Heather Honey, a denier of Donald Trump's 2020 election loss, was appointed deputy assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to help oversee election infrastructure. Honey previously worked with Cleta Mitchell and played a key role in efforts to change Georgia's election rules so Republican officials could contest a potential Trump loss. Honey promoted election conspiracy theories, including one cited by Trump before the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. DHS provides states with cybersecurity and voter-database protections established after Russia's 2016 interference. Voting experts and state officials warned the appointment could erode trust and reduce information sharing.
Honey is a protege of Cleta Mitchell, a lawyer who tried to help Trump overturn the 2020 election results. In 2024, ProPublica reported that Honey had played a key role in Mitchell's behind-the-scenes effort to change Georgia's election rules to allow Republican officials to contest a potential Trump loss in that year's presidential race. Honey also promoted election conspiracy theories, including one Trump cited in a speech to his followers before they stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Though states do the on-the-ground work of running elections, DHS supports them with tasks beyond their capacities, such as protecting IT infrastructure and voter databases from foreign intrusions. The agency, with bipartisan support, took on this role in the aftermath of Russia's interference in the 2016 election. Experts on voting and state election officials warned that Honey's appointment as DHS' deputy assistant secretary of election integrity could erode trust between state and federal officials, prompting states not to share information with the agency.
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