With just two days until the election, Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp’s office is investigating a hacking attempt into the state’s voter registration system. The department is pointing the finger at The Democratic Party of Georgia and claims the party is under investigation.
According to a news release sent out by the secretary of state’s office, the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI have been alerted to a failed hacking attempt on the state’s voter registration system that occurred Saturday night, Nov. 3.
In the initial release, the secretary of state’s office offered few details:
“While we cannot comment on the specifics of an ongoing investigation, I can confirm that the Democratic Party of Georgia is under investigation for possible cyber crimes,” said Candice Broce, Press Secretary. “We can also confirm that no personal data was breached and our system remains secure.”
In a later statement, the secretary of state’s office clarified the breach was related to Georgia’s “My Voter” information page and said the information came from the office’s legal team.
Republican Brian Kemp is running against Democrat Stacey Abrams in Georgia’s race for governor. More details as the story develops.
Democratic Party of Georgia Executive Director Rebecca DeHart denied the accusations Sunday morning, calling the claims “100 percent false.” She says the Democratic Party of Georgia was not notified about the incident and found out only after the statement was released by the Secretary of State’s office.
“This is yet another example of abuse of power by an unethical Secretary of State. To be very clear, Brian Kemp’s scurrilous claims are 100 percent false, and this so-called investigation was unknown to the Democratic Party of Georgia until a campaign operative in Kemp’s official office released a statement this morning. This political stunt from Kemp just days before the election is yet another example of why he cannot be trusted and should not be overseeing an election in which he is also a candidate for governor,” DeHart said.
In a statement released later in the day, DeHart questioned Kemp’s record on cyber security.
“As Kemp aims to deflect blame for his failures, the questions everyone must be asking is: Why was the system vulnerable in the first place? Why has Brian Kemp still not taken basic steps to secure Georgians’ personal information,” she asked.
The accusations from Kemp’s office come the same day President Donald Trump is coming to Georgia for a rally in Macon where he is expected to campaign for Kemp.
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