DHS Appointees Abandoned Secret Voting Machine Test

Political appointees at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security sought a secret test of a voting machine in 2025, but abandoned the request before any test took place, according to an account based on two former administration officials. The appointees wanted the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to obtain and examine the machine, with findings intended for the White House. The agency was also instructed not to tell the manufacturer if the test found vulnerabilities, the account said. Career staff told the appointees CISA could not conduct the test, in part because specialists had been laid off. The former officials said staff were concerned about political interference. One separately told the reporting organization that findings might be retained for use against election results unfavorable to the administration. The account did not establish that such a purpose was agreed upon, and no examination occurred. The Department of Homeland Security and CISA did not respond to questions about the reported request. The episode comes amid broader concerns about the agency’s capacity to support election security. Reporting states that the administration has laid off or...