Colorado’s Secretary of State Jena Griswold is in hot water over a voting system password leak. While she calls it an accident, public trust is shattered, and critics are calling for her resignation. Is it time for Griswold to go before she causes more harm to our already fragile election system?

Here we have another doozy: the Denver District Attorney’s office investigating a leak of voting system passwords. Shockingly, someone is actually taking a look at this mess rather than sweeping it under the rug and pretending it didn’t happen. You’d almost think we were living in a world where Democratic misdeeds actually had consequences. But then again, it’s 2024, and pigs still aren’t flying.

Let’s not get our hopes up. If history has taught us anything, it’s that Democratic officials can royally screw up and somehow waltz away with their careers intact. A voting system password leak? Oh, Secretary of State Jena Griswold called it an accident. How quaint. The rest of us call that an existential threat to election security. Yet, no matter how egregious the blunder, Democratic officials have a remarkable talent for surviving without so much as a slap on the wrist. Accountability, it seems, is reserved for everyone else.

Griswold’s excuse parade includes claims that the leak posed no “immediate security threat.” Well, forgive us if we’re not buying that load of horse manure. Try explaining your version of “no threat” to every mama’s-basement-dwelling hacker who just needs a password, a two-liter bottle of Mountain Dew, and a bit of determination to wreak havoc.

Better yet, explain it to a public that already distrusts your system, thanks to years of politicians bungling it. Your job, Griswold, is to instill confidence in the electoral process. So far, you’ve managed to do the opposite. Faith in the institutions of our once-grand Constitutional Republic is hanging by a thread, and incidents like this don’t help.

How do you rebuild trust after a blunder of this magnitude? Will people ever again believe Griswold’s reassurances about election security? Not likely. Once you break that bond with the public, good luck trying to stitch it back together. We need leaders who inspire confidence, not leaders who beg forgiveness after the latest mishap.

The only way to even start restoring faith in Colorado’s electoral system is for Griswold to resign. Her credibility is shot, and her presence at the helm does more harm than good. Kindly step aside, Secretary of State Griswold. The people of Colorado deserve better.

About the author

Scott K. James

A 4th generation Northern Colorado native, Scott K. James is a veteran broadcaster, professional communicator, and principled leader. Widely recognized for his thoughtful, common-sense approach to addressing issues that affect families, businesses, and communities, Scott, his wife, Julie, and son, Jack, call Johnstown, Colorado, home. A former mayor of Johnstown, James is a staunch defender of the Constitution and the rule of law, the free market, and the power of the individual. Scott has delighted in a lifetime of public service and continues that service as a Weld County Commissioner representing District 2.