WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar took to the Senate floor to make the case for her bipartisan amendment with Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) to safeguard U.S. election infrastructure from foreign interference. The Klobuchar-Graham amendment would help states block cyber-attacks, secure voter registration logs and voter data, upgrade election auditing procedures, and create secure and useful information sharing about threats.

“In order to safeguard future elections, state and local officials must have the tools and resources they need to prevent hacks and safeguard election infrastructure from foreign interference. And they need those resources now,” Klobuchar said. “Time is of the essence if we want to improve election cybersecurity ahead of 2018 and 2020. If we do not act now, we leave state election officials – the people on the front lines of our democratic process – without the resources they need to combat cyberattacks. That isn’t just wrong. It is unconscionable.”

Klobuchar continued, “I strongly urge my colleagues to support this amendment. Waiting until next year will be too late.”

Today, Representatives Mark Meadows (R-NC) and Jim Langevin (D-RI) introduced similar legislation in the House.

As Ranking Member of the Senate Rules Committee with oversight jurisdiction over federal elections, Klobuchar has introduced legislation to improve the security of U.S. election systems and make commonsense improvements to election administration. She and Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO) introduced the bipartisan Stop Foreign Donations Affecting Our Elections Act to strengthen disclosure by requiring federal campaigns to use existing credit card verification protocols to help verify that online credit card donations come from U.S. sources. Klobuchar has also introduced the Helping State and Local Governments Prevent Cyber Attacks Act to help combat foreign interference by providing state and local governments with the information and resources they need to keep our elections secure and improve voter confidence.

In June, Klobuchar led Senate Rules Committee Democrats in a call for hearings and briefings on foreign attempts to hack into U.S. election systems and improving cyber security. Klobuchar also led a group of 26 senators in calling for a full account of the Election Assistance Commission’s (EAC) efforts to address Russian cybersecurity threats. In early January, Klobuchar introduced legislation with four other senators to create an independent, nonpartisan commission to comprehensively investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election.

For a broadcast-quality video excerpt of Klobuchar’s remarks, click here.

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