• Home
  • Opinion
  • Quizzes
  • Redistricting
  • Sections
  • About Us
  • Voting
  • Events
  • Civic Ed
  • Campaign Finance
  • Directory
  • Election Dissection
  • Fact Check
  • Glossary
  • Independent Voter News
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Subscriptions
  • Log in
Leveraging Our Differences
  • news & opinion
    • Big Picture
      • Civic Ed
      • Ethics
      • Leadership
      • Leveraging big ideas
      • Media
    • Business & Democracy
      • Corporate Responsibility
      • Impact Investment
      • Innovation & Incubation
      • Small Businesses
      • Stakeholder Capitalism
    • Elections
      • Campaign Finance
      • Independent Voter News
      • Redistricting
      • Voting
    • Government
      • Balance of Power
      • Budgeting
      • Congress
      • Judicial
      • Local
      • State
      • White House
    • Justice
      • Accountability
      • Anti-corruption
      • Budget equity
    • Columns
      • Beyond Right and Left
      • Civic Soul
      • Congress at a Crossroads
      • Cross-Partisan Visions
      • Democracy Pie
      • Our Freedom
  • Pop Culture
      • American Heroes
      • Ask Joe
      • Celebrity News
      • Comedy
      • Dance, Theatre & Film
      • Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging
      • Faithful & Mindful Living
      • Music, Poetry & Arts
      • Sports
      • Technology
      • Your Take
      • American Heroes
      • Ask Joe
      • Celebrity News
      • Comedy
      • Dance, Theatre & Film
      • Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging
      • Faithful & Mindful Living
      • Music, Poetry & Arts
      • Sports
      • Technology
      • Your Take
  • events
  • About
      • Mission
      • Advisory Board
      • Staff
      • Contact Us
Sign Up
  1. Home>
  2. Voting>
  3. election security>

Kemp's claim that Democrats hacked state election site not true, report finds

Our Staff
March 04, 2020
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp

Gov. Brian Kemp charged late in the 2018 campaign, when he was still secretary of state, that Democrats had hacked into Georgia's election websites. An investigation unveiled this week found that the charge was not true.

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

A sensational charge levied by Republican Brian Kemp during his savage but successful campaign for governor of Georgia against Democrat Stacey Abrams has not yielded any criminal charges.

Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, also a Republican, issued a three-page memo on Monday stating he did not find evidence to back Kemp's claim two years ago that Democrats had hacked into the computer system of the secretary of state, the position Kemp held when he ran.

He defeated Abrams by 54,000 votes out of 3.9 million cast, a margin of less than 1.5 points, and Democrats said Kemp's claim was one of his many ploys to gain political advantage — along with what they view as a multifaceted campaign of voter suppression


The claim originated from a report made by Georgia businessman Richard Wright that several election-related pages on the secretary of state's website were vulnerable to an enemy cyber invasion. Those claims were passed to a volunteer with the state Democratic Party and ended up in Kemp's office, which prompted his allegation.

But investigations of Wright's claims found them not to be accurate. While the web pages had been vulnerable, such problems had been fixed.

Did anyone actually hack the site? Prior intrusions into the site were actually cybersecurity tests conducted by the federal Department of Homeland Security, which had been contracted by Kemp's office to do the work.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

From Your Site Articles
  • Klobuchar picks Georgia to do what rivals haven't: Lean in to ... ›
  • Hackers got perfect score in attempt to hack voting machines - The ... ›
  • The 13 states where election security matters most - The Fulcrum ›
Related Articles Around the Web
  • Georgia governor race: last-minute hacking allegations, explained ... ›
  • Trump, Election Hacking, and the Georgia Governor's Race | The ... ›
  • Georgia Closes Probe Into Kemp's Baseless 2018 Claim Of Dem ... ›
election security

Want to write
for The Fulcrum?

If you have something to say about ways to protect or repair our American democracy, we want to hear from you.

Submit
Get some Leverage Sign up for The Fulcrum Newsletter
Confirm that you are not a bot.
×
Follow
Contributors

Why does a man wearing earrings drive Christians crazy?

Paul Swearengin

DeSantis' sitcom world

Lawrence Goldstone

Hypocrisy of pro-lifers being anti-LGBTQIA

Steve Corbin

A dangerous loss of trust

William Natbony

Shifting the narrative on homelessness in America

David L. Nevins

Reform in 2023: Leadership worth celebrating

Layla Zaidane
latest News

Ask Joe: Two sides of a story

Joe Weston
02 June

Podcast: Saving democracy from & with AI

Our Staff
01 June

Default? Financial crisis? Political theater?

David Butler
01 June

Three practical presidential pledges to promote national prosperity

James-Christian B. Blockwood
31 May

Meet the Faces of Democracy: Justin Roebuck

Mia Minkin
31 May

Podcast: Why Is Congressional Oversight Important, and How Can It Be Done Well? (with Elise Bean)

Kevin R. Kosar
Elise J. Bean
30 May
Videos

Video: Why music? Why now?

David L. Nevins

Video: Honoring Memorial Day

Our Staff

Video: #ListenFirst Friday YOUnify & CPL

Our Staff

Video: What is the toll of racial violence on Black lives?

Our Staff

Video: What's next for migrants seeking asylum after Title 42

Our Staff

Video: An inside look at the campaign to repeal Pennsylvania’s closed primaries

Our Staff
Podcasts

Podcast: Saving democracy from & with AI

Our Staff
01 June

Podcast: AI revolution: Disaster or great leap forward?

Our Staff
25 May

Podcast: Can we fix America's financial crises?

Our Staff
23 May

Podcast: Gen Z's fight for democracy

Our Staff
22 May
Recommended
Why does a man wearing earrings drive Christians crazy?

Why does a man wearing earrings drive Christians crazy?

Diversity Inclusion and Belonging
DeSantis' sitcom world

DeSantis' sitcom world

Opinion
Ask Joe: Two sides of a story

Ask Joe: Two sides of a story

Pop Culture
Video: Why music? Why now?

Video: Why music? Why now?

Big Picture
Podcast: Saving democracy from & with AI

Podcast: Saving democracy from & with AI

Technology
Default? Financial crisis? Political theater?

Default? Financial crisis? Political theater?

Budgeting