A bipartisan bill was recently introduced in the Senate by U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), aiming to establish a National Commission of the Cybersecurity of United States Election Systems.
Based on a similar structure set by the 9/11 Commission, the new cybersecurity commission would aim to examine the reported cyberattacks that took place during the 2016 presidential election cycle and make recommendations on how to mitigate and prevent cyberattacks in future elections.
“There is no credible doubt that Russia attacked our election infrastructure in 2016,” Gillibrand said. “We need a public accounting of how they were able to do it so effectively, and how we can protect our country when Russia or any other nation tries to attack us again.”
Should the bill be signed into law, members of the commission would be selected by a number of state election authorities, cybersecurity experts, and congressional leadership in order to gain a wide-ranging perspective and make recommendations on how to address U.S. elections systems vulnerabilities.
The commission would also document and describe any harm with respect to election systems throughout the 2016 election, review foreign cyber interference in elections in other countries in order to understand additional cybersecurity threats, account for what emerging threats and unmitigated vulnerabilities remain, and report on the recommendations of the commission for action at the federal, state, and local level.
“Hostile governments like Russia don’t believe in democracy,” Graham said. “…This issue should be beyond partisan politics as it strikes at the heart of our democracy. We must take steps to ensure that we protect the integrity of our elections from hostile, outside, and foreign influences.”