CISA Releases 2026 Election Infrastructure Security Plan Ahead of Nov. 3 Midterms
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) on September 24 released its 2026 Election Infrastructure Security Plan ahead of the November 3 midterm elections. The 13-page plan, titled "Securing the Next 250," catalogs the threats facing election infrastructure and lists the no-cost protective services the agency offers to state, county and local election officials.
According to CISA, election infrastructure requires steadfast security and resilience; it is a vital national interest and one of the Department of Homeland Security's highest priorities. The American people's confidence that their vote will be counted as cast is essential, CISA said, and securing election infrastructure requires year-round diligence and close coordination between state, local and federal partners. The Department of Homeland Security designated election infrastructure as critical infrastructure in January 2017.
The threats identified in the plan include election offices whose systems are often accessible from general enterprise networks, allowing attackers to exploit known software vulnerabilities, reach voter registration databases and move laterally; insider risks; and physical risks such as the bomb threats that hit some polling places in 2024.
To counter those threats, the plan restates longstanding election practices: handling ballots in bipartisan teams of two, maintaining chain-of-custody procedures, allowing observers to be present during counting, using paper ballots that can be reviewed to ensure transparency and auditability, and conducting post-election manual audits.
CISA said it offers election officials a range of no-cost cybersecurity and physical security services, including risk and vulnerability assessments, continuous vulnerability scanning, on-site penetration testing, security assessments, training and tabletop exercises, alongside threat-intelligence sharing through regional election security advisors and state fusion centers.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the plan "will be implemented in full" and is crucial to the security, freeness and fairness of choosing the nation's leaders, adding that the department has consistently supported CISA's delivery of cybersecurity and physical security services to election officials. The plan was ordered by Mullin in July.
Election infrastructure includes voter registration databases, systems used to manage elections and count and report results, storage facilities and polling places. CISA, part of the Department of Homeland Security, is the federal agency that leads the national effort to understand, manage and reduce risk to the nation's digital and physical infrastructure.
(Source: Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency)
Source: Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国国土安全部总部（固定图库）。公共领域。 / Photo: U.S. Department of Homeland Security headquarters (file photo). Public domain.
