It’s not a secret that local election officials are working in an increasingly hostile climate. But data shows that since the 2020 election, county-level administrators in swing states are dealing with the influx of threats and harassment by simply leaving their jobs.
“There’s been death threats, there’s been stuff posted on the internet as far as home addresses. And fortunately, I have not had that, but others have, and I do think it’s the elections climate nowadays that is driving these people out,” said Dawn Graham, county elections director in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania.
A NOTUS analysis of county-level administrators in six swing states shows that in 153 out of 354 counties (or their equivalents) — more than 40% — are being run by someone different than the person in charge during the 2020 election. In 2020, only around 30% of these same counties were served by someone new than in 2016.