Free & Fair Elections

Election Protection

Our peers and neighbors are the election officials and poll workers that keep our elections free and fair, but they need regular, predictable, and sufficient funding to protect and modernize America’s election infrastructure. In addition, those serving on the frontlines of our democracy need legal protection from harassment and intimidation. Learn about our work to elevate the voices of election officials and workers in the policy debate through our Faces of Democracy campaign.

Featured Work

project

Building Confidence in 2024 Elections

Issue One is at the forefront of crucial efforts to support election officials, combat false election information, and educate voters about how elections work. Our mission is to ensure that…

project

Faces of Democracy

A campaign of election officials and poll workers to strengthen U.S. elections

Analysis

Meet the Faces of Democracy: Julie Wise

Nonpartisan head of elections in Seattle shares how “radical transparency” measures like webcams and Plexiglass walls help build trust in elections...

Julie Wise, who is not registered with any political party, has more than 24 years of election administration experience. Since 2000, she has worked for the board of elections in…

Press releases

More than 50 bipartisan election officials, national security experts, technologists, and former members of Congress call for safeguards to protect U.S. elections against threats posed by AI

A bipartisan coalition of more than 50 election officials, national security experts, technologists, and former members of Congress are calling for the enactment of federal legislation to protect our democracy…

Press releases

New report from Issue One highlights the high cost of high turnover as election officials leave their positions in record numbers

New research from Issue One shows that the turnover rate among local election officials since November 2020 is far higher than what would normally be expected, especially in battleground states…

Event Recaps

Issue One and Public Citizen host bipartisan event on threats posed by AI on democracy

Issue One recently partnered with Public Citizen to host a virtual event that brought together a bipartisan group of congressional leaders and election officials to discuss the threats posed by…

Featured Press

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The New York Times: Elections Officials Battle a Deluge of Disinformation

Faces of Democracy members Tate Fall, Justin Roebuck, and Adrian Fontes interviewed...

The Hill: To preserve the integrity of our elections, language matters

Op-ed by National Council on Election Integrity members Donna Brazile and Michael Steele...

The Guardian: Trump allies push bill to bar non-citizen voting, even though it’s already illegal

Issue One Director of Election Protection Carah Ong Whaley quoted...

C-SPAN: Nick Penniman on Election Security and Integrity

Issue One CEO Nick Penniman talks election security on C-SPAN's Washington Journal...

The Latest on Election Protection

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Mar 23, 2022

Event Recaps

“Our democracy is fragile,” Rep. Liz Cheney says at bipartisan Wyoming event presented by Issue One

Last night, Representative Liz Cheney (R-WY) joined Issue One founder and CEO Nick Penniman onstage in Jackson, Wyoming for an important conversation about democracy, the U.S. Constitution, and protecting our…

Mar 15, 2022

Op-eds

Chicago Tribune: Putin has made his bet against American democracy. It’s time to prove him wrong.

Op-ed by ReFormers Caucus Co-chairs Amb. Tim Roemer (D-IN) and Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN)

Mar 11, 2022

Podcast episodes

Swamp Stories Episode 38: Protecting Our Neighbors

Elections across the country are run by dedicated full-time elected officials and by a huge and diverse group of citizens who serve as poll workers — people who might very…

Feb 22, 2022

Podcast episodes

Swamp Stories Episode 37: A conversation with Mark Bowden & Matthew Teague

In episode 37 of “Swamp Stories,” Weston talks with Mark Bowden — author of “Black Hawk Down” — and Matthew Teague about their new book, “The Steal,” that offers a…

Feb 17, 2022

Sign-on letters

Issue One joins bipartisan push for key election reforms in Congress

Coalition calls on Senate to find bipartisan path forward on reforms to strengthen elections and protect election officials...

Issue One joined with other members of Fix the System — a crosspartisan coalition of political reform groups — in an open letter supporting key bipartisan election reforms in Congress.…

Feb 02, 2022

In the media

Issue One in the news: January 2022 media mentions recap

It was a busy start to the year for Issue One. Press highlights included the release of our congressional staff pay report, which was covered exclusively by Roll Call and also reported on by CNN, Politico, NBC…

Jan 25, 2022

Op-eds

Washington Examiner: Elections should be decided by voters, not partisan politicians

Op-ed by ReFormers Caucus Co-chairs Amb. Tim Roemer (D-IN) and Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN)calling for bipartisan updates to the Electoral Count Act

Jan 24, 2022

In the media

NPR: 1 Republican argues for a narrower approach to changing a 19th century voting law

Interview with ReFormers Caucus Co-chair Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN) on the need to reform the Electoral Count Act

Jan 24, 2022

Op-eds

The Hill: There is a bipartisan path forward on election and voter protections

By Issue One Founder and CEO Nick Penniman

Jan 20, 2022

Press releases

Issue One joins together with bipartisan organizations in new report calling for key election reforms

“There is a bipartisan path forward to achieve meaningful reforms that will strengthen our elections,” said Issue One Founder and CEO Nick Penniman....

Today, Issue One joined with the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Elections Project to release a new report in partnership with Unite America, R Street, and American Enterprise Institute as the fight…