Intelligence Assessment Finds No Successful Foreign Election Interference in 2024
US intelligence officials found no evidence that any foreign adversary successfully interfered in the 2024 presidential election, according to multiple sources familiar with a classified assessment completed last year. The report concluded that while major rivals including Russia, Iran and China conducted influence campaigns to varying degrees, none succeeded in compromising election infrastructure or altering vote counts. The sources spoke anonymously as they were not authorized to discuss the classified findings.
Russia’s Influence Efforts Were Most Significant
Moscow’s influence operations were judged the most significant, aiming to boost then-former President Donald Trump and undermine Vice President Kamala Harris, his Democratic rival. Intelligence agencies had warned about Russia’s influence campaign in the months leading up to the election. Beijing also utilized its influence capacity to target specific races, according to the assessment.
Consistent with Past Post-Election Analyses
The assessment’s conclusions align with similar congressionally-mandated examinations conducted after the 2020 and 2022 elections. Public versions of those prior studies showed foreign actors avoided technically complex attempts to hack election systems or tamper directly with votes, instead favoring influence campaigns as a more effective strategy. For instance, after the 2022 midterms, intelligence officials observed countries like Cuba making selective efforts to support or oppose candidates based on policy alignment.
Public Release of Report Expected Soon
The most recent post-election review was expected to be declassified last year, with a public version anticipated for release soon, according to sources. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) did not respond to a request for comment on the assessment.
Ongoing Concerns About Foreign Influence Despite Lack of Success
US officials and security experts have maintained persistent concerns about foreign election meddling for over a decade, dating back to the Kremlin’s multipronged interference campaign in 2016 designed to aid Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton. These anxieties have intensified due to advances in artificial intelligence and other technologies that could be weaponized to spread chaos before elections.
Trump’s Rhetoric Undermines Public Confidence
Public trust in American elections has also been affected by Trump’s own statements. In a June primetime national address, he claimed the election system was broken and vulnerable to being rigged, a narrative he has promoted since 2016. He stated, ‘Our elections were left vulnerable to being rigged and stolen and the trust of the American people was lost. This cannot be allowed to continue.’
Trump’s Claims About Voter Data Lack Context
Trump further asserted that China conducted ‘the largest compromise of election data in history’ through the ‘illicit acquisition of 220 million US voter files,’ referring to voter information that is publicly accessible across all 50 states. The White House has previously released documents reflecting past intelligence assessments on foreign interference, which contained no new revelations about election system vulnerabilities.
Intelligence Community Steps Up Efforts Ahead of 2026 Midterms
The intelligence community has begun increasing its election security focus in preparation for the upcoming midterm elections, which are typically less intense than presidential cycles. The administration recently delivered a long-overdue report on foreign intelligence threats facing the 2026 midterms to congressional policymakers. The briefing, originally due in May — 180 days before voting — was provided last week to staffers of the Senate and House Intelligence Committees by officials from the NSA, FBI, ODNI, and CISA.
Lawmakers Confirm No Evidence of Infrastructure Tampering
Rep. Jim Himes (CT), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, stated that while he could not discuss the briefing’s contents, the intelligence community has long assessed that no adversary has interfered with or attempted to interfere with election infrastructure or vote counting, and he sees no evidence to suggest a change in that finding. Congressional sources confirmed officials continue to observe foreign powers probing electoral systems but have found zero evidence of attempts to tamper with the systems themselves.
Pattern Matches 2022 Election Assessment
This aligns with the 2022 election review, which concluded that state-sponsored Chinese hackers scanned more than 100 US state and national political party domains without successfully breaching or altering systems. Administration officials noted a broader range of actors are now involved in influence operations — including Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese militia, and other less-resourced foreign entities — due to the spread of AI tools that lower barriers to entry.
Limited Public Warnings Ahead of Election
Officials indicated they would produce two additional classified reports before the election but would not release further declassified information or public warnings. This marks a shift from 2024, when ODNI and other agencies issued public statements — sometimes multiple times per week — about foreign threats to the ballot box.
Lawmaker Calls for Greater Transparency
Himes said he had secured a commitment to keep the Intelligence Committee updated in real time about foreign threats through election day. He also pledged to continue advocating for the responsible public release of unclassified intelligence community election security analysis before November, so the public can understand potential threats and defend against false or misleading claims.
Source: The Record