NASS and NASED 2020 Election Preparations and Reminders

For Immediate Release — Oct. 30, 2020 — Washington, D.C. — As we approach the Tuesday, November 3, 2020 general election, the members of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) and the National Association of State Election Directors (NASED) come together to express their confidence in our nation’s elections systems, processes, safety and security.

State election officials have been working diligently to bolster cybersecurity, strengthen existing infrastructure, address election misinformation and disinformation, as well as provide administra­tive and technical support for local election officials. Additionally, throughout 2020 they have pre­pared for safe voting procedures during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic by increasing voting by mail, recruiting additional election workers and obtaining personal protective equipment for them, providing hand sanitizer to voters location layouts for in-person voting and much more.

“The eyes of the American public and the world are on election officials as we administer free and fair elections during this unprecedented time. Rest assured, we are ready. We have coordinated with all levels of government and are in constant communication to ensure a smooth election,” said Maggie Toulouse Oliver, NASS President and New Mexico Secretary of State. “We want voters to have confidence in the process, go vote if they have not already voted by mail or early in-person, and have patience as election officials tally, canvass and certify election results.”

“Voters and members of the media should be diligent in the face of election misinformation. Think critically about the source of information before repeating or retweeting it. The focus on election night is who won and who lost, but those calls are made by the media. Election officials spend the days and weeks after the election counting every eligible ballot, including provisional ballots, mail ballots, and ballots cast by military and overseas voters. For accurate information, rely on your state and local election officials,” said Lori Augino, NASED President and Director of Elections for the Washington Secretary of State.

Voters need to understand election night results are always unofficial. In the days and weeks to come, election officials will count every eligible ballot. Official results take time and must be can­vassed and certified according to state law. This is standard for every election.

Although many preparations have been made, unexpected things occur in every election including: voting locations opening late, election workers cancelling at the last minute, power outages, voting equipment malfunctions and lines at some voting locations. It is important to note, these are not indicative of malicious activity and election officials have contingency plans in place for these and a variety of other scenarios. Please be patient, contact your election official with any questions or concerns and follow verified election official social media accounts.

You can find information on voter registration, absentee/early voting, where to vote, and more on canivote.org a nonpartisan website created by state election offi­­cials. Also, learn about NASS’s #TrustedInfo2020 effort to highlight election officials as trusted sources of election information and view these helpful Election 2020 Frequently Asked Ques­tions.

 
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Media Contact:
Will Dinneen, Acting Press Secretary
wdinneen@sso.org | 202-624-3525 | www.nass.org