But will it keep the Russians out?
Guam Delegate to the U.S. Congress Madeleine Z. Bordallo has announced that the U.S. Election Assistance Commission will make available $600,000 in federal financial assistance to the Guam Election Commission. The federal funds will be provided to the Guam Election Commission to improve the administration of elections, enhance technology, and provide election security improvements.
These federal funds are provided through Congressional authorization in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018. They will be distributed to states and territories to support programs established by the Help America Vote Act. Following approval of an application from the Guam Election Commission, funds may be used to support the upcoming 2018 election, including for:
Purchasing or leasing voting systems;
Designing, implementing, or conducting post-election audit systems;
Modernizing and better securing election-related computer systems, including voter registration systems;
Upgrading election-related computer systems to address cyber vulnerabilities identified through U.S. Department of Homeland Security or similar scans or assessments of existing election systems;
Purchasing cyber security training for state and local election officials;
And, implementing established cybersecurity best practices for election systems and other activities that will improve the security of elections for federal office.
“Elections are the foundation our representative democracy," Bordallo said. "I am pleased that the Guam Election Commission will receive $600,000 from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to improve the election process on Guam. Voters must have full confidence in the integrity of their ballot, and these funds will ensure the security of our local elections. I am confident the Guam Election Commission will prioritize this funding opportunity in order to further strengthen and secure our election system on Guam.”