On April 7, Derek Tisler, counsel, testified before the Colorado General Assembly’s Committee on State, Civic, Military, & Veteran Affairs about threats against election workers and the importance of HB22–1273.
After the 2020 election, the Brennan Center for Justice held interviews and hosted conversations with nearly three dozen election officials and over thirty experts about the rise in harassment and threats directed toward local election officials across the country following the 2020 election.
Election officials stressed the importance of proactive measures that can help election workers feel safe and secure now, as they prepare to administer primary and general elections in 2022. HB22–1273 does just that, by allowing election workers at the state, county, and local levels to file a request with a government entity to remove personal information from online records before that information can be used by bad actors to engage in or facilitate threats, harassment, and other disturbing behavior.
Threats against election workers who are doing their jobs are threats against democracy itself, and HB22–1273 is a helpful step forward in promoting a safe and secure democracy.
