staging.rockymountainvoice.com

Tag: Jena Griswold

How BIOS password exposure could threaten election integrity
Rocky Mountain Voice, State

How BIOS password exposure could threaten election integrity

By Jen Schumann | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice Election security is key to a constitutional republic by, for, and of the people. Each part of the voting system should be designed to prevent interference. BIOS passwords are vital to this security. They are the first defense against unauthorized access to a voting machine's core settings. Recent concerns have arisen around how the exposure of BIOS passwords might allow bad actors to manipulate voting systems. Cyber security professionals argue this could create risks even without physical access to the machines. It’s important to consider how such exposure could disrupt elections.  The BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) controls a machine's basic operations. It includes hardware settings and connectivity options. In vo...
Ganahl: Exposing Colorado’s election failures, how citizen pressure uncovered what officials tried to hide
Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Ganahl: Exposing Colorado’s election failures, how citizen pressure uncovered what officials tried to hide

By Heidi Ganahl | Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice During my run as the GOP Nominee for Governor in 2022, I talked to voters acrossColorado that didn’t trust our elections. 25% of Republicans didn’t vote. After the race, Idecided to dig in and see if I could find a way to restore trust for voters in the process. A month ago, I held a press conference to announce the results of that two-yearinvestigation backed by a dedicated team of researchers. We reported that we foundshocking gaps in our so-called “gold standard” elections.  Watch it here. Over 20 well-coordinated media pieces against me were published after that, withvarious politicians and their paid “experts” spouting prepared statements and similartalking points, calling me a conspiracy theorist and “reckless.” They hope...
Colorado Republicans call for Griswold’s resignation amid security breach
Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Colorado Republicans call for Griswold’s resignation amid security breach

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice In response to the recent leak of election system passwords by Secretary of State Jena Griswold’s office, Colorado House Republicans issued a call for her resignation. The statement came shortly after Griswold acknowledged the incident, which she described as a “partial” leak involving passwords for some voting components, adding that her office is actively investigating. Minority Leader Pugliese questioned the extent of Griswold’s oversight, stating, “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.” Pugliese called for Griswold’s resignation, emphasizing, “The people of Colo...
Griswold’s office response to GOP concern lacks detail requested by Williams
Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Griswold’s office response to GOP concern lacks detail requested by Williams

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice In response to an inquiry made by the Colorado Republican Party, the office of secretary of state Jena Griswold claims only partial passwords to certain components of the Colorado voting systems were improperly made available in a public area of the website she manages. "This does not pose an immediate security threat to Colorado’s elections, nor will it impact how ballots are counted," a statement from her office reads. The statement received by the Rocky Mountain Voice did not include comment from Griswold in a long explanation of election security measures, which never addressed how the passwords were placed in a public area of the website and by whom. In fact, the statement failed to address much of the concern from Colorado Republican...
Colorado GOP: Hundreds of voting system passwords were publicly shared by secretary of state’s office
Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Colorado GOP: Hundreds of voting system passwords were publicly shared by secretary of state’s office

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice More than 600 BIOS passwords for voting system components in 63 of the state's 64 counties were publicly shared in a file on Secretary of State Jena Griswold's website, a news release email from the Colorado Republican Party reads. An unnamed state official "discretely removed" the passwords on Thursday, Oct. 24, the release states. "The passwords were not encrypted or otherwise protected – this means they were available for public consumption," the Colorado Republican Party's email reads. The file may have been posted publicly since August, with the amended file posted Oct. 24. BIOS passwords allow access for "knowledgeable users to fundamentally manipulate systems and data" and to remove trace evidence of doing so, the Colorado Republ...
‘Not the gold standard, a bit of fool’s gold’: Ganahl finds areas of election concern which must be addressed before Nov. 5
Rocky Mountain Voice, State

‘Not the gold standard, a bit of fool’s gold’: Ganahl finds areas of election concern which must be addressed before Nov. 5

https://youtu.be/RgG-ysUlvq4 Ganahl talks about her concerns with Colorado's elections during a press conference outside the Capitol on Thursday afternoon. Lengthy analysis and research into one county’s 2022 election results has brought up some significant concerns, Heidi Ganahl, the Republican candidate for governor in 2022, announced Thursday in a press conference. “I’m concerned that Colorado’s elections are not the gold standard as proclaimed," Ganahl said, “but a bit of fool’s gold.” She is the founder and president of Rocky Mountain Voice, and a noted advocate for free and fair elections. “Verifying the integrity of election systems is not the exclusive role of law enforcement, but the right and duty of the citizens, and the delegated responsibility of...
Presidential debate, Taylor Swift, Meta credited for surge in Colorado voter registrations
Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Presidential debate, Taylor Swift, Meta credited for surge in Colorado voter registrations

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice A three-day period in September has led to a surge in voter registration, the office of Secretary of State Jena Griswold reports, and performer Taylor Swift may get to take some credit. More than 21,000 either registered to vote in the state or updated their registration during the period, which began Sept. 10 with Swift's endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris in advance of a televised debate that night between Harris and former President Donald Trump. It represents a 0.5% increase in voter registrations. “Registering to vote is the first step to making your voice heard in our democracy,” Griswold said. “It is exciting to see Coloradans registering to vote and getting involved in advance of this November’s election. Every voter has a vo...
Package addressed to secretary of state, containing white powder substance, under investigation
Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Package addressed to secretary of state, containing white powder substance, under investigation

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice A package containing white powder addressed to the Colorado Secretary of State's office has been intercepted at a state mail facility. The package included a return address of “U.S. Traitor Elimination Army.” Similar packages have been received by several secretaries of state, first reported Tuesday, Sept. 17, the Colorado Secretary of State's office noted in a press release. Investigations by the FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Colorado State Patrol preliminarily indicate the powder included in the package is harmless. Often, investigations of such packages are found to be gypsum, a harmless white mineral common to chalk, drywall and plaster. “We cannot tolerate threats to election officials and public servants," said Colorado Sec...
‘I voted’ sticker art contest open to Colorado high school students
Rocky Mountain Voice, State

‘I voted’ sticker art contest open to Colorado high school students

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice High school students throughout Colorado are encouraged to participate in a contest being offered by the secretary of state's office to create an "I Voted" digital sticker. “The digital ‘I Voted’ sticker is a great opportunity for students to engage with our democracy,” Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold. “I’m already looking forward to seeing the designs Colorado high schoolers come up with to encourage Coloradans to vote!” A selected sticket design will be sent to voters via BallotTrax once they have voted in the upcoming general election, a press release from Griswold's office reads. It will also be featured on the Secretary of State’s website, media channels, press releases, in media coverage and as part of digital effort to encour...
Campaign complaint dismissed against El Paso County commissioner running for state office
Colorado Springs Gazette, Local

Campaign complaint dismissed against El Paso County commissioner running for state office

By Savannah Eller | Colorado Springs Gazette Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold's office has officially dismissed a complaint against current El Paso County Commissioner Stan VanderWerf for comments made about his state Senate run in a May 9 Board of County Commissioners meeting.  The state Elections Division motion to dismiss was granted on June 7. Integrity matters, the resident watchdog group behind the complaint, said in the filing that VanderWerf violated fair campaign practices when he mentioned what he planned to do if elected to Colorado Senate District 12 this November during a meeting on a housing development approval application.  The development, which would bring 20 single-family homes to dead-end Hay Creek Road, faced opposition from the public during the...