Task Force on Elections

Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters, Nevada County, California

Natalie Adona is the Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters for Nevada County. Prior to joining the Clerk-Recorder’s office, she was the Senior Research and Learning Associate for the Elections Program at Democracy Fund, a private philanthropy based in Washington, DC. Natalie’s professional interests over the last 15 years center on elections and voting, including public opinion surveys on the topic. She is the co-author of “Understanding the Voter Experience” and the co-author/Principal Investigator of “Stewards of Democracy.” A Vallejo native, Natalie is happy to return to California election administration. Early in her career, she worked as a poll worker trainer in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2008 and 2009 and as a student researcher at the Election Administration Research Center at Cal. She has also worked for several elections and voting rights organizations, including MAPLight.org, Project Vote, and the Fair Elections Center.

Natalie holds a B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley, a J.D. from the American University Washington College of Law and a M.P.A. from AU’s School of Public Affairs.

City Clerk, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Jacqueline (Jackie) Beaudry has over 20 years of municipal government experience and has served as City Clerk for the City of Ann Arbor since 2005. Jackie is a Master Municipal Clerk, a Michigan Professional Municipal Clerk, and has a Master of Public Administration degree from Eastern Michigan University. Ms. Beaudry was the 2019 recipient of the prestigious Michigan City Clerk of the Year award. Under her leadership, the Ann Arbor City Clerk’s Office was recognized as a 2020 recipient of the Election Administration Commission’s Clearinghouse Award for outstanding innovation in elections and a 2021 EAC award recipient for most creative or original “I Voted” sticker.

In Ann Arbor, Jackie manages 53 voting precincts for all city, State and national elections. Election Day management in Ann Arbor includes the administration of voting locations and a new full-service satellite office on the campus of the University of Michigan.

Ms. Beaudry is the First Vice President of the Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks and currently chairs the Council of Election Officials, a joint committee of local and County election officials in Michigan. Jackie has also represented the United States on four international election observation missions in Europe and Asia.

City Commissioner, City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 

Since February 2022 Seth Bluestein has served as City Commissioner – one of three members of the Board of Elections in charge of election operations and voter registration for the City of Philadelphia. Prior to serving as Commissioner, Seth was Chief Deputy Commissioner for former City Commissioner Al Schmidt. 

Seth began working in the Office of the City Commissioners in 2012 as a Deputy Commissioner before being promoted to Chief Deputy Commissioner in 2017. From 2018 through 2021, Seth also served as the department’s Chief Integrity Officer. 

Seth has spent the past ten years serving Philadelphia voters, with a focus on improving the voter experience and ensuring our elections remain fair, secure, and accessible. He has overseen election integrity investigations and quality control audits for the department. An advocate for transparency, Seth has worked to transform the department’s website, communications, and open data initiatives. 

A lifelong Philadelphian, Seth earned a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in political science and history from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from the Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania. 

Executive Director, North Carolina Board of Elections 

Karen Brinson Bell became executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections on June 1, 2019.

As the state’s chief elections official, she leads about 65 full-time employees at the state agency, which is charged with administering elections and overseeing the 100 county boards of elections, as well as campaign finance compliance. North Carolina has more than 7 million registered voters and is the 9th most populous state in the country.

In her time as Executive Director, Karen has overseen more than 10 elections, including the 2020 Presidential election, which is the largest election in North Carolina’s history and was held during the COVID-19 pandemic. Other significant elections during her tenure include two special congressional elections impacted by Hurricane Dorian (September 2019), North Carolina’s first Super Tuesday primary on March 3, 2020, and a Congressional second primary during the COVID-19 pandemic. These elections have been coordinated efforts with N.C. Department of Public Safety, N.C. Department of Information Technology, N.C. National Guard, and other federal, state, and local partners. In the fall of 2019, these agencies jointly launched the #YourVoteCountsNC campaign to inform voters about election security and other efforts to safeguard elections.

Karen has spent most of her career in elections administration. From March 2011 to March 2015, she served as director for the Transylvania County (N.C.) Board of Elections. Prior to that, she worked for five years as a district elections technician for the State Board of Elections, where she supported 12 county boards in western N.C. in almost all facets of elections.

Before her appointment as executive director, Karen was deputy director of the Ranked Choice Voting Resource Center. In that role, she assisted elections administrators on a national level, providing expert testimony and educational tools for conducting elections using that method.

Elections Director, Arizona Secretary of State

In January of 2023 Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes appointed Colleen Connor to serve as the State Elections Director.

In 1998 as an Arizona Assistant Attorney General, Colleen advised and defended the Arizona Secretary of State on election-related matters. In 2000 Colleen was appointed by the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission to serve as its first Executive Director. After nearly 6 years as the Executive Director, Colleen returned to the practice of law as a Deputy County Attorney with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office where she represented the Maricopa County Recorder and County Elections Department. In 2011 the Maricopa County Attorney promoted Colleen to serve as the Practice Group Leader for the Government Advice Practice Group. In that role Colleen continued to serve as the lead attorney for advising Maricopa County’s election officials and litigating election-related cases. From 2020 through 2022 Colleen was a Deputy County Attorney for Yavapai and Pinal Counties representing a broad range of Departments including the County Recorders and Elections Departments.

Colleen has been an active member of the Arizona State Bar since 1994 and an inactive member of the Virgin Islands Bar Association since 2016.

Director of Elections/General Registrar, Nelson County, Virginia

Jacqueline “Jackie” Clark Britt, CERA, is currently serving her fourth term of office as Director of Elections/General Registrar of Nelson County, Virginia. Jackie first took office in 2009 and has, since that time, obtained the Election Center/Auburn University’s professional certification of Virginia Election Registration Official (VERO) and national certification of Certified Elections Registration Administrator (CERA). This year, she earned the status of Certified General Registrar in the state of Virginia. She is an active member of the Voter Registrar’s Association of Virginia (VRAV), having served twice as VRAV Secretary and as a member of both the Education and Annual Meeting committees.

Jackie is a long-time resident of Nelson County and has promoted awareness of elections through presentations to local service organizations and interaction with the schools, including conducting mock elections and providing voter registration opportunities for high school seniors.

Jackie graduated from North Carolina Wesleyan College with a B.A. in Political Studies. She now resides in Schuyler, Virginia near extended family. She has served the community as co-chairman of the Nelson County Relay for Life event and is a past president of the Nelson County Garden Club.

State Elections Director, Colorado

Dr. Judd Choate has been the state elections director for Colorado since 2009. He was President of the National Association of State Election Directors (NASED) in 2016-17 and has served as a member of the Governmental Coordinator Council (GCC) since its inception in 2017. Prior to joining the Colorado Department of State, Judd practiced election law at the Denver firm of Kelly Garnsey Hubbell & Lass. He was a law clerk for Colorado Supreme Court Justice Alex J. Martinez and as a summer clerk for Judge Timothy Tymkovich of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Dr. Choate has a J.D. from the University of Colorado Law School and both a Ph.D. and M.A. in political science from Purdue University. For several years prior to law school, Judd was a professor of political science at the University of Nebraska, where he taught courses on campaigns and elections. Dr. Choate is the author of a book and several peer-reviewed articles on elections and political behavior.

In a previous life, he was a scout for the Kansas City Royals.

Supervisor of Elections, Pasco County, Florida

Brian Corley has been serving the citizens of Pasco County as their Supervisor of Elections since 2007 and in that time has presided over 70 elections with more than 2 million votes cast. During his tenure, the Pasco County Election’s office continues to be recognized for innovation, efficiency and transparency in serving the voters. He previously served in senior managerial positions with the Pasco County Clerk of the Circuit Court, as well as the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office.

He is a state-certified election administrator by the Florida Department of State and is the past president of the Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections.  He has testified numerous times before Florida Legislative Senate and House committees on election and voting related issues.

Nationally, Corley has been a featured speaker and panelist with such organizations as The Bi-Partisan Policy Center, The Elections Assistance Commission, The International Association of Government Officials, The Center for Internet Security, The Pew Charitable Trusts “Voting Information Project” Committee, The National Election Center (Election Cybersecurity Taskforce), the “Vote at Home” Advisory Council, the Governor’s Advisory Committee on Government Operations and is an instructor with the Florida Certified Election Professional Program.

Corley has been a resident of Pasco County since 1979 and a proud graduate of Pasco County schools. he has been actively involved in community service with multiple organizations to include: Pasco Education Foundation, Dade City Kiwanis Club, Take Stock in Children Program, Pasco County School District Vision Committee, One Community Now, USF MPA Advisory Board and Empowering Pasco Veterans Board of Directors. He received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of South Florida and has been an adjunct professor in Public Administration for both the University of South Florida and Barry University.

Executive Director of the Charleston County (SC) Board of Voter Registration and Elections

As the Executive Director of the Charleston County (SC) Board of Voter Registration and Elections, Isaac has played a significant role in advocating for election reforms in South Carolina.

Isaac has actively worked towards improving election administration and accessibility, earning respect within the state’s election community. He serves as the legislative chairman for the South Carolina Association of Registration and Election Officials, where he has pushed for updates to election laws to increase accessibility and efficiency.

Isaac was instrumental in passing a major reform bill in 2022, which brought early voting to SC and allowed counties to process absentee ballots ahead of Election Day, thereby making voting more convenient and efficient for South Carolinians.

Isaac’s commitment to excellence has been recognized through the State of South Carolina’s “Excellence in Elections” award, which he has received twice. The first was in 2017, for expanding absentee voting and increasing voter participation through “Your Vote, Our Veterans”, and the second was in 2021, for his work in implementing a Satellite Voting Unit for early voting and outreach efforts.

Isaac’s leadership and expertise have also earned him recognition at the national level, where he serves as vice chair on the National Association of Counties’ elections subcommittee and as one of the legislative chairs for the National Association of Election Officials.

He received his BA in Political Science from Wheaton College (IL) and continues to work towards protecting every citizen’s right to vote while supporting election officials in their work

Executive Director of the DC Board of Elections

Monica Holman Evans is the Executive Director of the DC Board of Elections (BOE) and previously served as their Senior Policy Advisor. She oversees elections operations and policy implementation within the District of Columbia.

As the Senior Policy Advisor she provided direct oversight over the Voter Education and Outreach, and Election Worker Divisions.

Before joining BOE, she was a Supervisory Financial Management Specialist with the Administration of Children and Families (ACF), a division of Health and Human Services. As a Supervisory Financial Management Specialist and Grants Officer with ACF, she served as a technical advisor while supervising mandatory grant administration of ACF Formula, Entitlement and Block Grants. The mandatory grants portfolio included over 40 programs that totaled over $42 billion.

Ms. Evans worked at the Election Assistance Commission where she served as the Director of Grants Management. She provided oversight responsibilities for the Office of Grants Management and Payments. She worked with EAC officials and grant recipients to encourage sound program administration and to enforce program and financial compliance with the provisions of the Help America Vote Act, Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance, EAC policies, and recipient agreements and plans. She frequently provided information and reports to members of Congress and was responsible for audit resolution and drafting advisory opinions.

Ms. Evans worked as a Program Counsel at Legal Services Corporation, an agency dedicated to ensuring legal services for low-income individuals. Additionally, Ms. Evans served as the Deputy Director of AmeriCorps, a national service program that oversees programming in the areas of health, human needs, education, the environment, and public safety.

Ms. Evans earned a BA from the University of Virginia and a JD from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law.

County Auditor & Commissioner of Elections, Clayton County, Iowa

Jennifer began working in the Clayton County Auditor’s Office in 2007 as a Deputy Auditor/Commissioner before being elected to County Auditor in 2016 following contested Primary and General Elections. She ran unopposed in 2020.

Jennifer currently serves as the Past-President of the Iowa State Association of County Auditors, the State Elections Administration Training Curriculum Chair, and is Vice-Chair of the Iowa State Association of Counties Technology Service Bureau.

Jennifer is a graduate of the University of Northern Iowa with a B.S. in Geography and a Certificate of Geographic Information Systems and Cartography. Jennifer enjoys volunteering in her community and currently serves on the Elkader Public Library Board. Jennifer has numerous hobbies including reading, painting, quilting, cooking, fishing, and completing jigsaw puzzles.

Chief Deputy County Clerk-Recorder, Contra Costa County, California

Tommy Gong is the Chief Deputy County Clerk-Recorder for Contra Costa County, located in the San Francisco Bay Area. Completing his 20th year in election administration, Tommy previously served as the elected County Clerk-Recorder for San Luis Obispo County and started his career in Stanislaus County. Tommy is an advisory board member for the Election Official Legal Defense Network, a Board Director for the California Voter Foundation, and served on the executive committee of the California Association of Clerks and Election Officials.

Tommy led the effort to form the Coalition of Bay Area Election Officials for neighboring counties to join forces and collaborate on building public trust in elections in shared media markets. The Coalition earned the prestigious Democracy Award for best practice of 2022 by the National Association of Elections Officials – The Election Center.

Earning his B.A. at the University of California at Berkeley and an M.B.A. at the San Francisco State University, Tommy was among the first graduates of the California Professional Election Administrator Credential in 2005, and completed the national Certified Election Registration Administrator program in 2021.

Amongst Tommy’s hobbies is the practicing and teaching of martial arts. His instructor was a student of Bruce Lee, which led to his serving on the board of directors for the Bruce Lee Foundation for many years. His book, Bruce Lee – The Evolution of a Martial Artist was the culmination of a five-year project that chronicles Lee’s development in the martial arts.

Deputy Elections Director, Georgia Secretary of State

His experience spans 18 years of increasingly responsible leadership in election services programs. Most notably, Dr. Harris has held supervisorial and senior leadership roles in both elections and legislative spaces in state (Georgia Secretary of State Elections), county (Los Angeles County, CA – Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk ; Fulton County, GA – County Clerk; Gwinnett County, GA – Assistant Elections Supervisor) and municipal (Long Beach, CA – Deputy City Clerk) governments.

Dr. Harris’ public service career has been a steppingstone where he has made differences in policy, operating procedures, and standards in organizational change. Dr. Harris’ background includes specialization in elections, voter database management, voter education/engagement/outreach, candidate qualifying management, and legislative support functions.

Dr. Harris manages close relationships with state leadership, State Election Board, and community stakeholders to promote integrity in elections and improved processes in voter registration. He oversaw Gwinnett County’s expanded mail-in ballot operation during the 2020 election cycle amidst a pandemic, personal threats, and intense scrutiny. Dr. Harris showed great strength and resilience in his performance as Assistant Elections Director/Chief County Registrar of Voters with demonstrable project management in his administrative responsibilities over voter registration, absentee-by-mail voting, advance (early) voting, provisional voting, and complex voter data research and analysis. Dr. Harris also supported election programs in Los Angeles County and City of Long Beach between 2005 and 2018 before beginning his elections administration responsibilities in Georgia.

Dr. Harris earned a Doctor of Public Administration (California Baptist University, Riverside, 2018) and Master of Public Administration (National University, San Diego, 2014) degrees, and is currently attending Emory University School of Law in Atlanta, Georgia.

Dr. Harris holds both certifications as a Georgia Elections Official and Georgia Registrar Official and will begin the national certificate program for Election and Registrar Officials after the November 2022 midterm election. He is a senior advisor for the Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials (GAVREO). His research interests are voter turnout, public participation, public perception on voting, and decision-making and is associated with past and current research conducted at University of Southern California Sol Price School of Public Policy and the University of California, San Diego. He is a member of the National Association of State Election Directors, an advisory member for the Center for Inclusive Democracy Voting Location and Outreach Tool, and other ad hoc committees and stakeholdership in several organizations.

Elections Director, Maricopa County Elections Department

Scott Jarrett is the Elections Director for the Maricopa County Elections Department, the second largest voting jurisdiction in the nation. He is responsible for all In-person voting, tabulation, temporary worker recruitment, and training operations. He has served as the Elections Director since his appointment by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in 2019. Prior to joining the Elections Department, Scott served as a professional internal auditor and certified fraud examiner with the Maricopa County and the Maricopa Community College District for over 13 years. He is also a veteran of the United States Coast Guard. Scott is a certified Arizona Elections Official, an Elections Task Force member of the Bipartisan Policy Center and serves as the vice-president of the Election Officials of Arizona.

EAC Board of Advisors Member/ City Clerk, Colorado Springs (CO)

Sarah Ball Johnson is the City Clerk for the City of Colorado Springs, Colorado, with the responsibility of keeping all municipal records, aiding City Council with Council meeting agendas and minutes, conducting all municipal elections, city council district redistricting, and managing the City’s business licensing program. She is a Certified Municipal Clerk (CMC) through the International Institute of Municipal Clerks.

She has seventeen years of experience in state Election Administration with the Commonwealth of Kentucky State Board of Elections, where she also served as the Executive Director for seven years.

She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from Transylvania University and a Masters degree in Public Administration, specializing in state and local government, from the University of Kentucky.

She participated in international election observation trips to Slovakia, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Nigeria.

She is a member of United States Election Assistance Commission Board of Advisors (United States Senate President Appointee) and serves as Chair of the Board. She serves as a Director on the Board of the Colorado Municipal Clerks Association. She was a member of the National Association of State Election Directors (NASED) and served as Vice President of the NASED Board. She was a member of the United States Election Assistance Commission Standards Board and served as Chairman of the Executive Board.

Election Supervisor, Bartow County, Georgia 

Joseph Kirk is an election administrator with a history of conducting secure and transparent elections.  Joseph began his career by testing and supporting Georgia’s first statewide voting system from 2002-2005 before implementing Mississippi’s TSX Voting System from 2005-2007.  In 2007, he accepted his current position as Election Supervisor of Bartow County, Georgia.  Joseph graduated from the University of Georgia with a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and is a member of the Georgia Association of Voter Registrars and Election Officials.  He enjoys creative arts, is competent with a trumpet, and enjoys spending time with his cat. 

Boone County Clerk, Missouri

Brianna L. Lennon was elected as Boone County Clerk in November 2018 and sworn into office on December 31st, 2018. Brianna is a graduate of Truman State University and holds a Master’s in Public Policy and a law degree, both from the University of Missouri. Prior to her election as Boone County Clerk, Brianna served as an Assistant Attorney General in the Consumer Protection Division of the Missouri Attorney General’s Office before joining the Missouri Secretary of State’s Office under former Secretary Jason Kander. As the Deputy Director of Elections and first coordinator of the Election Integrity Unit in the Secretary of State’s Office, she worked closely with local election authorities across the state to ensure that elections were simple, secure, and accessible for voters. Brianna lives in Columbia with her husband, Scott, and two children, Ryan, and Isabel.

Registrar and Director of Elections, City of Cranston, Rhode Island

Nick Lima has served as Registrar and Director of Elections for the City of Cranston, Rhode Island’s second largest city, since January 2017, and has been the city’s chief elections administrator for eight statewide elections. He has successfully lobbied state election agencies for increased grant funding for election administration and improved cybersecurity at the municipal level, and participated on task forces related to elections cybersecurity with representatives from multiple state and federal agencies. He coordinated Cranston’s 2020 Census Complete Count Committee, and was the 2021-2022 redistricting coordinator for the city.

Nick is a member of the Rhode Island Town and City Clerks’ Association and chair of its Elections Committee. He is a current member of the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Planning Committee. He served on the Secretary of State’s 2018 Elections Cybersecurity Planning Task Group, 2018 HAVA Task Force, the RFP review and design committee for the 2019 overhaul of the Central Voter Registration System, 2020 HAVA Task Force, 2020 COVID-19 Elections Task Force; and the state Board of Elections 2019-2020 Risk-Limiting Audit Pilot work group. He is a participant in the MS/EI-ISAC, and is a current member of the Election Assistance Commission’s Local Leadership Council as well as the EAC’s Standards Board. He is a member of the Election Verification Network, and was recently appointed to the Rhode Island Senate Special Commission to Study Non-Plurality Voting Methods and Runoff Elections.

A U.S. Army veteran and graduate of Rhode Island College with a bachelor’s degree in communications, Lima is a lifelong Rhode Islander who was previously a baseball broadcaster for the Newport Gulls of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. He resides in Coventry, where he serves on the Coventry Fire District Board of Directors. His wife, Hillary, works in marketing and currently serves as Coventry’s Town Council President.

Davis County Clerk, Davis County, Utah

Brian McKenzie has been working in the Election Administration field since 2006.  He was elected in 2022 and currently serves as County Clerk for Davis County, Utah. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and is a Certified Elections and Registration Administrator (CERA).

He began his public service career as records preservation officer, and later took an opportunity to get involved in elections.  Election administration is where he found his professional passion. This exciting, challenging, and ever-changing field, presents continual opportunities for learning and growth.  Brian is very active in the State of Utah working with fellow county clerks, election officials, and State Legislators in pursuing continual improvements in accessibility and security of the state’s elections processes.

Director of Elections, Hamilton County, Ohio

Sherry Poland was appointed Director of the Hamilton County Board of Elections in June of 2014. In this role, she is responsible for administering all local, state, and federal elections that occur in Hamilton County, along with the day-to-day operations of the board. Ms. Poland began her career with the Board of Elections in March of 2004. Prior to becoming Director, she served as the Board’s Operations Administrator, where she was responsible for all aspects of the vote counting process. She has administered over 55 elections, including 5 presidential elections. During Ms. Poland’s tenure, the Hamilton County Board of Elections has been recognized for innovation, efficiency, and transparency in elections.

In addition to her work in Hamilton County, Ms. Poland is a member of the U.S. Elections Assistance Commission Local Leadership Council, serves as President of the Ohio Association of Elections Officials, and as a member of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Task Force on Elections. She is a graduate of Mount St. Joseph University.

County Clerk & Register of Deeds, Ottawa County, Michigan 

Justin Roebuck serves as the chief election officer for Ottawa County, Michigan overseeing the elections process in 23 local cities and townships and for the county’s 220,000 voters. Justin’s passion is to build trust with honesty and transparency in the elections process. His goal is to change the way election officials interact with voters by modeling proactive, consistent, and fact-based communication using multiple platforms from social media to in person voter engagement. He was honored by his colleagues as Michigan’s “County Clerk of the Year” in 2021.

In addition to his work in Ottawa County, Justin currently serves on the Standards Board of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), the Michigan Council of Election Officials, and on the Legislative Committee of the Michigan Association of County Clerks. He was appointed by the Michigan Supreme Court to the Michigan Judicial Council, formed in 2021 to create a statewide strategic plan for the judicial branch. He has been appointed by Governors Snyder and Whitmer to the Michigan Electronic Recording Commission, governing the standards for real property documents recorded in Michigan, where he is currently serving as Chair.

Justin is a graduate of Hillsdale College in Michigan, with a B.A. in History and Political Science.

Director of Elections, Oakland County, Michigan

Joe Rozell is the Director of Elections for Oakland County, Michigan. Since 2007, he’s directed elections in Michigan’s second largest county of 1.1 million registered voters.

He received his master’s degree in Public Administration from Oakland University and earned his Certified Elections/Registration Administrator (CERA) certification from Auburn University. He is a member of Election Center (National Association of Election Officials) and the Michigan Association of County Clerks. Rozell has also been appointed to serve on numerous state level committees including the Voting Equipment RFP Evaluation Committee, the Qualified Voter File Committee, and the Election Modernization Advisory Committee.

He has been instrumental in implementing technology at the county level and securing new statewide voting systems. Joe is very passionate about elections and has testified on numerous occasions at the federal, state and local level on the need for election reform and increased funding.

Rozell is an adjunct faculty member at Oakland University teaching in the Department of Political Science. He also serves as an elected non-partisan City Commissioner in Huntington Woods, Michigan.

Elections and Special Projects Manager, City of Portland

Deborah serves as the Elections and Special Programs Manager for the City of Portland Auditor’s Office. After serving as state of Oregon Elections Director during the 2022 Primary and General Election, including overseeing campaign finance, investigations, and statewide elections projects, Deborah rejoined the City of Portland during an exciting and critical time for the region.

Deborah directs an expanding elections office that will introduce a series of reforms in 2024, including: the use of ranked-choice voting, an expanded City Council, and Council member elections by geographic district. In addition to administering elections alongside county elections offices, the office conducts voter outreach, administers the lobbyist and political consultant registration program, and enforces campaign finance regulations.

Deborah has a decade of elections administration experience, having previously served under two elected Auditors and the Secretary of State.

Administrator of Elections, Wilson County, Tennessee

Tammy Smith has been an election official since 2005. She has served as a county election commissioner and a county Administrator of Elections.

She served as an Election Commissioner in Macon County, TN from 2005 until 2008. In 2009, she was appointed as Macon County Administrator of Elections. Her first election was three days after her appointment. In 2011, she moved with her family to Wilson County, TN for her children’s schooling. She accepted the job of Assistant Administrator of Elections in Wilson County. With her as Assistant AOE, Wilson County had two Tennessee State Certified Administrators working together in the office until recently when she was appointed Administrator of Elections after the retirement of Phillip Warren.

Smith has served on several Tennessee Association of County Election Officials committees. She earned the designation of Certified Public Administrator from the University of Tennessee County Technical Assistance Service Institute for Public Service in 2013. In 2020, she received her Certified Elections & Registration Administration (CERA) designation from The Election Center and Auburn University. She was elected by her peers to the inaugural executive committee of the Elections Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EI-ISAC) where she is serving her second term. Smith also serves on a taskforce for the Bipartisan Policy Center for elections.

Smith has been instrumental in implementing many innovative programs and procedures in Wilson County that have improved the voting experience. Electronic poll books, a voting system with a paper component, vote centers, interactive poll official training as well as online training and many community outreach programs are just a few examples of the positive impact Smith has on the administration of elections and the voters of Wilson County.

Tammy graduated from Western Kentucky University with a B.A. in Marketing & Business.

First Deputy Secretary, Director and Legal Counsel, Elections Division Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, Massachusetts

Michelle K. Tassinari is the First Deputy Secretary of the Commonwealth as well as Director and Legal Counsel of the Elections Division. She is a graduate of Brandeis University and New England Law. Ms. Tassinari is the state appointee to the Election Assistance Commission’s Standards Board, Member of the Bipartisan Policy Center Voter Registration Task Force, Advisory Board Member of the MIT, Election Data and Science Lab, Working Group Member of the Council of State Governments Overseas Voter Initiative, and Member of the Committee for Safe and Secure Elections. In 2020, she was named as one of 50 Top Women of Law by the Massachusetts Lawyer’s Weekly. Ms. Tassinari served as President of the National Association of State Election Directors from 2021-2022.

Election Commissioner, City of Boston, Massachusetts

Eneida Tavares is the Election Commissioner for the City of Boston and also serves as Chair of the Board of Elections Commissioners, where she oversees the conduct of elections in the City of Boston, in accordance with all relevant federal, state and municipal laws. After spending seventeen years working in city and town elections, Eneida knows what it takes to truly drive an efficient elections cycle. She has successfully implemented new election management software used to assist with Boston’s first ever Early Voting election; improved the city’s procurement process by streamlining the operations and replacing voting machines with new, innovative, user-friendly machines; and presided over the city’s first Citywide recount in almost twenty years. Eneida’s ability to pivot and to think on her feet proved to be evident during the 2020 Presidential election, where due to the global pandemic, she had to innovate safe, effective and secure voting procedures that included: the implementation of expanded vote by mail, in-person early voting, and ballot drop boxes. These changes enabled the citizens of Boston to safely cast their votes.

Administrator, Wisconsin Elections Commission

Meagan Wolfe is the Administrator of the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC), serving as the state’s Chief Election Official. Meagan was appointed by the bi-partisan, six-member Commission in February of 2018 and unanimously confirmed by the Wisconsin State Senate in May of 2019 for a four-year term. Serving as an election security advocate and ambassador for the needs of Wisconsin’s clerks and voters are among her highest priorities. A significant part of her job is ensuring that Wisconsin’s 1,922 local election officials (the most of any state) have the resources and technology they need to conduct elections. Meagan previously served as WEC’s Deputy Administrator and IT Director, managing the teams that develop and maintain the statewide voter registration system, election security, and all other IT applications of the Commission. Meagan joined state service in 2011, starting as the state’s voter outreach coordinator and later as an elections IT project manager leading a major redesign of the MyVote Wisconsin voter information portal (myvote.wi.gov).

Director of Elections, New Mexico

Mandy Vigil is the Election Director for the State of New Mexico.  Ms. Vigil is a native New Mexican and has served the State as a public servant for nineteen years.  In her past twelve years she has established her career in the Office of the Secretary of State, in overseeing the election and campaign finance compliance programs.  Ms. Vigil has partnered with local election administrators and state officials to develop and implement policies and systems to modernize and improve elections for the voters of New Mexico.  Ms. Vigil is passionate and committed to continuing her work to ensure fair and secure elections and improve transparency and trust in the process.  Prior to election administration, Mandy was an advocate for consumer protections at the Office of the Attorney General and served in the judicial branch to support policy and administration of the court system.  In addition to serving as a member of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s taskforce on elections, Ms. Vigil is proud to represent the state of New Mexico as the Vice President of the National Association of Election Directors (NASED), an executive committee member of the Election Assistance Commission Standards Board, and a board member of the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC).

Executive Director, City of Milwaukee Election Commission, Wisconsin

Claire Woodall-Vogg has been with the City of Milwaukee Election Commission for eight years and has been the executive director since July of 2020.  Prior to becoming director, Claire combined her passion for voter advocacy and education with her nerdy satisfaction for data and quality control as she oversaw all of voter services for the department.  Before working for the Election Commission, Claire was a community organizer for a Milwaukee non-profit.  Claire was born and raised in Birmingham, AL and attributes her passion for voting rights to her upbringing in the South by progressive parents who instilled the importance of equity and inclusion in her from a young age.  During 2020, barriers that already existed in Wisconsin were exacerbated for communities of color who were disproportionately affected by COVID-19 in the City of Milwaukee.  Claire and her staff worked to maximize voting opportunities and voter education so that no citizen felt like they were forced to choose between their vote and their health.

Assistant Secretary of State, New Jersey Office of the Secretary of State

Lauren M. Zyriek Enriquez is the Assistant Secretary of State for the New Jersey Office of the Secretary of State. Before joining the Secretary of State’s office in 2018 Dr. Zyriek Enriquez was the Deputy Clerk for the Office of the Bergen County Clerk where she had the distinction of being the first Latina in her position, she was an advisor to the Guatemalan Mission to the United Nations, and a Specialist at the U.S. Census Bureau.

Her education, along with her community involvement, have always been geared towards government and politics, and how they affect society. She always strives to be part of the decision-making process to advance ideas and guarantee that forthcoming policies are mindful of the demographics they serve.

Dr. Zyriek Enriquez earned her Doctorate in Public Administration from the University of Baltimore MD, her Master’s in Administrative Science from Fairleigh Dickinson University NJ, she holds a Bachelor’s from Montclair State University NJ, and an Associate’s from Bergen Community College, NJ. Additionally, she has Executive Education Certificates in Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. She is also a New Jersey Registered Municipal Clerk and a Board Member of the NJ American Society for Public Administration.