Dear Member,
We regret to report that at its March 2, 2013, meeting, the USRowing Board of Directors was alerted to evidence of unauthorized access to the online voting system used in the 2013 annual elections for positions on the Board of Directors and USRowing standing committees.
Although there was no allegation that unauthorized persons had in fact cast votes for member organizations or otherwise altered the results, the Board decided to take immediate action to ensure the integrity of the 2013 election results, and secured outside legal counsel to lead the investigation. The law firm Bryan Cave, Colorado Springs, acting in consultation with the USRowing Legal Committee, began an immediate investigation, which is still ongoing.
During the initial phase of the investigation, a member of the rowing community came forward and disclosed being able to obtain login information that allowed access to VoteNet, USRowing's third-party online voting resource, while appearing to be an authorized voter of a USRowing member organization. The member reported being able to acquire this information for approximately 300 rowing organizations in the Mid-Atlantic region only. This individual also admitted to using these credentials while the election was underway to log into most of the Mid-Atlantic organizations' ballot accounts at VoteNet.
Because this individual's disclosure raised concerns about the validity of the entire annual voting process, USRowing's investigation was expanded to include a review of all election ballots cast nationwide in the 2013 USRowing election. Over the next few days, USRowing organizations may be contacted by Bryan Cave investigators as part of this process and asked to confirm whether they voted in the 2013 election. We are grateful in advance for your cooperation in this investigation.
USRowing has been using electronic voting for four years and has confidence in the VoteNet system. However, this matter clearly mandates a review of security protocols in our election process. Furthermore, when the investigation is complete, the USRowing Board will consider all available options to guarantee the integrity of, and confidence in, our election process, and does not rule out any possible remedy, including, if necessary, conducting a new election.
We appreciate the understanding of all USRowing members during this process, and encourage anyone with information concerning misconduct in this election process to contact our outside counsel: Steve B. Smith, Bryan Cave HRO, (719) 473-3800, [email protected].
We pledge to continue to keep you informed as the investigation continues.
USRowing Board of Directors