Secretary of State announces nationwide search
The Vermont Secretary of State’s long-time Director of Elections, Will Senning, has announced he will be leaving that position next month for a new job with the federal government.
Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas will conduct a nationwide search for Senning’s replacement. Senning has been with the Elections Division of the Secretary of State’s office for more than 12 years, 10 of those as Director.
Senning will become the Region 1 Election Security Advisor for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), a division of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The agency is responsible for cybersecurity and infrastructure protection at all levels of government, and this includes the protection of elections.
Senning will be one of ten Election Security Advisors, a newly created position for CISA to further its charge to assist state and local election officials with strengthening the cyber, physical, and operational security of our nation’s elections. Senning will be responsible for CISA’s Region 1, which includes all six New England states, and will work virtually from his home in Vermont.
Secretary Copeland Hanzas said that the search for Senning’s replacement will begin immediately as 2024 will be a busy election year. Vermont holds its Presidential Primary on March 5,which is also when Town Meeting and municipal elections are held. The state primary will be held in August and then the General Election is in November.
The Secretary of State’s Office will begin active recruitment for a new Director of Elections and Campaign Finance. The position will be posted on the Department of Human Resources career site in the coming days.