Public Wise Launches Election Threat Index, Identifies Over 100 Election Deniers Serving in Public Office in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania kickstarts the second phase of the Election Threat Index, with plans to later expand to Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, and Wisconsin throughout 2024.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Joshua Stewart, jstewart@bluestate.co
Laylah Wilson, lwilson@bluestate.co

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Public Wise, a voting rights organization that works to secure a government that reflects the will and protects the rights of the people, launched today the second phase of the Election Threat Index, an online, free public tool identifying and examining the impact of election deniers serving in state and local offices working on election administration. 

The second phase of the tool, which tracks how local and state officials are spreading election disinformation, participating in anti-democratic legislation, and instituting voter suppression policies at the state and local level in Pennsylvania, comes ahead of the 2024 Pennsylvania Primary Election. 34.3% of Pennsylvania constituents are represented by election deniers in the state legislature and there are 105 total individuals, including state representatives, state senators, county board of supervisors, and sheriffs who are identified in the tool.

“The state and local level races that receive the least amount of attention are often the most important when it comes to protecting voting rights and election security. Election deniers struggle to win competitive seats in Congress, so they’re exploiting less competitive races at the state and local level,” said Christina Baal-Owens, executive director of Public Wise. “Our democracy doesn’t begin or end in Congress or the White House; its fate will be determined at the local level by our county commissions, state legislators, and sheriffs. The Election Threat Index is designed to identify election deniers who hold state and local public office and spotlight the impact that these election deniers have on our right to vote and the future of our democracy. To fully eradicate election denialism once and for all, we must pay close attention to these state and local offices.”

The Election Threat Index is designed to identify local and state-level officials, examine how their actions in office impact democracy, and work with grassroots partners to hold these individuals accountable, combat their attempts at voter suppression, and elect pro-democracy candidates. The Election Threat Index was built using a variety of data sources, including Ballotpedia, Voting Rights Lab, and Legiscan. The tool is designed to be used by voters, grassroots groups, advocacy organizations, and reporters to identify how local and state-level elected and appointed officials contribute to election denialism, voter suppression, and anti-democratic behavior. 

Pennsylvania Election Threat Index Highlights: 

• There are 105 total individuals, including state representatives, state senators, county board of supervisors, and sheriffs.
• 34.3% of Pennsylvania constituents are represented by election deniers in the state legislature
• 37.14% are in favor of anti-democratic legislation in Pennsylvania. 
• 36.2% of election deniers in Pennsylvania are in favor of legislation to limit voting access (Abolishing or limiting absentee & early voting /limiting drop-box locations).
• 26.7% of election deniers in Pennsylvania are in favor of legislation to change how votes are counted (restricted the period during which absentee votes can be counted/ ban the use of voting machines).
• 20% of election deniers in Pennsylvania are in favor of legislation to change the control of election results (e.g. Someone delays the state’s certification or has the power to refuse to certify the results, HCR2033).

Public Wise, the founder of The Insurrection Index, an online database identifying all individuals and organizations in a position of public trust who participated, planned, or promoted January 6th, is launching The Election Threat Index to adapt to the new phase of the election denialism movement. January 6th was just one element of a decades-long effort to undermine our democracy and election denialism is now mainstream in the American political system. Election deniers are running for office at the local and state level, impacting voting suppression, election certification, and vote counting. 

The Election Threat Index can be accessed here.

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About Public Wise

Persistent and unyielding in our commitment to a just multiracial democracy, Public Wise fights to secure a government that reflects the will and protects the rights of the people. We accomplish this through education, research, organizing, funding, and partnerships that support more voting and more equitable representation.