Republicans are suspicious of a deal made by the California Secretary of State with a company called SKD Knickerbocker for voter education and outreach campaign. "Vote Safe California" is intended to encourage voting by mail and clarify changes in the state's election process during the COVID-19 pandemic. Members of the GOP in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., are concerned about connections the firm reportedly has with the campaign of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. State Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove from Bakersfield is among those calling for an investigation into the $35-million "Vote Safe California" contract signed by Secretary of State Alex Padilla.
"Once again, a top Democrat official has shown partisan favoritism when it comes to spending valuable tax dollars," Grove said. "This taxpayer-funded contract is especially disturbing because it calls into question the integrity of California's upcoming election. It appears that the state's top election official is abusing his office to favor voter outreach for Democrat candidates."
Besides Biden, SKD Knickerbocker lists many other high-ranking Democrats as clients and came out the winner in an expedited emergency bidding process from among three finalists, according to a Sacramento Bee report.
In a letter sent to Padilla, who is a Democrat, House Republican lawmakers call the SKDK contract a conflict of interest. They say the Committee on Oversight and Reform will be conducting an investigation.
SKDK was also informed by Microsoft that it had been targeted by Russian government-sponsored hackers in recent months, Reuters says. An SKDK representative tells the news service that the group known as "Fancy Bear," which U.S. intelligence officials say is linked to the Russian military, was unsuccessful with attempts to access to the firm's networks. This is the same group believed to have hacked the Hillary Clinton campaign in 2016 and publicly released sensitive emails.
Padilla recently told reporters that 2020 has been an "unprecedented year," which is campaigns like this one are necessary. He said voting by mail is the safest way to cast your ballot and promised that the election is secure.
"All citizens in California will be able to Vote Safe this fall," he says on the Secretary of State's website. "Elections officials are expanding voting-by-mail and ballot tracking tools statewide, while also offering safe in-person early voting and Election Day options."
Padilla is also encouraging California voters to cast their ballots now.
"My message to voters is simple—don't wait, prepare now. With less than 100 days until the General Election, you can take simple steps now to be ready to vote. It only takes a few minutes to confirm your voter registration information, make any necessary updates, and sign-up for ballot tracking. Taking these steps now will make the election smoother both for voters and elections officials."
Meantime, Grove says the "Vote Safe California" deal reeks of partisan politics and abuse of tax dollars.
"There must be a full investigation of this contract and if there is any wrongdoing or even the appearance of wrongdoing, or political bias is discovered," she said. "(Padilla) must be held accountable."
Grove says this past June, the California State Legislature passed Assembly Bill 89 which gives 58 counties access to $35 million earmarked in the bill, plus an additional $65 million for the Help America Vote Act. The money is primarily intended for local county registrars to pay for nonpartisan election-related expenses, including costs associated with COVID-related changes to the voting process. She wants to know if any part of the "Vote Safely California" contract money was siphoned away from those intended uses. She's also asking why the money in AB-89 wasn't given directly to California counties.