A cybersecurity firm hired by the Trump administration to examine voting equipment in Puerto Rico faced a wave of backlash after finding no evidence of voter fraud. The firm, Mojave Research, was contracted by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) to analyze a specific voting machine made by Liberty Vote.

Findings and Backlash

Mojave Research found extensive and largely unacceptable weaknesses in the voting machine, but did not find evidence that those weaknesses were actively exploited or that votes were altered. Despite this, allies of President Donald Trump derailed the firm’s work with the government, spreading false claims that the firm was funded by liberal billionaire George Soros.

The firm’s CEO, Jason Wareham, submitted a declaration to the Trump administration to refute the notion that his company was affiliated with Soros. However, the administration abruptly declined to renew the firm’s contract, and Wareham received an email stating that ODNI had issued a “stop-work order” on the contract.

Implications and Reactions

The incident highlights the challenges of conducting election security research in a highly polarized environment. Mojave Research’s findings have not been made public, and the delay in releasing the report has undercut efforts to fix the software flaws in the voting equipment.

The firm’s chief technology officer, Manbir Gulati, expressed concerns about the motivations of some Trump allies, stating that they were more interested in finding evidence of voter fraud than in addressing the actual security vulnerabilities in the voting system.

Original reporting: KTVZ (Central Oregon) — read the source article.