Russian operatives apparently did not hack the midterm elections

The call is coming from inside the house.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and security experts say that Russian operatives did not significantly meddle in or hack the US midterm elections, according to the Wall Street Journal. 

“At this time, we have no indication of compromise to our nation’s election infrastructure that would prevent voting, change vote counts or distrust the ability to tally votes,” DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen reportedly said at a press conference.

In 2016, Russian hackers waged a multi-front war to sow discord in America and disparage Hillary Clinton: they hacked Democrat campaign emails, used social media to spread disinformation and inflame the public, and even attacked the election infrastructure of 20 states, successfully penetrating the Illinois voter roll.

Less than one day before the midterms, Facebook removed about 100 false Internet Research Agency-backed Instagram and Facebook accounts, based on a tip from the FBI. Facebook had already revealed many more false accounts in its purge, following revelations about the IRA, after the 2016 election.

Experts told the Journal that the ways that Russia may have attempted to interfere in the midterms could still emerge. And that at this point, it’s difficult to determine why the manipulation appears to have abated. The midterms may have been more difficult to influence, since the races and messaging were more granular, and diffused. Or Russia may have backed off after the U.S. showed it was on to its plans.

Still another explanation, the experts said, is that Putin’s work here is done. Who needs hackers and trolls when the President is undermining faith in the democratic system himself?

As Florida undertakes an election recount, Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams sues the state to recount rejected ballots, and some close races, initially called for Republicans, may be flipping blue (notably the Arizona Senate seat), Trump has been lashing out on Twitter. 

He has been calling the elections “infected” and is accusing democrats of election “theft.” According to election officials, there is no indication that any of these claims are true.

Trump’s message of internal malfeasance is spreading. Several of the top posts on the Trump fan  Reddit thread, r/Trump, are propagating his false claims, using the hashtag #StopTheSteal. A scan of the term “election theft” shows that Twitter and Facebook are full of supporters backing up Trump’s claims. There has even been a demonstration in Florida against “election theft” in Broward County —a place that Trump himself tweeted about.

Meanwhile, Trump’s baseless claims are distracting from and undermining actual voter suppression that Stacey Abrams is fighting in Georgia and incompetence elsewhere. This once again mirrors the tactics of the Russians: false news and inflamed rhetoric twists actual issues, causes confusion, and leads to more partisan fighting.

Even if Putin may have his number one (if unwitting) operative for sowing discord sitting in the White House, the Russians’ work here is likely not done. As election infrastructure remains woefully underfunded, and election integrity continues to come into question, American election officials plan to remain vigilant for more manipulation as the national 2020 race comes into view.

But in the meantime, the hackers can kick back while Trump does their work for them.