GROVE CITY, Pa. - Whether it's the voting machines themselves or even just getting registered to vote, Grove City College President Paul McNulty wants that process to be much more secure.

“Pennsylvania's election architecture is at risk,” McNulty told Erie News Now this week.

McNulty, a former U.S. Deputy Attorney General under President George W. Bush, is co-chairing the Blue Ribbon Commission on Pennsylvania's Election Security. By his side, former U.S. Attorney David Hickton, who now heads a PittCyber, a cybersecurity and cyber law program at the University of Pittsburgh.

The two will lead a year-long investigation, researching the threats and vulnerabilities surrounding the commonwealth's voting process.

“This issue has come to light in such a way that it's a credible concern and one that really needs to be addressed,” McNulty said.

The commission is expected to take its findings to lawmakers in 2019.
However, in February, the Pennsylvania Dept. of State required new voting machines to have some sort of paper ballot verification.

“It's probably a six-month process from signing on the dotted line for a system to getting it shipped in here to getting it checked and tested to getting it out,” Erie County Clerk Doug Smith told Erie News Now on March 27.

The commission and its advisors are distinguished, comprised of former Pennsylvania governor Dick Thornburgh, former State Sen. Jane Earll, who represented Erie County from 1997 to 2013.

The commission will begin touring Pennsylvania, listening to voters' concerns, later this year.

It's unclear if the commission will meet here in Erie, McNulty said.

You can visit www.cyber.pitt.edu to share your thoughts