Cardin, Van Hollen Urge Action on Election Security
New information shows company behind Maryland election management systems owned by Russian oligarch
U.S. Senators
Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen (both D-Md.) today spoke out about the
revelations that a Russian oligarch close to Vladimir Putin owns ByteGrid LLC,
the company that hosts Maryland’s statewide voter registration, candidacy, and
election management system; the online voter registration system; online ballot
delivery system; and the unofficial election night results website.
“This latest news from Annapolis reinforces the reality
that Russia has been systematically infiltrating America’s political
infrastructure for years – and has continued its assault. I am not alone in
being astounded that this president still continues to call legitimate criminal
investigations into Russia’s malfeasance a ‘witch hunt.’ Each day it seems like
more and more evidence is collected that proves the need for the Mueller
investigation to continue without partisan political pressure,” said Senator
Cardin, a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC).
“Six months ago, I released a Foreign Relations Committee report that
documented Putin’s pattern of asymmetric warfare against democratic
institutions, universal values, and the rule of law in Russia and across Europe
over the last twenty years. The playbook clearly carried over to Maryland and
elsewhere across the U.S. It’s long past time for this president to put our
country before his own personal welfare and build our defenses against the
Kremlin rather than cozying up to the leader who directed his forces to attack
our country over and over again.”
“Russian attacks on our democracy are not an abstract
idea — they are a threat to Maryland and our entire country. This news is
deeply disturbing, and it raises urgent questions about foreign interference in
our elections — questions that President Trump is not just failing to answer,
but also failing to even ask. With just four months until the November
midterms, that has to change. We must immediately pass the bipartisan DETER Act
to send a powerful and unequivocal message to any foreign actor seeking to
disrupt our elections: if you attack American candidates, campaigns, or voting
infrastructure, you will face severe consequences,” said Senator Van Hollen,
a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee on State and Foreign
Operations.
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