Rochester Hills Clerk Appointed To National Election Board

From the City of Rochester Hills: Rochester Hills City Clerk Tina Barton was recently appointed to the EAC Board of Advisors through the U. S. Conference of Mayors. The board of advisors is a 35-member board composed of representatives from several national organizations such as the National Governors Association, National Conference of State Legislatures, National Association of Secretaries of State, and others. The board functions as an advisory body through review of voluntary voting systems guidelines.

Tina Barton has been the clerk of the city of Rochester Hills since 2013 and is an undisputed leader on the subject of elections. She earned a master of arts in management andleadership from Liberty University and is a master municipal clerk and certified Michigan municipal clerk. Tina was the 2016 Michigan City Clerk of the Year and the 2017 Leader of Leaders in Public Service – Leadership Oakland.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson recently appointed Barton to the state's election security advisory commission. The election security advisory commission consists of 18 local and national experts on cybersecurity and elections.

"It is an honor to be appointed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors. I look forward to working with members of the election community across the country on important issues facing our democracy today,” stated Clerk Barton. “One of my priorities is election security. With the recent release of the bipartisan report on foreign interference by the Senate Select Intelligence Committee, I will be focused on recommendations outlined in the report that will protect our election infrastructure."

Within the past year, she has been extensively involved in piloting a post-election risk limiting audit, a cutting edge election security measure. Partners overseeing this initiative included the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, MIT, the University of California/Berkeley, and the Brennan Center for Justice at the NYU School of Law.

Earlier this year, Clerk Barton received national recognition for spearheading an innovative Election Day precinct support portal that allowed precinct workers to submit requests or questions via a smartphone or tablet using a simple Google form. For this effort, Barton and her team were awarded a 2019 “Clearie” Award from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission for Outstanding Innovation in Elections. The “Clearie” Award recognizes best practices in election administration and highlights exemplary models which can serve as examples to other officials and jurisdictions.

“This is a big win for Rochester Hills and a big win for Michigan,” stated Mayor Bryan K. Barnett. “We’re proud that one of our own will now help lead at the national level regarding one of the most important issues facing our country.”

Image Courtesy of the City of Rochester Hills