Yuyun Lusiyani
At the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), David Harvilicz occupies a pivotal position, formulating policy for the protection of the nation’s election infrastructure, which includes critical voting machines. This appointment has drawn significant scrutiny due to Harvilicz’s past associations and public statements. He is the co-founder of Tranquility AI, a company established with James Penrose, a figure instrumental in propagating disproven conspiracy theories asserting that hacked voting machines were responsible for Donald Trump’s defeat in the 2020 presidential election. Penrose notably engaged in efforts to seize voting machines as part of a broader campaign to overturn Trump’s loss.
Harvilicz himself has been a vocal critic of voting machines on social media platforms. He has advocated for their elimination, asserting that they are "eminently vulnerable to exploitation." In a March post, he unequivocally stated, "DHS needs to ban voting machines for all federal elections. The time is now." Beyond this, he has repeatedly questioned the legitimacy of Democratic electoral victories and urged Republicans to undertake comprehensive overhauls of electoral systems to their party’s benefit.
This confluence of factors — Harvilicz’s prominent role, his business partnership with Penrose, and his public skepticism regarding the very systems he is tasked with safeguarding — has ignited profound concerns among election experts, as well as current and former DHS officials. These apprehensions are amplified by the current administration’s unprecedented actions to revisit and, in effect, relitigate Trump’s unsubstantiated claims of a stolen 2020 election. Such actions include the FBI’s seizure of 2020 voting records from Fulton County, Georgia, and the involvement of a team working for Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, in taking custody of voting machines utilized in Puerto Rico during the 2020 election cycle.
The Nexus of Authority and Controversial Past
The appointment of an individual with Harvilicz’s background to a role overseeing election infrastructure security represents a significant departure from traditional norms, where impartiality and a demonstrable commitment to evidence-based security practices are paramount. Election security, particularly the integrity of voting machines, has been a contentious issue since the 2020 election, when numerous audits, recounts, and court cases uniformly affirmed the election’s outcome and the security of the voting process. Despite these findings, a persistent narrative of widespread fraud, often centered on voting machines, has continued to circulate in certain political circles.
Danielle Lang, vice president for voting rights and the rule of law at the Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan pro-democracy organization, articulated these concerns directly: "The security of our election infrastructure depends on leadership that is trusted, impartial and grounded in evidence – not individuals who have promoted conspiracy theories about the very systems they are now responsible for protecting. Placing someone with that background in charge of policies affecting election security can undermine public confidence in our elections at a time when trust is already fragile." Her statement underscores the delicate balance required to maintain public faith in democratic processes, especially in a polarized political climate.
The Department of Homeland Security has largely remained unforthcoming regarding specific inquiries about Harvilicz and his team. In a general statement, the agency affirmed, "DHS and its employees are focused on keeping our elections safe, secure, and free. Every single day appointees at the Department of Homeland Security work to implement the President’s policies and keep our Homeland safe." Harvilicz himself has not responded to questions concerning his DHS responsibilities. His X (formerly Twitter) account acknowledges his position as DHS’s assistant secretary for cyber, infrastructure, risk and resilience policy but indicates that he has been detailed to the Department of Defense. Such temporary assignments typically occur in 120-day increments, raising additional questions about the nature and duration of his operational involvement within DHS.
A Shift in DHS’s Election Security Mandate
Harvilicz’s appointment to the DHS role occurred around July, assuming a position that has historically concentrated on shaping policies to protect the nation’s critical infrastructure, including election systems. The designation of election infrastructure as critical infrastructure in 2017 by then-Secretary Jeh Johnson was a direct response to foreign interference in the 2016 election, aiming to provide federal resources and expertise to state and local election officials to bolster their defenses against cyber and physical threats. The role was intended to be non-partisan, focusing on technical assistance and threat intelligence sharing.
However, current and former DHS officials indicate that Harvilicz and his team have markedly transformed their functions, adopting a more hands-on and politically charged approach. They have been extensively involved in facilitating multiple administration data-gathering initiatives aimed at scrutinizing voter rolls for noncitizens. ProPublica has previously documented one such effort, which resulted in hundreds of legitimate citizens being erroneously flagged as potential noncitizens, highlighting the potential for errors and the politicization of data analysis.
The "Election Integrity" Team and its Ideological Underpinnings
Working directly under Harvilicz is Heather Honey, the deputy assistant secretary of election integrity. ProPublica has reported on Honey’s prior role as a leader in the Election Integrity Network, a conservative organization that has consistently challenged the legitimacy of American election systems. Honey worked in close collaboration with Cleta Mitchell, the network’s leader, who gained prominence for her significant involvement in Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election defeat. This background raises serious questions about the impartiality of the "election integrity" initiatives being pursued under Harvilicz’s leadership.
Another key member reporting to Harvilicz is Samantha Anderson, a data specialist who previously worked to support Trump’s election campaigns through the advocacy arm of the America First Policy Institute, a think tank closely aligned with the former president. The composition of this team, with individuals holding strong partisan ties and histories of questioning election outcomes, fuels concerns that the DHS’s election security function could be repurposed to serve political objectives rather than upholding neutral, evidence-based security protocols.
Multiple officials and election experts have voiced apprehension that Harvilicz and Honey will play pivotal roles in assessing and describing the cybersecurity landscape of the upcoming election, both to the public and to senior administration leaders. A more troubling concern revolves around the possibility that if Trump were to again seek control of voting machines after an election, particularly if Republicans face setbacks, Harvilicz would be ideally positioned to facilitate such actions. A current DHS official starkly summarized this fear, stating, "It would be super easy for them to get the voting machines," adding that they could "describe it as they want, if they don’t like the results." This statement underscores the perceived vulnerability of the election security apparatus to political manipulation under the current leadership.
Tranquility AI: A Shared Venture with a Contentious Partner
The professional connection between Harvilicz and James Penrose extends to their co-founding of Tranquility AI, a company that has developed an artificial intelligence tool for law enforcement. Both are listed on its 2025 patents as co-developers of its systems. Penrose, a former intelligence officer, gained notoriety for his leading role in the campaign to support Trump’s unsuccessful efforts to overturn the 2020 election, as extensively reported by ProPublica. Penrose was involved in multiple attempts to clandestinely seize voting machines, including incidents in Michigan, where prosecutors accused him of breaching some of the machines. While Penrose was not ultimately charged in that case, his activities were widely documented. Furthermore, he was identified by The Washington Post as an unindicted co-conspirator in the failed Georgia prosecution where Trump was accused of conspiring to overturn the election results. Penrose did not respond to requests for comment for this article.
Intriguingly, one of the advertised uses for Tranquility AI’s product, according to the company’s website, is "election integrity." However, the company has not provided further details in response to inquiries. Tranquility AI’s tools, which assist law enforcement agents in processing data and assembling cases, have been employed by the New Orleans district attorney, and the company claims partnerships with dozens of law enforcement agencies nationwide. In July 2025, a major government IT contractor, Carahsoft, announced a partnership with Tranquility AI, signaling its broader penetration into the public sector.
Harvilicz’s Career Trajectory and Political Alignment
Harvilicz’s career path is diverse, beginning with work at law firms on Wall Street and in the tech sector. In 2004, at the age of 29, he launched an unsuccessful bid for a Maryland congressional seat. Following this, he held leadership roles in a crowdfunding company, a movie marketing business, a film production company that collaborated with former intelligence officers, and several cybersecurity ventures. It was in one of these cybersecurity ventures that he again worked with Penrose. His professional experience also includes a stint in the first Trump administration, where he served as a cybersecurity official in the Department of Energy.
Prior to Harvilicz securing the DHS position, Tranquility AI made a significant $100,000 donation to Trump’s inaugural fund through a newly created nonprofit based at Harvilicz’s home address, as first reported by The Intercept. In response to The Intercept’s questions, Harvilicz stated that the donation was intended to facilitate meetings with administration policymakers. The Intercept’s reporting first highlighted his ties to Penrose in connection with this donation.
Harvilicz has maintained a prolific presence on social media, sharing hundreds of conservative posts. After Trump won a second presidential term, he posted, "We will now dismantle the near communist takeover of America and return her to greatness." This statement reflects a strong ideological commitment that critics argue could compromise the non-partisan integrity expected of a senior DHS official responsible for election security.
In a personal anecdote that further underscores his political allegiance, Harvilicz’s $3.3 million home outside Los Angeles was destroyed by the Palisades Fire around the beginning of Trump’s second term. He reportedly stood on a roadside to greet the president during a tour of the disaster area, holding his young son on his shoulders. His son held aloft a picture of a bloodied Trump punching the air after surviving an assassination attempt. During this encounter, Harvilicz told a reporter for the Los Angeles Times that he supported Trump making disaster aid conditional on the Democratic state implementing voter ID laws. "I hope he saw us," Harvilicz reportedly told the Times reporter, illustrating his desire for direct engagement and influence.
Broader Implications for Election Integrity and Public Trust
The combined elements of Harvilicz’s appointment, his team’s composition, his past statements, and his professional and financial ties to individuals central to the 2020 election challenges pose a substantial challenge to the perceived impartiality and effectiveness of federal election security efforts. The DHS, through its Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), has traditionally played a vital role in providing non-partisan guidance and resources to state and local election officials to protect against cyber threats. The politicization of this role risks alienating these crucial partners and undermining their trust in federal support.
At a time when public confidence in electoral processes is already fragile, as noted by Danielle Lang, placing officials with clear partisan agendas and histories of questioning election outcomes in charge of election security policy could further erode that trust. It creates an environment where federal interventions in election security might be viewed through a partisan lens, rather than as neutral efforts to safeguard democracy. This situation could also empower individuals and groups who seek to challenge legitimate election results by providing them with a potential conduit within a key federal agency.
Ultimately, the controversy surrounding David Harvilicz’s role at DHS highlights a critical tension between the need for robust, impartial election security and the increasing politicization of electoral administration. The implications extend beyond the immediate security of voting machines, potentially impacting the foundational principles of non-partisanship and trust that underpin democratic elections.
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