Written by: CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY and DAVID KLEPPER

WASHINGTON (AP) — A relatively smooth presidential election was good news for those trying to restore confidence in the system. Less encouraging was a flood of misinformation aimed at undermining confidence in the vote and creating chaos; Experts say this situation will likely get worse in the coming years.

The most important test for officials on Election Day is a series of bomb threats It was reported in five battleground states, some of which resulted in temporary evacuations of polling places. The day, like most other election days, passed with only routine problems, and former President Donald Trump’s commanding leadership allowed the presidential race to be held early Wednesday morning.

“High turnout and wide margins, that’s all we’re hoping for,” said Zach Manifold, supervisor of elections in Gwinnett County, Georgia.

More than 84 million people voted earlyIn person or by mail, it eased the grind Tuesday and gave election workers more flexibility to respond to unexpected problems.

“Yesterday and the election season were a great example of how important early voting is to ensuring safety and how it actually minimizes and mitigates some of the threats that we see,” said David Becker, the former U.S. Department of Justice attorney who leads the center. For Election Innovation and Research, he said the day after Election Day.

Election officials were prepared when the bomb threats came, starting earlier in the day in the Atlanta area and then spreading to Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. They had the best part of the year meeting with local law enforcementProviding training on various scenarios and updating emergency plans.

“I’ve seen professionals from across the country say, ‘OK, we’re going to do this,'” said Carolina Lopez, a former local election official who leads the Major Election Jurisdictions Partnership.

The FBI said the threats appeared to come from Russian email domains, but federal cybersecurity officials warned that the culprits were not necessarily Russian.

Interference from Russia and other foreign rivals was a persistent theme throughout the election season.

Russia, Iran, and China have steadily increased their use of English-language disinformation in the months leading up to Election Day. Their goals were different, but their tactics were similar: using networks of fake social media accounts and websites to spread trustworthy content. Election security and American democracy.

Russia was especially brave, creating and expanding staged videos Intended to denigrate Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. The Kremlin’s efforts this year also included: Paying Tennessee media company $10 million for producing pro-Russian content.

“Russia clearly interfered in this election,” said Brian Taylor, a political science professor at Syracuse University and a Russia expert. He said Russia’s goals were “to help Trump and create chaos more generally — although there is no evidence that their activities changed the outcome.”