The Colorado Libertarian Party sued Secretary of State Jenna Griswold and her top lieutenants in Denver on Friday, asking a court to suspend the use of voting equipment in response to the recently discovered online disclosure of hundreds of election device passwords. It called for hand-counting of ballots in the counties in question.
Small party state committee chair Hannah Goodman and 3rd Congressional District Libertarian candidate James Wiley allege that Griswold and Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Beale leaked information in a lawsuit filed in Denver District Court. He claims that he violated his official duties by responding to that request. Also.
Earlier in the day, Griswold and Gov. Jared Polis announced that all compromised passwords had been updated by Thursday night and that state officials had confirmed that the affected voting machines were secure.
The two officials, both Democrats, said in a statement that the posting of voting device passwords in a spreadsheet posted online “does not pose a security threat to Colorado’s elections. ” and reiterated that it will not affect how votes cast in next week’s election are counted.
“Colorado has countless security measures in place to ensure elections are free and fair, and all voters should know that their vote will be counted as cast.” ,” Griswold said.
Colorado Freedom Party v. Jenna Griswold, in her official capacity as Colorado Secretary of State. and Christopher P. Viall, in his official capacity as Colorado Deputy Secretary of State.
A State Department spokesperson told Colorado Politics on Friday afternoon that the department is aware of the lawsuit but does not comment on pending litigation.
The case was assigned to Denver District Court Judge Candace C. Gerdes late Friday, and a hearing was scheduled for Monday afternoon.
Mr. Wiley, who is also executive director of the state Liberal Party, said his party does not believe Mr. Griswold and his party acted quickly enough to correct the security breach.
“The delay in response, especially after the issue became public, raises serious concerns about our efforts to ensure election security,” Wiley said in a statement.
“We are forced to take this legal step to not only correct these safety deficiencies, but also prevent them in the future,” he added. “Voter trust is at stake, and it is our duty to protect faith in our electoral system.”
The Libertarian lawsuit also asks the court to remove Mr. Griswold and Mr. Beal from overseeing elections next week and order the Colorado Attorney General’s Office to investigate the password breach. The lawsuit also asks the court to invalidate an emergency rule issued by Beale State that allows additional state employees to assist with password updates.
Polis said Thursday that Griswold’s office has hired state employees with sufficient expertise and authorization to assist Griswold’s office in updating passwords and reviewing security logs at county clerk offices across the state. He said he would introduce it in detail. Polis and Griswold announced Friday that 22 state cybersecurity officials supported the efforts of eight State Department employees.
Griswold said the leaked passwords alone were not enough to access or tamper with the state’s voting equipment after the Colorado Republican Party disclosed the spreadsheet’s existence on the Secretary of State’s website. said.
The Republican Party issued the release days after Griswold’s staff replaced the spreadsheet with a file that did not contain passwords on Oct. 24.
All election supplies used in Colorado counties require two passwords. One is maintained by the Secretary of State’s office, and the other is known only to employees at each county clerk’s office. It is also required by law to be kept in a secure room under constant video surveillance. said a spokesperson for Mr. Griswold.
In an interview with 9News, Griswold said a “public servant” who no longer works for the department was responsible for uploading a file that “improperly included” voting system passwords on a hidden worksheet in the election supplies inventory. said.
Griswold previously said the spreadsheet had been posted online for months on the Colorado Secretary of State’s website and that the worksheets hidden in the document contained components of some components of the state’s election system. acknowledged that passwords may be displayed.
