Now Is The Time To Secure The Vote

Election Day is almost here, and Americans are grappling with many questions and concerns about election security. Are the voter rolls accurate? Are the ballots secure? Are voting machines vulnerable? Will every legal vote be counted accurately?

These are important questions, to be sure. But have you asked yourself what you can do to help?

The best time to volunteer to help secure the 2026 election was months ago. You could have volunteered to serve as an election officer, completed the training, and learned how ballots are issued, handled, and counted. With November 3 almost here, those opportunities may have closed.

But it’s still not too late to help. Interested parties should investigate becoming election officials or poll watchers to ensure nothing untoward happens on Election Day.

Election security starts long before voters enter a voting booth. It involves an accurate voter roll, proper procedures for verifying voter eligibility, tested voting machines, voter data privacy, both neutral and partisan observers, alongside physical and cybersecurity protocols.

Security should protect electronic poll books, voter registration databases, and results reporting systems. Vote-counting machinery should be insulated from unauthorized network connections (ideally, it has no way to connect to the internet). The system should include a documented chain of custody for ballots and machinery, voter-verifiable paper records of votes, and meaningful post-election audits to verify accurate vote tallies.

Declassified intelligence assessments detailing threats to election-related networks, voter databases, and voting machine supply chains are available on the Government Transparency & Election Integrity website. Identifying a potential weakness in the system is not the same as proving votes were altered. But it’s yet another reason officials should demonstrate what protections are in place and how they are verified.

That includes testing the voting machine prior to an election in the presence of observers, limiting access to voting systems, documenting ballot handling, reconciling the number of voters checked in with the number of ballots cast, and reviewing results after the election.

Five ‌days ‌before ‌an election isn’t enough time to do everything that needs to be done. This is why it’s important to have skilled election officers on the ground. They confirm voter identity, issue ballots, ensure chain of custody for election materials, and reconcile voter and ballot totals. They manage the election from start to finish.

If you missed the cutoff for an official position, maybe you can still be involved; call your local office and ask. They may have floating positions open.

To be clear, the best thing that you can do is become an election official. Every locality in America hires citizens to run elections, and if you’re worried about what’s going on inside election offices, the best thing you can do is work inside.

If that’s not an option, ask to become an authorized poll watcher or election observer. Appointments and training requirements vary by state. Some roles may require that you be designated by one of the political parties.

Call the elections office today.

As ‌a ‌poll ‌watcher, you should be watching the process, not the people. Take notes. Report problems to the proper authorities. Don’t try to disrupt the voting process, and don’t treat an unintentional voting mistake as an accusation of fraud unless necessary.

Of course, there’s one thing you can do right now, even if all the volunteer spots are taken: Ensure your own ballot is counted.

Verify your registration and polling place with your state or local elections office. Know what ID you will need to present and the voting hours. It may be too late to vote by mail. Confirm the receipt deadline, which may differ from the postmark deadline.

If you have an issue at the polls, speak to an election official. Depending on the circumstances, you may be offered a provisional ballot and take additional steps later.

Don’t leave the polling place without exploring your options.

Monitoring ‌should ‌not end on Election Day. Unofficial vote counts may be reported on Election Night, but reconciliation, canvassing, audits, and certification won’t be complete until after Election Day. If you call your local party, you can participate in these after-election-day oversight activities — they always need more volunteers.

Election security is a shared responsibility. You can help at every stage of the process. Whether you’re a veteran volunteer or just getting started, your participation matters.

Yes, the best time to get involved was months ago. The next best time is now. Serve if you can. Observe if you can. Help if you can. And even if you can’t for this election, sign up now to become an election official in the future.

When it comes to election integrity, it’s never too late to get it right.

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Ken Cuccinelli is chairman of Heritage Action’s Election Transparency Initiative. A former Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security and Virginia Attorney General.