How Arizona officials are training to keep the 2024 election secure

The outcome of Arizona’s election may determine who ultimately controls the White House and the U.S. Senate.

Because of this responsibility and national spotlight, Republican and Democratic colleagues in state, local and federal government and I are committed — more than ever before — to administering free, fair and secure elections.

This isn’t just lip service.

For months now, we’ve been diligently planning and preparing for what is to come next year.

Arizona is preparing for the 2024 election

That’s why representatives from all 15 Arizona counties participated this past weekend in a 2024 Election Security Preparedness Tabletop Exercise (TTX) focused on artificial intelligence.

They included election officials, emergency management staff, law enforcement, county supervisors, communication professionals, IT directors and technology firms.

TTXs (also known as scenario planning exercises) are a common practice in national security and military planning. But until now, they have been done quietly and behind closed doors.

I want to give you insight about what we did, because every voter in Arizona must understand the level of preparation underway to ensure the 2024 election is the safest, most transparent and accurate election we’ve ever had.

We're planning for various scenarios

TTXs help participants practice coordinated responses to various simulated crises. They are an increasingly important tool as the threats against our elections — and election officials — evolve.

Their value has increased as election officials work to strengthen our election infrastructure against cyber and physical security threats, domestic and foreign bad actors — and for the first time, threats associated with AI.

Our TTX exposed election administrators to realistic scenarios and challenges that may occur during the election.

Think elections are unfair? Here's how we change that

We executed exercises related to how mis-, dis- and malinformation remain primary threats to our security infrastructure. We learned how deepfake technology heightens the potential for chaos.

In fact, we’ve already seen AI’s ability to impact election security through increased phishing attempts, dissemination of mis- and disinformation, and increasingly sophisticated deep fakes of candidates and election officials.

According to MIT’s Ron Rivest, “Generative AI is really an amplifier — an adversary [that] can produce more high-quality output with less effort than before.”

New officials must understand AI

As the chief election administrator, I know it’s critical to improve AI literacy in the elections community.

While AI has earned a mixed reputation, it’s important that we help identify the solutions that work best in Arizona — which could include implementation of CAPTCHA verification tests and individualized authentication words for audio communications — and prepare ourselves for any negative impacts of the technology.

Arizona’s importance in the 2024 election brings not only a heightened threat environment, but also increased scrutiny. And while we’re no strangers to the spotlight, this reality has contributed to significant election official turnover.

Twelve of our 15 counties have lost a top election official since the 2020 election.

Voters should know that their election officials, despite many being new to the job, are receiving some of the most intensive and cutting edge training anywhere in the country.

Security is neither free nor partisan

Federal and state resources are available to help election officials regardless of their tenure.

This includes physical security assessments from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, cybersecurity readiness tools from Arizona’s Department of Homeland Security and resources from outside partners like the Brennan Center for Justice.

We’ve also committed to executing on two more TTXs in 2024 that are focused on election security.

However, the hard truth is that election security is not free. Sufficient and ongoing funding is critical for achieving safe and secure elections.

The other hard truth? Election administration is not a partisan issue.

That is why our planning scenarios bring together Republicans, Democrats and others.

They are just one part of a long mission to protect our democracy.

Americans expect, and deserve, nothing but our absolute best as they go to the polls next year.

Adrian Fontes, a Democrat, is Arizona secretary of state. On Twitter, formerly X: @AZ Secretary.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona is training to keep the 2024 election secure. Here's how