build more secure, efficient and trustworthy elections.”
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The Brennan Center’s 2026 survey shows that many of local election officials’ concerns persist. With safety and political interference concerns remaining high and the 2026 midterm elections on the horizon, the loss of federal support for elections hits particularly hard. Still, local election officials are preparing for contingencies, as always, with the goal of ensuring a safe and secure election. And over the last few years, many have developed partnerships within their states that should improve their ability to stand up to new challenges. Under our Constitution and laws, state and local governments are responsible for running elections, and they must continue to step up to fill the gaps left by federal cuts.
