This commentary is by Sarah Copeland Hanzas, who is the current secretary of state, and former secretaries of state Deb Markowitz, Jim Condos and Don Hooper. We write as current and former Vermont secretaries of state. We have not always agreed on every policy question, but we share a common und erstanding of what it takes to run secure and accessible elections — elections that are worthy of public trust. Vermont does this work well. Our local and national reputation has been earned over decades through careful stewardship, strong partnerships with local officials and a bipartisan commitment to putting voters first. We have also had financial support from the federal government.  From 2022 to 2024, Vermont received roughly $1 million annually through the Help America Vote Act. This has been the primary federal funding stream for election administration. These funds supported overdue upgrades to election software, strengthened voter data security and provided essential tools and training to local officials.  In 2025, that funding dropped by more than 70% to approximately $275,000. This was not a marginal adjustment. That sharp reduction left a substantial gap in the resources available to support election infrastructure across the state. This significantly shifts the cost of running a democracy onto states like ours.  At the same time, other important federal support has been reduced or eliminated. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency within the Department of Homeland Security has served as a key partner to election officials, offering threat intelligence, security assessments and hands-on training at no cost to states and municipalities. Those services helped identify vulnerabilities in our infrastructure and assisted in fighting bad foreign actors who want to interfere with our democracy. Despite increased spending at Homeland Security, CISA’s election-specific unit has been essentially dismantled. The support from our previous federal partners is gone.  This should be alarming to all Americans. The nature of election security is evolving. Artificial intelligence has accelerated the spread of mis- and disinformation. Technology vulnerabilities are regularly identified and changing. Additionally, election workers, who are the backbone of Vermont’s democracy, are facing rising threats and harassment. This is clearly not the time for fewer resources and training.  The federal government has not only become a diminished ally for state election officials; it’s increasingly becoming an active adversary. The administration’s focus has shifted toward noncitizen voting. This is not a meaningful problem in Vermont or nationwide.  Proposals, justified by the fallacy of noncitizen voting, such as the SAVE Act and the recent executive order targeting mail-in voting, add a multitude of new barriers for voters. These mandates disproportionately affect women, people who are disabled and poorer Americans. These measures do not strengthen the underlying systems to secure elections. Instead, these federal mandates are extensive, complicated and unrelated to the actual risks on the ground — and what’s more, they’re unfunded.  There is a clear mismatch between the risks and challenges election officials face and the federal government’s priorities. We must act within our state to shore up our democracy. To its credit, the Legislature recognizes that threats to election workers and systems are increasing. Recent proposals, including H.541, an act relating to interference with voters and election officials, establish penalties for intimidating or threatening an election official, reflecting an understanding that those who administer our elections deserve protection. But laws alone are not enough. The infrastructure that supports safe, secure elections must also be funded. We will need to make future state investments to fill the gaps.  READ MORE As we approach the 2026 general election, we want Vermonters to know that Vermont is in good shape. Prudent management of past grant funding by the secretary of state’s office allows for a typical election-year budget request for fiscal year 2027. But what about next year and the year after? We ask the Legislature and the governor to continue to meet this moment. We will continue to shed light on this issue on the national level. If the goal is truly to support election integrity, the answer is straightforward. Provide consistent, reliable funding. Maintain strong partnerships that deliver cybersecurity expertise and threat intelligence. Invest in the systems and people who administer elections every day. We offer this perspective not as partisans, but as former and current stewards of Vermont’s elections who understand both the responsibility and the reality of the work. Vermont’s system remains strong, but it depends on ongoing investment and cooperation across all levels of government. Maintaining the security of our elections is a commitment we can’t afford to ignore. Read the story on VTDigger here: Vermont’s elections are strong. Federal support is not.. ...read more read less