Democracy in Danger

How Hackers and Activists Exposed Fatal Flaws in the Election System

By: Jake Braun

Narrated by: James Lurie

Bloomsbury presents Democracy in Danger by Jake Braun, read by James Lurie.

Protecting the Vote

When cybersecurity expert Jake Braun challenged hackers at DEFCON, the largest hacking conference in the world, to breach the security of an American voting machine, a hacker in Europe conquered the task in less than 2 minutes. From hacking into voting machines to more mundane, but no less serious problems, our democracy faces unprecedented tests from without and within. In Democracy In Danger, Braun, a veteran of 3 presidential campaigns and former White House Liaison to the Department of Homeland Security, reveals what the national security apparatus, local election administrators, and political parties have gotten wrong about election security and what America needs to do to protect the ballot box in 2020 and beyond.

©2019 Jake Braun (P)2025 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Critic reviews

“From the frontlines of democracy as a political operative to the Department of Homeland Security to academia – Jake Braun has thought about the intersection of cybersecurity and America from all angles, and weaves his personal vignettes into Democracy in Danger. At home and abroad, from Europe to Africa, cyberattacks on democratic infrastructure are occurring regularly and we must all think and act with greater urgency. Jake understands true stakes and the solutions.” (John F. Kerry, 68th U.S. Secretary of State)

Jake Braun has done a great service to the Nation with the publication of this book. There can be no doubt about the threat to our democracy from cyber space and the immediate need for us to get beyond politics to confront and defeat this threat. Jake’s journey of discovery and action sets the stage for the future. The book reflects my strong view on the need for immediate action. (Francis X Taylor, Brig General, USAF (Retired), Former Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Intelligence and Analysis (2014 to 2017))

Democracy in Danger reads like a spy thriller, but feels like a horror movie. In his brilliant book, Jake Braun relates, in details emerging from his front row seat, the too-slow recognition of the vulnerabilities of our election system well before 2016 and how a series of missteps, blinders, bureacracy and politics led to the events surrounding the 2016 election. But all is not lost. Braun shows us how stakeholders, election officials and even hackers are building a community with one, and only one, goal: to save our elections and therefore our democracy. An engaging, detailed and honest account, Democracy in Danger is an essential read for those who have the same mission. (Juliette Kayyem, former Assistant Secretary Department of Homeland Security, current Faculty at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government)