DENVER — Colorado Gov. Jared Polis and Secretary of State Jena Griswold say passwords have been updated on all voting machines impacted by a partial password leak and voting machines are secure.
“I was very relieved that [Griswold] asked for and was willing to receive our help in getting those passwords changed,” said Polis. “We were able to utilize state planes to get to remote areas of our state. It’s my understanding all the passwords are updated as of just after midnight last night.”
Griswold said an employee mistakenly included partial passwords for voting systems in a spreadsheet anyone could download from her office’s website.
“A civil servant in the department made a serious mistake that we have actively taken action to remedy,” Griswold said. “Humans make mistakes.”
Griswold said the employee is no longer with her department, but would not say whether that person had been fired or quit before the incident became public.
The public first became aware of the leak after the Colorado Republican Party issued a release about it on Wednesday, nearly a week after Griswold says her office was informed about it on Thursday, Oct. 24.
Colorado Republican Party Chair Dave Williams said a “whistleblower” informed the party about the partial passwords leak.
Griswold declined to tell Scripps News Denver who informed her office.
“Given the nature of this investigation right now, I can’t get into those details,” said Griswold.
It’s unclear why the secretary of state’s office didn’t immediately notify the public or why they waited just as long to issue an emergency rule allowing the passwords to be updated.
Griswold said the partial leak never posed an immediate threat to Colorado’s elections.
“Colorado's elections have layers of security, so you actually need two passwords and physical access to voting equipment to use those, to use the passwords for them to be worth anything,” Griswold said. “The two sets of passwords are held by different parties in different locations. And, of course, under Colorado law, voting equipment is stored in secure rooms that require I.D. badges that are secure I.D. badges. We have 24/7 video monitoring on voting equipment, strict chain of custody to access voting equipment, and of course, it’s a felony to access and compromise voting equipment in the state of Colorado.”
But Republicans at the capitol say Griswold’s assurances aren’t enough and demand she resign.
“Secretary of State Jena Griswold’s reckless disregard for professional standards and consistent lack of transparency has threatened trust in our democratic system by causing doubt in the security of our election process. Her office has mailed postcards to 30,000 noncitizens illegally encouraging them to register to vote, falsely informed other voters that they had not voted when they already had, and now has disclosed election system passwords on the internet,” said House Minority Leader State Rep. Rose Pugliese. “While I have the utmost trust in the integrity of our county clerks, who actually oversee the counting of votes, I have no trust that Secretary Griswold is capable of leading our election system. Enough of her incompetence; it is time for her to resign. The people of Colorado deserve better.”
Griswold told Denver7 she was not going to step down as the state’s top elections official.
“No, I’m not going to resign,” Griswold said.
America Votes
Griswold says she won't resign after voting system passwords shared on website
Denver7 asked Griswold who was ultimately responsible for the leak.
“I take responsibility for anything that goes wrong in the office,” said Griswold. “At the end of the day, this was a civil servant who hid tabs on a spreadsheet.”
On Friday, the Libertarian Party of Colorado filed a lawsuit against Griswold in Denver District Court.
“In allowing these passwords to be available to the public, the Secretary has breached her duty to ensure that Colorado’s upcoming General Election is fair and accurate,” their attorney, Gary Fielder, said in the suit.
They’re also asking the court to order Griswold to recuse herself from participating in Tuesday’s election, immediately decommission any voting system device associated with the published passwords, order ballots in affected counties to be hand counted, and overturn a temporary rule that allowed passwords to be changed.
“Based upon information and belief, any modifications, including the updating of any passwords to the subject voting machines and systems, herein described, creates a circumstance wherein the previous certifications of the voting systems involved are void,” the lawsuit reads.
They also want Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser to conduct an investigation.
“While the attorney general’s office cannot confirm or otherwise comment on investigations, we in Colorado take great pride in our election system being the gold standard in the nation,” the Attorney General’s Office said in a statement. “Any unlawful actions that damage public confidence in our elections should be taken seriously. With respect to the disclosure of election system passwords, it is critical that this matter be reviewed thoroughly, and that every step is taken to ensure our elections are safe and every vote is counted.”
The partial passwords leak has catapulted Colorado into the national political spotlight once again.
On Thursday, the campaign for former President Donald Trump announced it had issued a letter to Griswold, demanding she “identify the counties affected by the security breach, notify them, direct them to halt processing of mail ballots, and prepare to re-scan all ballots.”
Colorado Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Bell responded to the Trump campaign, saying “background-checked state cybersecurity experts” would be helping to update the passwords.
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Griswold’s office responds to Trump as state updates voting system passwords
Republicans at the state capitol are calling on the Legislative Audit Committee to hold an emergency hearing into the partial passwords leak.
The chair of the committee, State Rep. Lisa Frizell, said a 2021 rule change prevented her from being able to unilaterally call an emergency meeting.
Frizell said one could be called if five members of the eight-person committee, which includes four Republicans and four Democrats, agreed to it. As of Friday evening, it was unclear if there was enough support for such a meeting.
The next regular meeting of the committee is scheduled for Dec. 9.
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In the new year, military families covered by TRICARE insurance will need prior authorization for non-emergency services at Children's Hospital Colorado (Children's Colorado).
