NEW REPORT: Watchdog Finds Nevada Elections Well Run Despite Anti-Democracy Threats, Highlights Potential Vulnerabilities
Step-By-Step Guide Details Nevada Vote Counting and Certification Process to Help Guard Against Election Subversion
Informing Democracy Identifies 30 Officials as Potential Election Threats
Background Briefings Available for Reporters, Advocates
Today, Informing Democracy released a new report detailing the county- and state-wide officials and processes that govern the Nevada general election taking place on November 5, 2024. The comprehensive guide is centralized in a highly interactive, searchable tool to help journalists and pro-democracy champions monitor election processes, and includes:
A timeline for the ongoing and overlapping processes for vote counting and election certification, with different customizable view options;
An extensive library of research on election personnel focusing on whether they may pose a threat to election administration, with supporting evidence;
An overview of anti-democracy trends and the potential impact on Nevada elections.
In conducting research into the Nevada election administration, the nonpartisan, nonprofit organization made up of election professionals, researchers, and lawyers found that Nevada elections are largely well run, though there have been some recent concerning attempted power grabs by a few local officials in Nevada who have tried to exercise more local authority than is permitted under Nevada law.
“As extremists escalate their attacks against our democracy to sow doubt about or even upend the upcoming election, we believe it is crucial that Nevadans know that there are strong protections in place to help safeguard the state’s election process from election deniers and anti-democracy actors,” said Informing Democracy Executive Director Jenna Lowenstein. “This in-depth guide shines light on how elections are run, when votes are counted, and who certifies the results. By identifying potential threats and detailing each step of the vote counting and certification process, we hope to increase transparency for voters and empower journalists and advocates to monitor for potential problems.”
However, Informing Democracy did find potential vulnerabilities in certain electoral processes and identified 30 election officials who raise concern due to anti-democratic tendencies:
Out of 91 public officials, research surfaced of 30 officials whose findings raised cause for concern (33 percent). Officials with concerning findings reside in 11 of Nevada’s 17 counties and independent cities (more than 64 percent);
Seven Nevada officials with roles administering or certifying elections publicly denied or questioned the results of the 2020 election;
Fueled by false conspiracies that voting machines were hacked in 2020 to steal the election, election deniers have traveled to counties across Nevada to push for a labor intensive and time-consuming manual hand count of an entirely paper ballot system.
Five County Commissioners who subverted election administration by baselessly voting against certifying election results and one County Clerk served as a fake elector.
You can read the full report here. For questions about the upcoming elections in Nevada or to speak with a researcher, please email Ryan Thomas at ryan@zpstrategies.com.