FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, July 20, 2017 
Contact: Kristen Schulze Muszynski 
207-626-8404/ 207-441-7638  

As member of elections commission,  Secretary Dunlap committed to voters’ rights

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap joined the 11 other members of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity for the commission’s first meeting in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, July 19.  

Following welcoming remarks from President Donald Trump, members discussed the topics they may consider as they pursue the commission’s stated mission of providing an advisory report to the president. The report is intended to: identify the election practices that enhance public confidence in the voting process, as well as those that undermine that confidence; and identify vulnerabilities in voting systems and practices that could lead to improper registration and fraudulent voting.  

“Our clear goal should be to increase voter confidence in our democratic system of citizen self-governance,” said Dunlap. “This discussion should include not only the benefits of added security in election law and technology, but we should also maintain a weather eye on laws and processes that might pose barriers to citizens trying to exercise their lawful right to vote.

“The discussion Wednesday, which focused on vulnerabilities and data relevant to gaps in our systems, I believe will shift to how to make our processes better, and I am committed to putting the rights of the American voter first and foremost,” said Dunlap. “Elections belong to voters --not to elections officials." 

Vice President Michael Pence is chairman of the commission and the members hail from around the nation, with considerable and varied experience in elections administration.  The commission was formed via presidential executive order on May 11, 2017 and expects to hold four or more additional public meetings at locations across the country. The next meeting is tentatively slated for September. 

More information about the commission, including a listing of members, recording of the initial meeting and relevant documents, is available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2017/07/13/presidential-advisory-commission-election-integrity . To submit comments to the commission, email ElectionIntegrityStaff@ovp.eop.gov. Please note that the comments will be publicly available, including the name and email address provided.