Topline
Kim Wyman, Washington's Republican secretary-of-state, will be the federal government's lead election security officer, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency announced Tuesday. She will oversee the Biden administrations efforts against election interference, after she split with many of her party members to reject baseless claims about voter fraud.
Kim Wyman, Washington Secretary of State, September 15, 2020 in Olympia, Wash. ASSOCIATED PRS
The Key Facts
Wyman's potential appointment was first reported by CNN Monday. She will then resign from her position as secretary of state on November 19, before taking up her new role at CISA, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, as senior election security lead. CNN reports that Wyman will be responsible for overseeing Homeland Security's efforts to prevent foreign and domestic interference in elections and provide support and resources to states to ensure that their elections are not tampered with. Wyman was previously the elections director for Thurston County in Washington for almost a decade. CISA director Jen Easterly cited Wyman's extensive knowledge of state and local government in a statement that justified her qualifications for the CISA job. Wyman claimed there was no widespread fraud in Washington's election. She also disputed claims by former President Donald Trump of fraud and a rigged vote. CISA director Jen Easterly praised Wymans appointment as CNN's CISA director, stating that she does not see red or blue, but only believes in democracy and doesn't care about R or D.
Important Quote
Easterly stated Tuesday that Wyman's years of experience, unsurpassed expertise, and unwavering integrity have earned her bipartisan respect at all levels of government.
Important Background
Wyman's appointment comes at a time when other GOP lawmakers and officials across the country continue to make claims of election fraud almost a year after the 2020 election. Trump also encouraged GOP state officials in their states to continue to investigate his fraud claims through partisan audits, even threatening to withdraw the vote from 2022 and 2024. CISA repeatedly refuted Trump's fraud claims, even though the agency was part his administration. Krebs was fired by CISA after it released a statement following the election stating that there was no evidence any voting system lost or changed votes or was compromised.
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First on CNN: Biden administration to name GOP official who challenged Trump’s lies for key election security role (CNN).
Trump Administration's Election Security Officials Resist Presidents Fraud Claims. (Forbes).
