Georgia's election server was wiped clean days after voting activists filed a lawsuit


Employees at the Center for Elections Systems at Kennesaw State University, which runs Georgia's elections system, destroyed data from a computer server just a few days after a lawsuit was filed against state election officials, The Associated Press reports.
The lawsuit was filed July 3 by election reform advocates, who want Georgia to stop using its old and flawed election technology. The state uses AccuVote touchscreen voting machines, which are easy to hack and do not keep hard copies of who people voted for. The plaintiffs, who want this system retired, also argued that the results of November's election and a special congressional runoff on June 20 cannot be trusted because of the problematic machines.
An email obtained by AP shows that on July 7, center technicians wiped clean a server that held important statewide election-related data. It's not clear who ordered that the data, which could have revealed if the results of recent elections were compromised, be erased. A spokesperson for Brian Kemp, Georgia's Republican secretary of state, said his office was not involved.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In August 2016, a security researcher named Logan Lamb found a major security hole in the server — information on Georgia's 6.7 million voters was online, including their Social Security numbers, party affiliation, and birthdays. Lamb said based on what he saw, the polling data could have been altered, with voters dropped and added, AP reports, and he notified election authorities. Six months later, it wasn't fixed, and the FBI became involved in March. Kennesaw State said in a statement Thursday that the server was set to be repurposed after the FBI returned it, and that's why it was wiped clean. Richard DeMillo, a Georgia Tech computer scientist following the case, told AP that deleting the data "forestalls any forensic investigation at all. People who have nothing to hide don't behave this way."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Can Texas redistricting save the US House for the GOP?
Today's Big Question Trump pushes a 'ruthless' new plan, but it could backfire
-
'No one should be surprised by this cynical strategy'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Intellectual property: AI gains at creators' expense
Feature Two federal judges ruled that it is fair use for AI firms to use copyrighted media to train bots
-
SCOTUS greenlights mass DOE firings
Speed Read The Supreme Court will allow the Trump administration to further shrink the Education Department
-
Cuomo announces third-party run for NYC mayor
Speed Read He will go up against progressive Democratic powerhouse Zohran Mamdani and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams
-
Secret Service 'failures' on Trump shooting
Speed Read Two new reports detail security breakdowns that led to attempts on the president's life
-
Trump set to hit Canada with 35% tariffs
Speed Read The president accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of failing to stop the cross-border flow of fentanyl
-
Mahmoud Khalil files $20M claim over ICE detention
Speed Read This is the 'first damages complaint' brought by an individual targeted by the Trump's administration's 'crackdown' on Gaza war protesters
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled