State officials voice worries over DHS designation of elections as 'critical' amid hacking fears

State officials are unsure what benefit the Department of Homeland Security's new critical infrastructure designation for election systems would have, citing fear that the designation announced Jan. 6 might lead to greater federal oversight and regulation of elections due to cybersecurity concerns.

Denise Merrill, the Connecticut secretary of state and president of the National Association of Secretaries of State, said during a media briefing Monday that cybersecurity is now a top issue for state and election officials and the new...