DES MOINES – Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate was reappointed to a national committee that works to improve communications between local, state and federal agencies regarding election cyber threats, and to assist with risk mitigation. Secretary Pate was a charter member of the Election Infrastructure Subsector Government Coordinating Council (EIS-GCC) when it was created in October 2017. He was reappointed to the committee in July.

The EIS-GCC is the first group of its kind to help important stakeholders share vital information regarding the elections process.

"Cybersecurity is race without a finish line," Secretary Pate said. "We must remain constantly vigilant to protect the integrity of our elections. It requires a team effort and the EIS-GCC is fully committed to the goal of clean and fair elections across the country."

The EIS-GCC meets regularly with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to establish communication protocols for threat sharing and notification, work with DHS to fine-tune resources and tools available for state and local governments, and discuss and review cyber best practices includes members from the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), the National Association of State Election Directors, the Election Center, the International Association of Government Officials, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC).

A photo of the National Association of Secretaries of State’s Executive Committee is available for your use at this link. Secretary Pate is in the front row, second from the right.

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