The Denver district attorney has opened an investigation into a breach in which a spreadsheet containing voting system passwords was mistakenly posted on the Colorado secretary of state’s website earlier this year. Secretary of State Jena Griswold announced the breach on October 29, stating that a hidden tab in the spreadsheet revealed passwords protecting Colorado voting machines in many counties. The breach was categorized as accidental, and Griswold is not the target of the investigation.
State employees quickly changed passwords in affected county clerk offices ahead of the Nov. 5 election. While the breach did not pose a security threat to Colorado’s elections, it sparked outcry from the Colorado Republican Party and Donald Trump’s campaign, who called for a halt to mail-in ballot processing in counties impacted by the breach. However, a Denver judge rejected a request for hand-counting of affected ballots on Election Day, finding no evidence of compromised election systems.
The Secretary of State’s Office is cooperating with the Denver DA’s investigation to provide transparency to the public. The El Paso County district attorney’s office has also received affidavits alleging state law violations related to the breach and will potentially conduct further investigations after reviewing the Denver DA’s findings. The state’s election officials stressed that the breach did not impact ballot counting and did not compromise election systems. Subscribe to Colorado Politics’ newsletter, The Spot, to stay informed on ongoing developments.
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