- Connecticut is hiring a misinformation specialist ahead of the 2022 midterms, per NYT.
- The role has a $150,000 salary and involves monitoring and combating online election misinformation.
- The state is also spending $2 million on a public information voting campaign.
Connecticut is hiring its first full-time misinformation specialist to combat "malicious foreign actors" ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.
The New York Times reported the news.
As part of Governor Ned Lamont's midterm budget, Connecticut's Office of the Secretary of the State recommended funding an IT security analyst to ensure voters received accurate information.
Insider previously reported in February 2021 that the battle against election misinformation was going local and that the fight against conspiracy theories on social media would likely continue at the micro level.
Connecticut's midterm budget statement read: "Over the last few election cycles, malicious foreign actors have demonstrated the motivation and capability to significantly disrupt election activities, thus undermining public confidence in the fairness and accuracy of election results."
The job is described in the statement as a "security analyst to monitor and combat election misinformation on a full-time basis."
The role comes with a $150,000 salary, which is just less than double the average base salary of $74,000 in Connecticut, according to PayScale.
According to the budget statement, the state is also spending $2 million on a public information campaign that offers residents guidance on voting, including information on absentee voting.
A further $4 million in capital funds has been granted to the Democracy Initiatives Project to upgrade the central voter registration system and election management application, per the statement. The project is overseen by Connecticut Secretary of State Denise Merrill and its aims include minimizing the risks associated with using dated voting equipment.
Governor Lamont, a Democrat, is running for re-election in this year's midterms against Republican challenger Bob Stefanowski. Lamont did not respond to Insider's request for comment on the plans made out of normal working hours.
Connecticut voters will also decide on whether to re-elect Democratic U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal.
The 2020 presidential elections were marred by misinformation and conspiracy theories online, which many election officials speculate have become the new normal. Merrill, whose office proposed the position, called misinformation "the issue of our lifetime" in a recent interview with POLITICO.
More states across the US are hiring similar roles to target online election misinformation. Colorado has recruited three cybersecurity professionals to stop the spread of misinformation online and on social media, according to The New York Times.
