What’s This All About?
Nevada lawmakers are considering Assembly Bill 534, a “cleanup bill” from the Secretary of State, but buried in its 62 pages are concerning changes to our election system. The biggest red flag? It would extend electronic voting to people detained in county and city jails.
Right now, electronic voting is only available for military and overseas voters. Section 2 of this bill would change that by allowing inmates in local jails to use the same electronic transmission system to register to vote and cast ballots.
What’s In The Bill Exactly?
Looking at the actual text of AB534, Section 2 states:
“The Secretary of State shall allow during the period of early voting and on election day: (a) An elector who is detained in a county or city jail to use the system of approved electronic transmission established… to register to vote in every election where the system of approved electronic transmission is available.”
The bill continues that a “registered voter who is in the custody of a county or city jail” can use this system “to apply for and cast a ballot in every election.” This opens up the same technology previously reserved for military personnel serving overseas to thousands of detainees across Nevada’s jails.
Notably, Section 51 changes current law by requiring that ballots “Must be counted using a mechanical counting system.” This mandates counties use specific systems rather than having flexibility in how they count votes.
Why Should Conservatives Care?
This matters for several key conservative principles:
Federal cybersecurity experts have already assessed this type of voting as high-risk. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), along with the Election Assistance Commission, FBI, and National Institute of Standards and Technology concluded:
“while there are effective risk management controls to enable electronic ballot delivery and marking, we recommend paper ballot return as electronic ballot return technologies are high-risk even with controls in place.”
Limited government advocates should question why Nevada would expand a system that federal experts consider problematic. This creates new security risks without clear benefits.
The bill also moves more authority from locally elected County Clerks to the Secretary of State, reducing local control and centralizing power.
What Else Does The Bill Do?
This isn’t the only concerning change in AB534:
It would move candidate filing deadlines earlier, from March to February, extending the campaign season by a month. This lengthens the already exhausting election cycle, increases costs for candidates, and gives political parties less time to recruit candidates.
The bill would also change “risk-limiting audits” to “election security audits” – just changing words without improving processes.
Most troubling, it would require that ballots MUST be counted using mechanical voting systems. Counties would lose options for alternative counting methods.
What Happens Next?
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday, April 10, 2025, at 3:30 p.m. before the Assembly Committee on Legislative Operations and Elections. You can attend in person in Carson City or Las Vegas, or provide comments by phone.
If you’re concerned, here’s what you can do:
- Contact committee members with your opinion
- Submit written comments through the legislature’s website
- Testify at the hearing in person or by phone
- Share information with others who care about election integrity
The Bottom Line
Conservative principles of limited government, local control, and election security are all threatened by parts of this bill. While technology has its place, expanding electronic voting against security recommendations represents unnecessary risk.
This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
