Georgia and Beyond: How Election Officials Are Working to Mitigate Distrust Ahead of the Midterms

Distrust Shapes Election Preparations

Election officials nationwide face challenges ahead of the midterms, including lawsuits, threats against election workers and efforts by the Trump administration to influence state-run elections. Experts told ABC News that these pressures are unfolding alongside persistent doubts about the voting process.

Georgia Officials Address Concerns

In Paulding County, Georgia, election director Deidre Holden says people continue to question how elections are run, despite efforts to be transparent. She invites the public to watch the process and says some former skeptics have become poll workers and advocates after seeing election operations firsthand.

Holden has also focused on safety at polling places and the county’s ballot processing facility. A sheriff’s deputy is stationed at each polling location, and poll workers have received active-shooter training. Holden said she remains concerned for the safety of staff, workers and voters.

Raffensperger Defends Election Work

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger will oversee the state election this November. He became nationally prominent after certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 victory in Georgia despite criticism from some Republicans. Raffensperger said he believes he did the right thing.

His time in office ends in January, and early voting for the midterms is underway in Georgia. Raffensperger said ballots will be counted three times to verify the result and that he expects residents to have an accurate projected outcome by midnight after polls close.

Dispute Over Voting Claims

Trump and Department of Homeland Security officials have described the country’s election system as broken and claimed that 278,000 noncitizens registered to vote illegally. DHS staff contacted states over the summer about what the department called preliminary findings on potential noncitizens registered to vote.

An election expert named Weiser said officials had uncovered nothing to support the allegations, adding that elections are safe and secure. The account also identifies Heather Honey, described as an election denier and a prominent figure in efforts to overturn the 2020 result, as a DHS official on a call with state officials.