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As 2024 Campaigns Begin, States Confront Threats to Election Workers

By Saige Draeger  |  April 26, 2023
State Legislatures NewsPolicyElections
Arizona election worker during 2022 midterm election

An Arizona election worker during the 2022 midterms. “Unfortunately, election officials all over the country have received threats and harassment against themselves, their families and their children,” says EAC Commissioner Ben Hovland, a Democrat. (Justin Sullivan / GettyImages)

After the 2020 U.S. presidential election, election officials faced an unprecedented level of threats to their safety and security.

Since 2020, state policymakers from both parties have confronted the harassment of election workers, including threats of violence, from a variety of angles, including by revising existing statutes and passing stand-alone protections.

A 2022 nationwide survey of local election officials showed that nearly a quarter of them experienced threats of violence, harassment or other instances of abuse as the result of their work. Now, after years of attacks, the profession is facing a new challenge: the loss of seasoned election administrators ahead of the 2024 general election.

“Although 2022 was generally positive, the embers of 2020 continue to smolder, and there is evidence to show that threats against public officials is a problem that is not slowing down.”

—Neal Kelley, Committee for Safe and Secure Elections

A separate survey of local election officials conducted in early 2023 estimates that nearly 1 in 5 officials serving in 2024 will be new in their role. “With the increased negative environment, election administrators are retiring early or leaving the profession, and the election community loses the core of its qualified and experienced officials,” notes U.S. Election Assistance Commissioner Donald Palmer, a Republican. “The election official departures are an acute state public service problem.”

Last year, the EAC commissioners voted unanimously to allow states to use federal Help America Vote Act funds to protect election officials after the Government Accountability Office ruled such usage permissible.

The Justice Department is also confronting violence against election workers. In 2021, the department launched a task force in partnership with the U.S. attorneys’ offices and the FBI to receive, evaluate and prosecute such offenses. One outcome of the group’s work: In December, the department announced an indictment of an Arizona man who left a series of threatening voicemails for an election official at the secretary of state’s office.

Strengthening the connection between election officials and law enforcement is a cornerstone of the work being done by the Committee for Safe and Secure Elections, also known as CSSE, a bipartisan group including law enforcement leaders, election administrators and election security experts. The committee has created resources for election officials who have received threats and for members of law enforcement who are responding.

“Although 2022 was generally positive, the embers of 2020 continue to smolder, and there is evidence to show that threats against public officials is a problem that is not slowing down,” says Neal Kelley, a retired registrar and former law enforcement officer from Orange County, Calif., who is now the group’s chairman. “While CSSE does not take positions on specific legislation, our committee has worked with members of state legislatures nationwide to focus efforts on protecting election officials’ privacy, increasing penalties for threats, enhancing physical security and finding creative ways to increase funding.”

States Bolster Protections

One approach is to update who is covered by state address confidentiality programs, which shield from public access the voter registration information of people at risk of harm because of who they are or what they do for work. Survivors of intimate partner violence or those who work in the judicial system, including judges, prosecutors and corrections officers, commonly are covered. In 2022, two states, California and Oregon, expanded their confidentiality program definitions to cover election workers.

States are also revising their statutes to criminalize threats against election workers. In 2021, Arizona and Kansas made it illegal to impersonate an election official. Washington enhanced criminal penalties for harassment of election workers, placing them in the same protected category as judicial workers. In 2022, Vermont expanded its definition of “criminal threatening” to include offenses in polling locations and against election officials, making election-related harassment crimes easier to prosecute. This year, New Mexico and Oklahoma criminalized intimidation of state and municipal election workers.

Colorado and Maine went further, enacting laws with additional fixtures. In Colorado, it was an extension on doxxing protections for the immediate family members of election officials; in Maine, it was a de-escalation training requirement for election officials and annual reporting of election threats to the Legislature.

“This is not just a swing-state issue or a red-state, blue-state issue. Unfortunately, election officials all over the country have received threats and harassment against themselves, their families and their children,” says EAC Commissioner Ben Hovland, a Democrat.

“Protecting election officials is critical to the functioning of our democracy. State and local officials must feel safe doing their work, and state legislators can take significant steps to help.”

Saige Draeger is a policy associate in NCSL’s Elections and Redistricting Program.

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Duties of Legislative Staff At-Large Member of NCSL Executive Committee

The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) is a bipartisan organization of both legislators and legislative staff. The NCSL Executive Committee is the governing body of NCSL and provides a strategic focus for NCSL in terms of its mission, leadership, vision and policies. The 63-member executive committee is composed of 41 legislators, 21 legislative staff members and one non-voting ex-officio legislator member representing international affiliates.

The Executive Committee meets at least three times a year. One of those meetings occurs during the Legislative Summit, which is NCSL’s annual meeting, which usually takes place in August.

All at-large legislative staff members of the Executive Committee are also members of the Legislative Staff Coordinating Committee (LSCC). The LSCC serves in an advisory capacity to the Executive Committee and oversees NCSL’s legislative staff division.

The list below outlines the duties, expectations and qualifications for Executive Committee members, many of which are set forth in NCSL’s bylaws and rules of procedures.

General Duties

  • Establish, direct, and supervise the affairs of
  • Implement the policies of
  • Contribute to the conversation that establishes NCSL’s state-federal priorities and major state issues.
  • Serve on committees and subcommittees of the Executive View the most recent Executive Committee agenda book for more details.
  • Supervise the disbursement of Review and approve grant applications.
  • Adopt rules and regulations for conducting NCSL
  • Delegate certain authority and responsibility to NCSL committees, divisions, sections, officers and the Chief Executive Officer.
  • In partnership with NCSL's officers, appoint the NCSL Chief Executive Officer.

Legislative Staff Coordinating Committee

  • Serve on an LSCC work group and an LSCC subcommittee, or special committee, as assigned by the Staff Chair. See the current list of workgroups and subcommittees.
  • Participate in LSCC meetings and other LSCC sponsored activities (e.g., webinars, Legislative Staff Week, in-person or virtual meetings).
  • Share ideas and to the best extent possible, volunteer for assignments to help further the goals of the Staff Chair and/or the LSCC work groups and/or subcommittees.
  • Mentor and support other LSCC members, either formally or

Legislative Summit Responsibilities

  • Advise the NCSL Chief Executive Officer and staff on session and faculty ideas for the Legislative Summit and other meetings as needed.
  • Attend the annual NCSL Legislative Summit Business Meeting.

Furthering-the-Mission Responsibilities

  • Serve as an ambassador for NCSL in your legislature.
  • Promote participation with peers in your state and encourage full annual dues support.

Attendance Expectations and Terms of Office*

  • Attend all three Executive Committee and three to four LSCC meetings per The LSCC meets in conjunction with the NCSL Executive Committee, usually the day immediately preceding the Executive Committee meeting.
  • Staff at-large members are eligible to serve three consecutive one-year

*Per the Staff Nominating Procedures, legislative staff at-large members of the Executive Committee who are eligible to continue, but who did not physically attend two or more meetings, may be interviewed by the staff nominating committee to ascertain whether or not they should be nominated for an additional term.

*Per the Staff Nominating Procedures, legislative staff at-large members of the executive committee who were appointed to fill a vacancy, and who have not previously competitively interviewed with the nominating committee, shall be interviewed by the Staff Nominating Committee to ascertain whether or not they should be nominated for an additional term.

Duties of the NCSL Staff Chair

Thank you for your service in your legislature and for your contribution to NCSL!

The NCSL Staff Chair serves a critical role in the governance of NCSL, guiding the work of the Legislative Staff Coordinating Committee and working closely with the NCSL Chief Executive Officer to ensure the Conference is meeting its mission and serving legislators and legislative staff at an outstanding level.

General Officer Responsibilities:

  • Work closely with your equal counterpart, the NCSL President, to provide leadership and guidance to the Executive Committee and Conference as a whole.
  • Represent the legislative staff perspective and needs at officers’ meetings and at Executive Committee meetings.
  • Serve as an ambassador for NCSL and provide outreach to legislative staff, as needed or requested by NCSL’s Chief Executive Officer.
  • Attend an officers’ planning meeting (typically held in August following the Legislative Summit).
  • Attend regular officers’ meetings (typically held prior to each Executive Committee meeting).
  • Attend an annual officers’ study trip (typically held in September or October).
  • Perform other duties as necessary related to the role of Staff Chair and as delegated by the Executive Committee or the President.
  • Attend Conference-wide gatherings that are either in person or
  • Advise NCSL Chief Executive Officer and staff on faculty for the Legislative Summit (and other meetings as necessary).
  • Appoint the legislative staff co-chairs and vice-chairs to the overall Standing Committees and staff officers to each of the eight standing committees.
  • In partnership with the other NCSL officers and the Executive Committee, appoint the NCSL Chief Executive Officer and review the officer’s performance.

Executive Committee:

  • Appoint the legislative staff officers, at-large staff members and ex-officio staff members (staff co-chairs of the overall standing committee) to the committees and subcommittees of the Executive Committee.
  • Attend all Executive Committee meetings and provide a report of the Legislative Staff Coordinating Committee at these meetings.
  • Serve as staff chair of the Budget, Finance and Rules Committee and serve on the Board of Directors of the NCSL Foundation for State Legislatures

Legislative Staff Coordinating Committee (LSCC):

  • Attend all LSCC
  • Preside over the Legislative Staff Coordinating Committee (LSCC) meetings and set the agenda for each meeting.
  • Appoint up to six legislative staff to serve as discretionary appointees on the Legislative Staff Coordinating Committee.
  • Appoint every LSCC member to both a LSCC work group and subcommittee and designate the chairs, co-chairs and vice-chairs for each work group and
  • Establish annual goals for each work group and
  • Appoint the chair, members and alternates to the Legislative Staff Nominating
  • Appoint an at-large member to the Online Democracy
  • Participate in the various orientations for new attendees/members, including the LSCC orientation, the Standing Committees orientation for legislative staff and the new attendee orientation at Legislative Summit.
  • Preside over the Salute to Legislative Staff event and work with NCSL staff to select the

NCSL Foundation for State Legislatures:

  • Serve as an at-large member on NCSL’s Foundation for State Legislatures Board of Directors, which meets two times per year in conjunction with NCSL’s Executive
  • Serve on the Foundation’s Nominating

Becoming NCSL’s Staff Chair

If you are interested in becoming a staff officer of NCSL, it is important to know that it is a three-year commitment. Any legislative staff members interested in serving as an officer of NCSL must:

  • Declare their candidacy for Staff Vice-Chair to the chair of the Legislative Staff Nominating Committee 60 days before the start of the annual Legislative
  • All Staff Vice-Chair candidates that declare their candidacy before the deadline will be interviewed by the Legislative Staff Nominating Committee at the Legislative If you are nominated, you will assume the role of Staff Vice-Chair starting at the end of that Legislative Summit.
  • Year 1: Staff Vice-Chair Duties
    • Preside over LSCC meetings in the absence of the staff
    • Serve as the chair of the LSCC Strategic Planning Work
    • Serve as staff chair of the Member Outreach & Communications Subcommittee of the Executive Committee.
    • Serve on the Board of Directors of the NCSL Foundation for State
  • Year 2: Staff Chair Duties (listed above)
  • Year 3: Immediate Past Staff Chair Duties
    • Serve as the Secretary/Treasurer of the NCSL Foundation for State
    • Develop and implement orientation programs for incoming staff members to the LSCC and the Executive Committee, including assigning a mentor to each incoming LSCC member and to each incoming legislative staff member of the Executive Committee. and
    • Preside over LSCC meetings in the absence of the Staff Chair and Staff Vice-Chair.
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  • Contact NCSL

  • For more information on this topic, use this form to reach NCSL staff.