In a move raising alarms ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, a Trump-connected political consultant has been contacting Republican election clerks in Colorado, demanding access to voting machines.
Experts and officials say the effort is suspicious, possibly illegal — and potentially aimed at influencing or rigging election outcomes.
Jeff Small, a former chief of staff to Rep. Lauren Boebert and now a consultant with the conservative firm 76 Group, called at least 10 county clerks last week. He told them he was working with the White House, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Homeland Security on an effort to review election systems.
Small claimed he needed third-party access to the machines to identify security “gaps” — and said President Trump’s team was frustrated by what he called a slow rollout of a federal executive order aimed at increasing control over elections. A federal court blocked that order last month.
All 10 clerks said no, according to The Denver Post.
“I’m sitting here going, ‘There’s a person spending nine years in prison here in Colorado for doing the exact same thing,’” said El Paso County Clerk Steve Schleiker, referring to ex-Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, who was convicted of allowing unauthorized access to voting machines.
Schleiker said Small called him on July 9 and tried to connect him with an official from Homeland Security. That official requested access to El Paso County’s voting equipment.
“I was like, ‘Oh,’” Schleiker said. “The federal government has no jurisdiction over local voting equipment. I told them to call the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office or the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.”
Grantham, the clerk in Fremont County, said Small told him he was “looking for Republican clerks in Democratic states” who would allow a third party to inspect voting machines. Grantham said the request felt political and inappropriate.
“As someone who’s in charge of elections, we try to stay neutral, and it makes me feel a little bit uncomfortable that that’s how they’re wanting to try to gain access to these machines,” Grantham said.
What made matters worse: Small falsely claimed to Grantham that El Paso County had agreed to cooperate. “I knew (El Paso County was) not on board,” Grantham said. “But what he told me was they’re on board — like, if one goes, all should go. I knew better.”
Some election experts say the timing and nature of the outreach suggest the effort may be more than just a security check.
“This raises serious red flags,” said one election law expert familiar with the case. “You don’t cold-call county clerks months before a major election and ask for backdoor access to voting machines unless you’re testing the limits — or trying to rig the process.”
Matt Crane, executive director of the Colorado County Clerks Association, said several clerks reached out to him immediately after the calls. Crane said some clerks were told that Small was working on behalf of Stephen Miller — Trump’s former deputy chief of staff and a key promoter of false election fraud claims.
Crane was blunt: “I’m not aware of anything in federal law that would give them the ability to do this. It doesn’t matter if it’s the greatest cyber ninjas or some guy in a basement — or the federal government. If they don’t have a legal reason to be near these systems, they’re not getting near these systems.”
A Clear Violation of State Law
In a letter sent to clerks last week, Crane reminded them that giving access to outside parties is a violation of Colorado law.
Secretary of State Jena Griswold said unauthorized access isn’t just risky — it’s criminal. “It could lead to a felony conviction and imprisonment,” she said. “That’s where unauthorized access to voting equipment leads.”
She added that Colorado takes election security “extremely seriously” and noted that anyone requesting access must go through proper vetting, including background checks and legal approval.
A Wider Pattern Emerging
Colorado is not the only state targeted, ABC News reported.
The Department of Justice has recently sent letters to at least six states — including Nevada, Wisconsin, and New Hampshire — requesting detailed information about voting systems, voter rolls, and how states verify noncitizen voters.
In Wisconsin, the state elections commission pushed back, directing the DOJ to publicly available information — and reminding them that state law requires a fee for any data access, even for government agencies.
In Colorado, Griswold’s office received a letter from the DOJ earlier this year asking for records after they said they received a complaint about possible violations of the Voting Rights Act. That letter was signed by Harmeet Dhillon — a former Trump campaign legal adviser who now works in the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.
Small said in a statement that he was “approached by officials working on the President’s executive order to improve election security” and was simply connecting them with local clerks. He called the outreach a “volunteer connection effort” and said he wasn’t paid.
But he refused to answer follow-up questions — and didn’t respond to additional inquiries.
Neither the White House nor the Department of Justice has commented publicly. Homeland Security said in a vague statement: “We don’t disclose every single conversation we have with [local] partners.”
More on the story in the report below from Next 9News:
