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Election officials express new concern, EOLDN answers

February 2025

EOLDN bolsters service in anticipation of federal targeting

Election administrators of both parties have reached out to EOLDN with a new fear: retribution from the federal government.

Four years ago, EOLDN was created to support election officials facing harassment, threats, and intimidation for simply running accurate and transparent elections. The opportunities for harassment have only multiplied since then. EOLDN is responding to the expanded threat environment by preparing to assist election officials threatened with federal targeting or retribution.

EOLDN has built a nationwide roster of volunteer criminal defense attorneys and litigators, and in 2025, we are recruiting additional experienced pro bono attorneys who can provide advice and defense against federal entities. We seek attorneys to support election officials facing targeting by (for example) the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, or Congress.

The EOLDN team recently received a warm response to this recruitment push from the DC Bar Tax Conference attendees, and we will continue to attend relevant practice area conferences to present our mission to new attorney audiences.

Please help us share this message with election officials and attorneys who may be interested in supporting EOLDN. Election officials are invited to request legal support, and attorneys and law firms can learn about joining the network on our website.

EOLDN focus: Arizona

The EOLDN team traveled to Phoenix, AZ for the American Bar Association (ABA) Midyear Conference to engage with election officials and attorneys from across the nation. We were glad to meet with attorneys who have supported the EOLDN mission for years, whether they donated their time and expertise to a harassed election official, created a platform to address attorney audiences, or advised us on opportunities for outreach.

The conference also offered opportunities for lawyers to hear directly from election officials. Maricopa County Election Director Scott Jarrett led an informative tour of his elections office for ABA attendees from all over the country, and the EOLDN team shared our legal service with Maricopa County election officials. Additionally, Bill Kresse of the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners convened a panel of election experts, including EOLDN Advisory Board member and former Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates, Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe, and Elections Group CEO Jennifer Morrell, to discuss the 2024 election and insights for the future.

Election misinformation and disinformation often fuels the threats and vitriol that election workers face, and election administrators across the country have worked diligently to correct the narrative. During the panel, Gates highlighted Maricopa County’s extensive efforts to prebunk election misinformation. The county issued hundreds of press credentials and prepared websites and advertising, providing proactive transparency that was and will continue to be instrumental in promoting public confidence in elections.

Overall, the conference underscored the deep commitment of our attorneys and the importance of election officials and attorneys working side-by-side to safeguard democracy.

Invite EOLDN to present

EOLDN is committed to attending conferences to share the resources and support we offer for election workers, the role of attorneys in the defense of democracy, and insights on threats and harassment of election workers. Email outreach@eoldn.org for presentation inquiries.

What's happening at CEIR

‘Our enemies are celebrating’ as CISA and DOJ teams combating election interference are cut

Multiple teams dedicated to combating foreign election interference have been disbanded, including the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force and members of the election security arm of Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).

In an interview for a USA Today opinion piece, CEIR Executive Director David Becker expressed concern, reflecting on the history of attempts from foreign adversaries to influence elections and sow division. The damage from the disbandment will be long-lasting, as the years of training and expertise it took to build these teams cannot be easily restored.

Becker told The Washington Post that without these teams, “it will be much harder to tell what is true, what is false, what is being fed to American voters for the purposes of defrauding them and getting them to unwittingly assist in our foreign adversaries’ efforts to divide us.”

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What is EOLDN?

EOLDN matches experienced pro bono attorneys with election officials who have been harassed and intimidated on the job or who fear targeting or retaliation simply for doing their jobs.

Election Officials, Request Help

Request assistance on our website or contact us via email at help@eoldn.org or phone at 1-877-313-5210 anytime.

Click here for EOLDN Terms and Conditions. If you believe you’re eligible to receive help from EOLDN and are interested in requesting assistance from a pro bono attorney or communications professional, we encourage you to get in touch.

Attorneys, Join Our Network of Lawyers

Please forward this message to attorney contacts, so EOLDN is prepared for 2024 and beyond. We need all types of attorneys, as election officials can experience a wide variety of legal issues stemming from their duties, and many simply need general guidance. Learn about joining the network as a pro bono attorney, or as a law firm, here. 

Interested in helping us recruit other attorneys or firms into the network? We have information to help you present EOLDN to other lawyers. Please email outreach@eoldn.org for more information.

READ COVERAGE OF THREATS TO ELECTION OFFICIALS

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“They’re citizens. They’re professionals. They’re our neighbors. If we start to view our fellow citizens as our enemies, we’re lost.”
— David Becker (Republican push to recruit election deniers as poll workers causes alarm | June 30, 2022 – The Guardian)
“Election officials never get praised if elections go right and the wrath comes down on them if they do them wrong. When we saw election officials being prosecuted for just doing their jobs... we formed [EOLDN] and we do provide pro bono legal services to any election officials who need it.”
— Ben Ginsberg (Trump’s pressure on Pence more ‘unprecedented’ than ‘what we saw in Watergate’ | June 17, 2022 – MSNBC)
“Those who are threatening … these officials, whether they're full-time, whether they're volunteers, whether they're in positions of the most senior responsibility or they're simply on the staff — those who threaten them need to know they cannot act with impunity. There will be a defense and it will be a robust defense."
— Bob Bauer (Helping election officials who are threatened | March 14, 2022 – 60 Minutes Overtime, CBS News)
"What we are seeing developing now is a huge step backwards from a focus on professionalized election administration to a heavy level of political interference in the work of trained election professionals. Our hope now is to provide [election officials] with a resource I wish they didn't have to have, but one I think they have desperately needed."
— Bob Bauer (Election Workers Are Under Attack. A Group Of Lawyers Plans To Defend Them | September 8, 2021 – National Public Radio)
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