A Review of Post Election Audits in Swing States
Susan Greenhalgh
Voting Village @ DEF CON 33 · Day 1 · Voting Village
In this critical talk at the Voting Village conference, Susan Greenhalgh, Senior Advisor for Election Security at Free Speech for People, presented a detailed review of post-election audits conducted in swing states following the 2020 presidential election. The presentation, based on a paper co-authored with David Jefferson titled "Don't Just Trust, Always Verify," delves into the efficacy and transparency of these audits, particularly focusing on whether they genuinely provide evidence-based assurance of election results. Given the inherent vulnerabilities of computerized election systems, post-election audits are often touted as the primary mechanism for ensuring accuracy and resilience. However, Greenhalgh's research reveals significant shortcomings in how these audits are implemented in practice.
AI review
Greenhalgh delivers a competent, well-organized policy/audit-review talk that correctly classifies this as a threat-to-process lane rather than a technical research drop. The content is substantive for its lane — state-by-state audit deficiencies, RLA compliance gaps, BMD barcode problems — and the paper it's based on ('Don't Just Trust, Always Verify' with David Jefferson) gives it real grounding. Nothing here will surprise anyone who follows election security closely, but it's a solid reference session for the Voting Village audience.