{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://krishnamoorthi.house.gov/media/press-releases/krishnamoorthi-demands-answers-trump-doj-over-reported-hiring-lawyer-convicted", "Krishnamoorthi Demands Answers from Trump DOJ Over Reported Hiring of Lawyer Convicted of Hacking Election Websites for Election Monitoring", "2026-08-27", "2026", "2026-08", "Democrat", "House", "IL", "Raja Krishnamoorthi", "K000391", "krishnamoorthi.house.gov", "krishnamoorthi", "https://krishnamoorthi.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2014 Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), a senior member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, today demanded answers from Attorney General Todd Blanche following reports that a lawyer convicted of hacking election websites joined the Trump Administration\u2019s Civil Rights Division and participated in its election-monitoring operation during Minnesota\u2019s August primary. The reports come as DOJ prepares to deploy as many as 1,000 personnel during the November midterm elections, raising urgent questions about who the Department is entrusting with access to polling locations and voters.\n\nIn the letter, Krishnamoorthi writes:\n\n\u201cReports indicate that David Michael Levin\u2014a Florida attorney who pleaded guilty in 2016 to unauthorized computer intrusions involving two election websites\u2014appears to have joined the Department\u2019s Civil Rights Division and participated in the Department\u2019s monitoring of Minnesota\u2019s August primary. Photographs and video reviewed by reporters reportedly show Mr. Levin standing alongside a Civil Rights Division attorney at a Minneapolis polling location, where a local election judge intervened after the two men positioned themselves too close to the polling place.\u201d\n\nAccording to Florida investigators, Levin used SQL injection techniques to obtain the login credentials of the Lee County Supervisor of Elections and used those credentials to access the office\u2019s website as an administrator. He also targeted the Florida Division of Elections website. Levin was originally charged with three felonies, ultimately pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors, and served 20 days in jail.\n\nDOJ has not publicly explained Levin\u2019s employment status, his role in the monitoring operation, or how he was selected to participate. Reports have also identified other individuals brought into the Civil Rights Division who have publicly questioned the legitimacy of past elections.\n\nKrishnamoorthi continues:\n\n\u201cThese reports raise a fundamental question: What standards is the Department applying when selecting the personnel who will be responsible for protecting Americans\u2019 voting rights?\u201d\n\nThe letter follows Krishnamoorthi\u2019s August 19 demand for safeguards against voter intimidation and answers on how DOJ will select, train, and supervise as many as 1,000 election monitors it plans to deploy during the 2026 midterms, nearly twice the size of its 2024 effort.\n\nKrishnamoorthi writes:\n\n\u201cIf the reports concerning Mr. Levin are accurate, his presence at a polling location would call that confidence into question. An individual with a documented history of unauthorized access to election systems should not be placed in a position of authority or proximity to voters and election officials without a clear explanation from the Department of the vetting, supervision, and legal authority governing that assignment.\u201d\n\nKrishnamoorthi requested responses to the following questions by September 3, 2026:\n\nIs David Michael Levin currently, or has he previously been, an employee, contractor, detailee, or volunteer of the Civil Rights Division? If so, please identify his position, responsibilities, and dates of service.\n\nWhat vetting process does the Department require before assigning an individual to election-monitoring duties, including criminal background checks and reviews of an individual\u2019s prior involvement with election systems or election-related activities? Was that process followed in Mr. Levin\u2019s case?\n\nWere Department officials aware of Mr. Levin\u2019s 2016 conviction for unauthorized access to election systems before he participated in the Minneapolis monitoring operation? If so, who approved his participation?\n\nUnder what legal authority was Mr. Levin present at the Powderhorn Park polling location? Was he a duly appointed federal election observer, a Civil Rights Division employee, or acting in another capacity?\n\nWhat training and written guidance are provided to election monitors regarding permissible conduct inside or near polling places, including restrictions designed to prevent voter intimidation and interference with election officials?\n\nWhat screening criteria will the Department apply to the approximately 1,000 personnel it plans to deploy in November? Will those criteria include an individual\u2019s criminal history, prior conduct involving election systems, and public efforts to undermine confidence in lawful elections?\n\nWill the Department provide Congress with a written description of the vetting, training, supervision, and disciplinary procedures governing its 2026 election-monitoring program before those personnel are deployed?\n\nKrishnamoorthi requested a complete response by September 3, 2026, citing the proximity of the midterm elections and the scale of DOJ\u2019s planned deployment.", 1, "2026-08-28T17:11:49Z", "2026-08-28T17:13:14Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://krishnamoorthi.house.gov/media/press-releases/krishnamoorthi-demands-answers-trump-doj-over-reported-hiring-lawyer-convicted"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7034400478005409, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}