CHICAGO (WLS) — As the clock ticks down to the Nov. 5 general election, election officials have been warned to be aware of insider threats: rogue volunteers whose actions can affect the security and integrity of election systems.

The “insider threat” could come from election workers, observers and election judges working with ulterior motives, according to the FBI, the US Election Assistance Commission and other federal agencies.

Many organizations in Illinois and across the country that spent years promoting false claims that the 2020 election was rigged have since turned to recruiting poll workers and volunteers to participate in the 2024 general election, I found -Team.

At a country club in the western suburbs of Geneva in September, “Captain K” took the microphone.

“What I’m doing right is promoting the gospel that the 2020 election was stolen,” said retired Army Capt. Seth Keshel, who goes by the name Capt. K.

In a video recorded by the group Three Headed Eagle Alliance, Captain K shared unsupported claims that voter fraud was rampant in Illinois in 2020 and explained why Election Day volunteers are needed to “fix” the problem.

“If you want to fix elections, you can start right here in Kane County,” Keshel said. “We have a lot of influencers. We don’t have enough middle managers and we certainly don’t have enough foot soldiers.”

Keshel declined the I-Team’s request for an interview, but said in an email that “poll watchers are needed to prevent fraudulent practices at the polls” and that he has “never suggested the use of violence in resolving issues of of elections”.

Despite federal election officials saying 2020 was the ‘safest election in history’, the ‘Big Lie’ that it was stolen unravels.

One POLL last year, Monmouth University in New Jersey found that “three in 10 Americans” still believe “that Joe Biden won the presidency only because of voter fraud.”

Federal authorities — including the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the US Election Assistance Commission — fear that skepticism could lead to the planting of election volunteers with corrupt motives, as has happened in other parts of the country.

The “insider threat” is one of many facing election officials nationwide.

“This is by far the most dynamic threat environment and the craziest operating environment that election officials have ever faced,” said Noah Praetz, a former Cook County election official who now advises election officials with his company , The Elections Group.

“If you thought your democracy was stolen, you would use every lever of power you could look under the hood,” Praetz said. “If you thought things were hacked, you might do things you shouldn’t, like run off with a laptop or hard drive. These things are big risks.”

One federal note released earlier this yearofficials warned of the “insider threat” or “an individual or group using their authorized access or special knowledge to cause harm,” including “malicious acts that affect the security and integrity of election systems and information.”

Those individuals, including election workers, observers and election judges who work with ulterior motives.

Even in non-battleground counties and states, the “inside threat” is on the minds of Kane County Clerk John Cunningham and other local election officials.

“We’re worried about Election Day,” Cunningham said. “They tried the last election, they sent a lot of their group, one of the groups, sending a lot of observers. Now they’re trying to become judges. So we have to be careful about that.”

Kane County is one of several counties in Illinois where election denialists, including Captain K, say they would be charged with voter fraud in 2020.

Cunningham said he tried to show election deniers the real evidence.

“Some of them will listen,” Cunningham explained. “Some of them have made up their minds so much that if God came down, they would not change their minds because they were indoctrinated.”

In Kane County, the Three-Headed Eagle Alliance group that hosted Captain K recruited poll workers.

In a statement, the organization’s officials said they are a “non-partisan organization,” however, most of their events convey a pro-Trump message, some of which deny the election.

Debbie Kanarowski, the group’s president, told the I-Team in an emailed statement: “The Three Headed Eagle Alliance is a nonpartisan organization that encourages empowerment and engagement.”

“The voting process works best when everyone is involved and voters understand the process,” Kanarowski said. “Once the procedures are understood, it encourages more engagement and trust. Voters will be more likely to vote and become judges or active electoral candidates, which will benefit all parties.”

The I-Team reviewed training videos for poll watchers and attended a live training session held by a state group promoting bogus theories about the 2020 election results.

The training session and videos were based on state law and did not promote illegal activity.

To address the risk of threats, Kane County has invested in security.

Cunningham said the cameras monitor the path of every vote that comes in and the actions of both the blue-jacketed Democratic judges and the red-wearing Republican judges.

In addition, Kane County Sheriff’s deputies will patrol all polling places in the county on Election Day.

Cunningham says his greatest resource is other election workers and election judges who know the law.

“We have a bench of judges that have been here for years,” Cunningham said, “We’ve been able to make sure that all the other judges that come in are basically law abiding.”

While election officials must be mindful of risks to election integrity, Praetz said he believes the democratic process is best served when members of all parties are involved on Election Day.

“One thing that’s unique about the election compared to the other critical infrastructure we worry about is that unlike sections of the dam or the power grid, you can’t throw barbed wire around the fence and keep people out,” Praetz said.

He continued: “The more skeptical people are, the better to have them at the table. They’re actually vetting voters, counting ballots, conducting audits so they can validate that our democracy is on the up and up.”