Annals of Computer Science and Information Systems, Volume 24

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15439/2020KM7

Citation: Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Research in Management & Technovation, Shivani Agarwal, Darrell Norman Burrell, Vijender Kumar Solanki (eds). ACSIS, Vol. 24, pages 73–78 (2020)

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Abstract. Because presidential and congressional elections (hereinafter Federal elections) are State-administered activities with a Federal nexus, the Federal government should both reimburse and provide grants to the States when using their National Guards in their State Active Duty (SAD) status1 to perform cybersecurity assessments and testing before the election, provide general cybersecurity and immediate cyber support in response to a cyber-attack (if required) on Election Day, and provide any post-election support as necessary and appropriate. First, decision-makers must develop an election infrastructure protection plan that effectively utilizes the best assets in a whole-of-nation approach to help meet the three policy goals of election cybersecurity, ``access, integrity, and security.'' Currently, there are gaps in election security that the National Guard is well-position and best-qualified to fill. Once the decision-makers agree on the approach, they can move on to the second step, which is to address how to best support the States in funding the activities through grants, reimbursement, or a combination of the two. This paper explains how the U.S. Constitution, along with specific Federal laws, support the thesis and proposes new legislation that Congress should pass to eliminate current confusion while promoting the unity of effort amongst all stakeholders.

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