Secretary of State Griswold Applauds Passage of the Election Official Protection Act

HB22-1273, one of Secretary Griswold’s legislative priorities, will increase protections for Colorado’s Election Officials and workers

Denver, April 22, 2022 - Today, Secretary of State Jena Griswold applauded the passage of HB22-1273, the Election Official Protection Act. This critical piece of legislation is one of Secretary Griswold’s top priorities this session and passed out of the legislature with broad bipartisan support. The bill will provide additional protections for election officials and workers throughout the state against threats and doxing and is sponsored by Representatives Monica Duran (D-Wheat Ridge) and Emily Sirota (D-Denver), and Senate President Steve Fenberg (D-Boulder) and Senator Brittany Pettersen (D-Lakewood).

“Colorado’s Election Officials and workers are the unsung heroes of our democracy, putting in countless hours behind the scenes to ensure that their local elections run smoothly and that every eligible voter has the opportunity to make their voice heard. Unfortunately, the wave of election disinformation flooding the nation has led to increased threats towards these dedicated public servants,” said Secretary Griswold. “The need to protect our election workers cannot be understated, and that’s exactly what this legislation will do. I thank Representatives Duran and Sirota, Senate President Fenberg, and Senator Pettersen for their leadership on this important legislation and applaud the Colorado Assembly for passing the Election Official Protection Act."

According to a recent report from the Brennan Center for Justice, one in three U.S. election officials has felt unsafe in their job, and one in six have reported receiving threats because of their work carrying out elections. These threats have also increased in Colorado, and Republican, Democratic, and Unaffiliated election officials have been targeted for administering safe and secure elections in the state. 

The Election Official Protection Act establishes election officials and workers as a protected class against doxing, which is the release of personal information on the internet for the purpose of threatening a person or their family. Doxing an election official would constitute a Class 1 Misdemeanor penalty, carrying with it a fine of up to $1,000 and/or imprisonment in county jail of up to 364 days. The bill would also allow professional election workers to file a request to government entities to remove their personal information from online records if the person feels the release of their information could pose a threat to their safety.

The bill also prohibits intimidating, threatening or coercing an election official while they are performing official duties or retaliating against them for performing their official duties. Threatening an election official is a Class 2 Misdemeanor which will be punished by a fine of up to $750 and or up to 120 days imprisonment.

A summary of the bill can be found here and the full text of the bill can be found here.

More information on Secretary Griswold’s legislative priorities for the 2022 Colorado Legislative Session can be found here.