The 2020 election was controversial with President Donald Trump arguing thatthe results showing challenger Joe Biden winning were fraudulent. Trump mounted numerous unsuccessful legal challenges in battleground states, while calling into question accuracy and fairness of the election system that has been a hallmark of American democracy.
Trump fired Chris Krebs, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, after he made a statement that the recent election was the most secure in U.S. history. Some residents feared the same fate for a native of Eureka Springs, Ben Hovland, as he spoke out on a number of national news programs assuring people that the election was on the level.
Hovland, an attorney, was speaking in his official capacity as a commissioner for the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), a bi-partisan federal agency that allows no more than two commissioners from each political party. Hovland had a 20-year career in elections before being nominated by Trump and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in January 2019.
“I saw him on PBS and I read the press releases that he wrote,” Kathy Remenar, Hovland’s English teacher at Eureka Springs High School, said. “He was very articulate and forthright. I was waiting to hear that he had been fired because of what happened to Krebs. I am thrilled to death that Ben is involved in such critically important work. Good for you, Ben! It’s hard to speak the truth to power, and I’m glad to know you came from Eureka.”
Hovland said being a Trump-appointed Democrat is a bit confusing, but since the EAC is an independent agency, it makes it harder to replace him.
Al Larson, a member of the Eureka Springs School Board, saw Hovland interviews on CNN and PBS NewsHour. He has also been on Fox News and NPR. Larson had been concerned that the attempt to overturn the election results could result in the end of U.S. democracy.
“For a couple weeks after the election, Ben was certainly high profile playing the important role of giving people confidence in our elections at a time when there were unprecedented efforts to overturn the will of the people,” Larson said. “I think our school system should be proud of the patriotic efforts our graduate is performing. I’m pleased to see him in such a prominent position standing up for voting.”
David Gilmore, principal of Eureka Springs High School, graduated with Hovland in 1996.
“We are very proud of his accomplishments,” Gilmore said. “Ben always had a great sense of humor and was extremely intelligent and creative. You could tell he had the capability to do whatever he wanted in life. Ben is an example I use with our local students showing that coming from a small town doesn’t limit you.”
Hovland is the son of the late Barbara Harmony and the late Jim Hovland. Harmony was co-founder of the National Water Center and head of the Springs Committee. Hovland said his mother showed him the value of public service, and that committed people can make the world a better place.
“She was pretty special,” Hovland said. “I was lucky.”
Hovland considers it unfortunate that there has been so much discussion about mail-in voting being more prone to fraud. Oregon, Washington and Utah have been doing mail-in voting for years with no evidence of widespread fraud.
He said election officials in those states have confidence in the process because they know about the many security measures put in place to protect the integrity of the election. This year with unprecedented numbers of American voting by mail, officials from the states with experience doing mail-in voting were very helpful to others in states trying to get up to speed.
“There are a lot of security checks that give you confidence in the process,” Hovland said. “I think it’s unfortunate that more Americans don’t realize all that goes into administering an election. If anyone is concerned about voting integrity, I encourage them to serve as a poll worker, and they will get an idea of all the safeguards that are in place.”
During college, Hovland studied abroad several times and traveled to more than 100 countries. After graduating from the University of Central Arkansas, he joined a program to give recent grads political training and send them to work on a campaign. He went to work for Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan, who died in a plane crash shortly before the election. Hovland was touched by how many people spoke out about how Carnahan had helped them.
“His perspective about what public service could mean, how you could help people, was inspiring,” Hovland said.
Hovland moved to Oregon where he obtained a law degree before coming back to work for Carnahan’s daughter, Robin Carnahan, who was Missouri Secretary of State. He said it was while working in her office that oversees elections that he realized the importance of good election administration. He came to recognize that administration shouldn’t be about partisanship, but about good governance and customer service.
Polls indicate that millions of Americans believe the election was stolen. Hovland said the unsubstantiated allegations of fraud have distracted from the real story, which is the hard work of state and local officials to administer an election during a time that included a pandemic and a record number of Americans voting.
“Americans pride themselves in exporting democracy and part of that is ensuring our system is healthy,” Hovland said. “A lot of reporting around elections gets tied up in politics. People talk about politics as a horse race. Who is in the lead at the moment? Election administration, however, is different. It’s the track, not the race.
“Election administration isn’t about politics, but making sure the election goes smoothly and will of the people is reflected. Having good elections is an important piece of what America is and how we hold ourselves out on the world stage.”
Hovland said he hopes one outcome of the elections will be for people to have a better understanding of how Democrats and Republicans work side-by-side in about 9,000 voting jurisdictions across the country. Congress invested $800 million in election security after foreign interference in the 2016 elections, and another $400 million for procedures to make it safe to vote or work at the polls during the pandemic.
One challenge was that traditionally most poll workers are retired. And because about 80 percent of Covid-19 deaths are in people older than 65, many poll workers dropped out this year. Hovland said the silver lining is that the country saw a new generation of poll workers step up.
“That was really awesome,” he said. “I hope they had a good experience and that we end up with a new generation of poll workers. Being a poll worker allows you to be the customer service face of our democracy. You shouldn’t care who someone is going to vote for, but simply that they have the opportunity to vote. I hope some of the young people who signed up this year will get hooked and come back and do it again.”