In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Peggy McGaugh. She’s the State Representative for the 7th District, which includes Carroll, Linn, Livingston, and part of Ray counties. Before being elected to the House, she served for 33 years in the Carroll County Clerk’s Office. 

They spoke about McGaugh’s experience, the benefits of state legislators coming from election administration backgrounds, and how clerks and state legislators can better work together.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with some new election administrators in the state of Missouri – all of whom have been in the job less than four years, and are now preparing for their first presidential election. 

They spoke about Rachel Lightfoot in Polk County, Heather Hall, the Republican Director of the Election Board in Clay County, and Adrienne Lee in Vernon County. They each spoke about how the job has been doing so far, some of the challenges they’ve faced and what they are looking forward to in November.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Gideon Cohn-Postar. He’s the Legislative Director from Issue One, an organization that advocates for cross partisan political reform at the Congressional level – on issues such as social media reform, protecting the safety of election officials and consistent federal funding for elections throughout the country.

They spoke a little about the current status of congressional funding for elections, as well as how projects, like “Faces of Democracy,” can help personalize these issues for members of Congress. 

To learn more about and read previous “Faces of Democracy articles,” visit https://issueone.org/projects/facesofdemocracy/.

Matt Masterson (DHS, EAC) joins Brianna and Eric for a conversation about common data formats, CISA's work to build relationships with state and local election officials, and plans for his new role at Stanford Internet Observatory.

Rochester Hills, MI Clerk Tina Barton joins Brianna and Eric for a conversation about election reforms in Michigan, managing change, and the 2020 election.

Harris County, TX Clerk Taneshia Hudspeth joins Brianna and Eric for a conversation about Harris County's move to a voter center model and the importance of prioritizing buy-in from voters, policy makers, and the community.

U.S. Election Assistance Commission Chairman Ben Hovland joins Brianna and Eric for a conversation about the EAC's role in working with local election administrators, the evolution of the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines, and elections funding.

Scotland County, MO County Clerk Batina Dodge joins Brianna and Eric for a conversation about the realities of administering elections in smaller counties and how to get more involved in the elections world. 

Tammy Patrick joins Brianna and Eric for a conversation about working with the USPS, communicating with voters, and troubleshooting election mail.

Noah Praetz joins Brianna and Eric for a conversation about election security, transparency, and communication.

Local election administrators Brianna Lennon (Boone County, MO) and Eric Fey (St. Louis County, MO) introduce High Turnout Wide Margins, explain how they got into elections, and what to expect in future episodes.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Mindy Moretti, the editor-in-chief of electionline, a news source and aggregator for local election administrators that sends out a daily newsletter on all things election news.

They spoke about how electionline has evolved over time, what it takes for Moretti to curate it each morning, and a very special partnership that’s coming soon.

You can learn more about electionline and sign up for the daily newsletter at https://electionline.org/

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Scott McDonell in Dade County, Wisconsin. After a number of threats and attempted break-ins, McDonell decided that election officials needed a safer and larger space for election processes. So, after traveling around the country to look at other election offices, McDonell chose the new space at an unexpected location- a local brewery. They spoke about how a County Clerk embarks on a project of this size, keeping election workers safe, and maintaining trust with other clerks across the state.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Tommy Gong from Contra Costa County, California. They spoke about Tommy’s long history working in California elections, about his work with Bay Area Votes – and how they’re trying to educate and connect with voters – and a little about his unique connection to Bruce Lee.

https://www.facebook.com/BayAreaVotes/

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Fred DeCaro III, one of the two elected Registrars of Voters in Greenwich, Connecticut.

They spoke about the unique nature of Connecticut’s election administration, some of the challenges of being a part-time local election administrator, and about what all election administrators could do to rebuild citizen’s trust in the electoral system.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Heider Garcia in Dallas County, Texas. Garcia has had a couple of high-profile years – first, being highlighted on “This American Life” for the inclusive and in-depth way he engaged with people who were skeptical of or had questions about the elections process.

Then, after a close result in Tarrant County in 2020, Garcia became the target of accusations of voter fraud, as well as serious threats and racist attacks – including the release of his personal address on social media.

You can read Garcia’s full testimony from 2022’s “Protecting Our Democracy’s Frontline Workers” hearing in front of the U.S. Senate’s Committee on the Judiciary  – here.

They spoke about Garcia’s passion for educating voters, about what other election officials can learn from his experiences and what he’s most excited about in his new role in Dallas County, Texas.

Last November, the High Turnout Wide Margins team held a live event looking ahead to 2024’s election cycle.

Hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey spoke - for the first time – with Secretary of State-level election administrators: Gabriel Sterling in Georgia and Trey Grayson in Kentucky. They spoke about some of the things they’ve learned during their time working in elections.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Jamie Shew in Douglas County, Kansas. They spoke about how innovations - like RFID, or Radio Frequency Identification technology, can be used for keeping track of all of the equipment needed to run a good, efficient election.  

In this episode, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey speak with BiaSciLab, a teenage white hat hacker who has been working in the elections cybersecurity space since she was 11 years old. They discuss the role of DEF CON’s Voting Village and ethical hackers in testing and identifying cybersecurity vulnerabilities in the American election system.

To learn more about DEF CON’s Voting Village, visit their YouTube page – here.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Charles Stewart III. He’s the director of the MIT Election Data and Science Lab and the co-director of the Caltech/MIT Voting Technology Project (https://electionlab.mit.edu/).

They spoke about the relationship between academics studying elections and the local election administrators who are conducting them, how academic research can become functional tools for election administrators to use and how academic-election administrator collaboration could impact future elections.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Jeff Mangan. He’s a former Commissioner of Political Practice in Montana, and one of co-chairs of the Montana Election Observation Initiative [MEOI], a Carter Center-supported nonpartisan election observation effort. 

MEOI conducted their first pilot observation during Montana’s June 4th primary in Missoula. You can read the preliminary report – here (https://www.cartercenter.org/resources/pdfs/peace/democracy/u_s_elections/meoi-statement-of-findings-june2024.pdf) 

They spoke about how these domestic election observations came about, how their first pilot went and about how nonpartisan election observation efforts could play a role in the future.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with John Lindback. He’s been involved in elections administration for many years and was the first Executive Director of ERIC, the Electronic Registration Information Center, after its creation in 2012.

They spoke about the creation of ERIC, how the multi-state voter-registration monitoring collaborative functions, as well as some of the challenges that come along with maintaining the integrity of a voter list.

This past August, the High Turnout Wide Margins team headed to Indianapolis for the National Conference of State Legislatures’ Legislative Summit, which brings together lawmakers from all across the country.

Hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey did a live taping at the event where – for the first time – they spoke with state legislators. They spoke about how state legislators and local election administrators can work together to foster trust and confidence in American elections.

In this episode, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey speak to Clinton Jenkins – a third-generation county clerk in Miller County, Missouri. As of the 2020 Census, Miller County has a population of 24,722.

 

They spoke about his family legacy of public service, the many tasks that come with the job, and some of the challenges he has faced in his small, rural jurisdiction.

In this episode, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey speak to Ben Hovland and Carrie Levine. Ben is the current Vice Chair for the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, and Carrie is the Story Editor for Votebeat, a “nonprofit news organization committed to reporting the nuanced truth about elections and voting at a time of crisis in America.”

They spoke about the current state of federal election funding heading into the 2024 Presidential election cycle and about some of the funding challenges that come from the U.S.’s decentralized system of elections. They also spoke about the important role local election administrators play when it comes educating the public and rebuilding trust.

In February, High Turnout Wide Margins was invited to do a live recording at the first in-person meeting of the US Alliance for Election Excellence – a nonpartisan collaborative of election administrators and subject matter experts.

Hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey spoke with two election administrators that night – Jocelyn Benson, the Michigan Secretary of State, and Pam Anderson, who ran for Colorado Secretary of State and has a long history of working in Colorado elections.

In December, host Brianna Lennon went on her first international election observation mission. She traveled to Tunisia in northern Africa to observe their December 17, 2022, Parliamentary election, which comes after a consolidation of power under their current president and a relatively new constitution that he helped craft.

She and co-host Eric Fey spoke with Don Bisson, the head of the Tunisia Election Observation Mission for the Carter Center before the observation took place to learn more about his experiences, as well as more about international observation, in general.

And then Brianna spoke with Justin Roebuck, the County Clerk of Ottawa County, Michigan, after the observation was completed about some of what they both learned throughout the process.

You can read the Carter Center’s Preliminary Report from the Tunisian elections on December 17, 2022, “Historically Low Turnout in Tunisia’s Parliamentary Election Confirms Need for Renewed Dialogue” at https://www.cartercenter.org/news/pr/2022/tunisia-121922.html.

You can read about the Carter Center’s Preliminary report from the Tunisian runoff elections on January 29, 2023, “Post-election Statement: Low Turnout in Tunisia Election Reaffirms Need for Broad-Based Consensus” at https://www.cartercenter.org/news/pr/2023/tunisia-020123.html/.

Back in November, High Turnout Wide Margins hosted a film screening at Ragtag Cinema in Columbia, Missouri. The documentary called ‘No Time to Fail’ follows the work of numerous Rhode Island election administrators during the 2020 Presidential Election as they navigate their day-to-day work, the growing threat of disinformation and mistrust in elections and the global pandemic.

After the screening, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey spoke with one of the film’s protagonists, Rob Rock, the Director of Elections for the state of Rhode Island, about his experiences in elections.

You can learn more about the documentary at https://www.notimetofailfilm.com/

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Kathy Boockvar. She’s the former Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from 2019- 2021 and a member of the Committee for Safe and Secure Elections, which works to protect election officials from physical threats, violence, and intimidation through coordination with law enforcement.

They spoke about some of her own experiences working with law enforcement for protection during her time as Pennsylvania Secretary of state, as well as about how local election officials can start working now to ensure the physical safety of their staff and their office during the 2024 election cycle.

In June, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey, along with Managing Editor Rebecca Smith, traveled to Central and Eastern Europe to learn more about election administration in democracies overseas.

In this episode, our hosts are back in Moldova – a small country nestled between Romania and Ukraine that was a part of the former Soviet Union. They spoke with Mariana Novac and Nicolae Panfil with Promo-LEX, an association that organizes domestic observations of elections at all levels, shares with governmental organizations and citizens about how elections have gone, and shares ways they believe processes could be improved – to restore and build trust in the Moldovan democratic process.

In June, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey, along with Managing Editor Rebecca Smith, traveled to Central and Eastern Europe to learn more about election administration in democracies overseas.

In this episode, our hosts are back in Moldova – a small country nestled between Romania and Ukraine that was a part of the former Soviet Union – speaking with Dr. Doina Bordeianu and Pavel Cabacenco with the Center for Continuous Electoral Training, or CICDE. This is a partner organization of the country’s Central Election Commission that focuses on the continued education of election workers and the education of the next generation of voters in the country.

The High Turnout Wide Margins team recently traveled to Portland, Oregon, for a special workshop on State Associations hosted by the Election Center. While there, we were able to have face-to-face conversations with people working in elections across the country.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Commissioner Tom Hicks, one of the longest serving members of the Election Assistance Commission, or EAC.

They spoke about Tom’s time as a commissioner, how elections can be more accessible for disabled voters, and how the EAC could play a role in developing the election administration workforce.

In this episode, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey speak with Matthew Weil, the executive director of the Democracy Program at the Bipartisan Policy Center.

They spoke about some of the work his team is doing, some ways local election administrators can get more involved in the policy making process, and about some of the challenges American democracy is facing – like Moore v. Harper, a case being heard this week by the US Supreme Court that could have major implications about how elections are administrated and election policy is made.

In June, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey, along with Managing Editor Rebecca Smith, traveled to Central and Eastern Europe to learn more about election administration in democracies overseas.

In this episode, our hosts speak with Angelica Caraman, the current Chairperson of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Moldova – a small country nestled between Romania and Ukraine that was a part of the former Soviet Union. They spoke about how the CEC coordinates elections throughout Moldova, some of the unique challenges the organization faces, and some of the efforts they are currently undertaking to improve trust in elections and fight disinformation.

In this episode, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey speak with Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum in Michigan about how she pushes back against election misinformation, the need for greater voter education, and how she hopes all election officials – regardless of party – can work together to address election-related conspiracy theories.

In this episode, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey speak with Missouri Senator Roy Blunt and reflect on his 26 years in Congress and his previous careers in local election administration ­– as both the County Clerk in Greene County, Missouri, and the Missouri Secretary of State.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Peter Lichtenheld with Hart InterCivic – one of the companies that provides election technology, software, and services to election jurisdictions ­– about the business of election equipment, some of the challenges the industry has faced, and how things have changes for these companies since 2000.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Joanna Francescut in Shasta County, California, and Natalie Adona in Nevada County, California, about how interactions with the public have changed since 2020 and about how the new demands of educating skeptical voters and people wanting to observe the election process can make it hard to get the day-to-day work of local election administration done.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Ryan Jordan and Ryan Williamson at Auburn University about their Trust in Elections study that is looking at how Americans perceive messaging from elections officials – on social media, with “I Voted” stickers, etc. – and about how local election administrators can modify their messages to build and restore trust.

Mesa County, Colorado, has been in the election’s world spotlight since Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters was accused of election tampering in August 2021. Since then, she has been indicted by a Mesa County grand jury on seven felony and three misdemeanor counts of election tampering and misconduct related to the alleged May 2021 security breach.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Mesa County Elections Manager Stephanie Wenholz about what it was like in the Mesa County office during that tumultuous time and how she keeps herself, and her staff, going despite the controversy.

In this episode, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey speak with Eva Guidarini, the manager of state and local government outreach at Facebook. They spoke about how local election officials can use their social media platforms to educate voters and push back against misinformation.

In June, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey, along with Managing Editor Rebecca Smith, traveled to Central and Eastern Europe to learn more about election administration in democracies overseas. In this episode, our hosts take a broad look at democracy in the Republic of Moldova – a small country nestled between Romania and Ukraine that was a part of the former Soviet Union. They speak with Igor Munteanu, the former Moldovan ambassador to the United States and Igor Boțan, the Executive Director of the Association for Participatory Democracy to learn more about the history of this relatively young democracy and explore some of the unique challenges it faces.

The High Turnout Wide Margins team recently traveled to Portland, Oregon, for a special workshop on State Associations hosted by the Election Center. While there, we were able to have face-to-face conversations with people working in elections across the country.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Jackie Beaudry and Melanie Ryska. They’re both local clerks in Michigan and leaders of the Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks.

They spoke about the implementation of some new election law in the state, how their association works alongside the Michigan Association of County Clerks, and how their association is trying to balance the needs of very large and very small municipalities.

In June, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey, along with Managing Editor Rebecca Smith, traveled to Central and Eastern Europe to learn more about election administration in democracies overseas.

In this episode, they speak with Alexander Shlyk, the Special Representative on Elections for Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and the former head of the Elections Department of OSCE ODIHR, or the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe

Tsikhanouskaya is the leader of the leader of the Belarusian democratic movement who many believe truly won the 2020 election against President Alexander Lukashenko.

Shlyk is currently living in exile as one of the 16 people working for Tsikhanouskaya, and he’s working to prepare the legislative and practical framework for democratic elections in Belarus  – which he believes will inevitably happen.

In June, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey, along with Managing Editor Rebecca Smith, traveled to Central and Eastern Europe to learn more about election administration in democracies overseas.

In this episode, they speak with Dr. Irena Hadžiabdić with the Bosnia and Herzegovina Central Election Commission about the state of democratic collaboration in Eastern and Central Europe, as well as some of the challenges like disinformation and harassment of female election officials that Bosnia and Herzegovina is facing.

You can find the election e-portal for citizens living abroad that Dr. Hadžiabdić mentions at https://eizbori.izbori.ba/.

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Judd Choate, the Director of the Division of Elections for the Colorado Department of State about the voter-centric election system in the state – a nearly all vote-by-mail model.

In 2013, Colorado passed “The Voter Access and Modernized Elections Act of 2013,” which requires ballots to be mailed to every registered voter for most elections.

In the second of a two-part exploration, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey take a look at resource allocation and how that differs between cities of different sizes. In this episode, they speak with Dean Logan, the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk of Los Angeles about funding and what it is like to oversee the “most complex county election jurisdiction in the Country” with 5.2 million registered voters.

High Turnout, Wide Margins Credits: Managing Editor: Rebecca Smith Managing Producer: Aaron Hay Associate Producers: Katie Quinn, Abigail Ruhman

In the first of a two-part exploration, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey take a look at resource allocation and how that differs between cities of different sizes. In this episode, they speak with Kandrise Mosby and Joe Lewis with the East St. Louis Board of Elections about funding and how elections that feel like family reunions can overcome challenges and obstacles.

In this episode, hosts Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey speak with Whitney May, the Director of Government Services at the Center for Tech and Civic Life about the recently announced US Alliance for Election Excellence. This is a “nonpartisan collaborative of election officials, technologists, designers and other experts, working across all 50 states to improve the performance of systems serving 240 million voters.”

You can learn more about the US Alliance for Election Excellence by listening to the TED Talk, “An election redesign to restore trust in US democracy” given by Tiana Epps-Johnson, the founder and executive director of the Center for Tech and Civic Life

https://www.ted.com/talks/tiana_epps_johnson_an_election_redesign_to_restore_trust_in_us_democracy

In the second of their two-part exploration on crisis management in local elections, Brianna Lennon and Eric Fey spoke with Stephen Richer from Maricopa County, Arizona. Maricopa County was the national center of attention following the 2020 election for its multiple recounts.