With Florida's 2018 general election just weeks away the race for U.S. Senate election officials are growing concerned about the potential for hacking. The issue is now playing a role in the U.S. Senate race, as Governor Rick Scott and Senator Bill Nelson spar over whether the state's systems are secure.
Florida U.S Senator Bill Nelson continues to maintain Florida’s election system has been infiltrated by Russian hackers but that’s not been verified yet. Meanwhile, Governor Rick Scott is calling on Nelson to back up his assertion with evidence.
“Why would you do this? I mean, the options are, it didn’t happen, or he released classified information," Scott told reporters.
The federal government has neither confirmed nor denied the claim after the state sent a letter asking for information. Fellow Florida Senator Marco Rubio has said he won’t address Nelson’s statement. This comes after Florida received more than $19 million from the federal government to shore up election security in the wake of at least 100 unsuccessful attempts by Russia to tap into local election systems during the 2016 presidential cycle.
