Russian meddling found in midterms

WASHINGTON — Russian operations meant to polarize U.S. voters continued during the midterm elections, but did not compromise the voting systems used, according to a study by the intelligence community.

The assessment by Dan Coats, director of national intelligence, was the result of a request by the White House before the November vote that he examine election meddling by Russia and other powers. The agency did not release that report, but Coats released a statement Friday on the document.

“Russia, and other foreign countries, including China and Iran, conducted influence activities and messaging campaigns targeted at the United States to promote their strategic interests,” Coats said.

The statement contained little detail, but U.S. officials said the intelligence report found that Russia continued to use social media, fake personas and Moscow-controlled media with an aim of further polarizing the United States.

The report will be sent to the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security. Under the executive order issued in September, automatic sanctions could be imposed on anyone found to have tried to manipulate the vote.

Coats said in his statement that the report did not include an assessment of the effectiveness of the Russian information campaign. The public report also did not include an assessment on whether Russian attempts at election meddling were tilted toward a particular party or candidate.

Current and former U.S. officials have said that Russian propaganda efforts in the midterm elections were less than expected.