California’s Secretary of State Alex Padilla has been a champion for voting rights. He was elected in 2014, defeating his Republican opponent on the promise of getting more Californians registered and enfranchised into the Democratic process. Since that time, Padilla has worked to expand voter registration and voting options for constituents. He has also found himself at the forefront of the growing national concerns in voting cyber security.
While our election security has never been lower, Padilla remains optimistic because, at the very least, we are having the conversation now, something that has been on the back burner for some time. Padilla explains that no one asked him about cyber security and elections back in 2014, but after the 2016 elections, “the job of a secretary of state and local election administrators across the country has fundamentally changed.” He says now more and more officials are “versed in issues of election security and cyber defense,” as is the public—and that is a cocktail that makes for change.
Secretary of State Padilla spoke with Daily Kos for our Making Progress series at Netroots Nation in Philadelphia this year.
What do you think is the most important thing we can do to make elections more accessible to everyone, including citizens who are disabled, rural, first-time voters, and/or extremely busy working multiple jobs and raising their families?
So the good news is that the pro-voter reforms to make our elections more secure and more accessible are already out there and being implemented in a number of states and local jurisdictions. You can't vote unless you register first, so whether it's online registration, same-day registration, automatic voter registration, or even preregistration of 16 and 17 year olds, we're seeing more and more people added to the voter rolls each and every day. And in terms of being able to cast your ballot, again, while maintaining the integrity of our elections, you can make it easier for people by providing more choices; more options of when, where and how to vote; in-person early voting, more vote by mail, accessible voting both in person and by mail as well. And there's a movement afoot to give voters more options of not just more days to be able to cast their ballot, but not being limited to the polling location closest to where you live, but the flexibility of voting at any location in the county convenient to you. Well I think for a lot of organizers and mobilizers out there, we already know that we gotta be bold, to be bold.
Given your experience advocating for voting reforms in your state, what advice do you wish you had been given that election officials or other reform advocates could use in their own efforts to improve voting?
A lotta the times we're met with resistance, though, from these bold pro-voter ideas by folks who say, well, administratively it's gonna be difficult, logistically it's a challenge, or an existing state law says this. There's a lotta resistance sometimes from folks who have to implement these good ideas, by saying it's gonna add to our workload, but we can be bold, because being secure and accessible in our elections and making our elections as accessible as possible are not mutually exclusive. They can go hand in hand, they do go hand in hand, and we're showing the way in California.
When you became California's Secretary of State, what was the most suprising thing you learned about voting?
When I was campaigning for secretary of state in 2014, the bulk of our campaign and the questions I got was what can we do to get more people to register to vote? What can we do to get more people actually casting their ballots? We were focusing on participation and turnout. Almost nobody asked me questions about election security and cyber threats, and then 2016 happened. And I think the job of a secretary of state and local election administrators across the country has fundamentally changed since then. And so we still dedicate ourselves to increasing registration, we still dedicate ourselves to improving participation, but we are equally versed in issues of election security and cyber defense.
Bonus Question: What advice would you give your teenage self?
Do your homework. If I could give my teenage self advice, it's, yes, don't just pay attention to what's being taught in class, but to think more and utilize mentors and resources better. It's the only way I survived college, by working with partners and seeking out help, and I've carried that throughout my professional career. You may get elected to an office, but that doesn't mean you know it all. You should be learning from others, especially those who came before you, as a foundation to bring your new ideas to.
Want to catch more Making Progress interviews? Check out our recent interviews with Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza and Pennsylvania State Rep. Summer Lee. You can see Iowa’s J.D. Scholten talk about going up against racist Steve King, and you can check out interviews with four people running for the Democratic presidential nomination at Daily Kos’ YouTube channel. We’ll release a new and exclusive interview with a progressive organizer, leader, or politician every Tuesday.