www.eac.gov

Canvassing

and Certifying

an Election

October 2008
The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and Certifying an Election is 

part of a series of brochures designed to 

highlight and summarize the information 

contained in the chapters of the U.S. 

Election Assistance Commission’s (EAC) 

Election Management Guidelines (EMG).



The goal of the EMG is to provide a 

collection of election management 

guidelines, consolidated into one document, 

to assist State and local election officials to 

effectively manage and administer elections. 

These guidelines are solely designed to 

serve as a source of information for election 

officials and not as requirements by which 

they must abide. 

The content of the EMG and the Quick Start 

Management Guides has been developed in 

collaboration with State and local election 

officials and other election professionals 

who have first-hand experience managing 

elections. The EAC is grateful for their 

participation and ensuring the guidelines 

are practical and applicable for jurisdictions 

regardless of their size and resources. The 

EMG and the Quick Starts are available 

online at www.eac.gov.

 Recount procedures and mandatory manual tallies will be 

discussed in a separate Quick Start Management Guide. The 

EAC will also conduct a study under Section 241 (b)(13)(A)) of 

the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002 that will study the 

laws and procedures used by each state that govern: recounts 

of ballots cast in elections for Federal office; contests of 

determinations regarding whether votes are counted in such 

elections; and standards that define what will constitute a vote 

on each type of voting equipment used in the State to conducts 

elections for Federal office. A report on the results of this study 

will be made available on the EAC’s Web site, www.eac.gov. 

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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election
Introduction

Many people believe that the election results 

they see on television on election night are 

the final results, when, in fact, the outcome 

of the election is not official until the 

canvass is completed, sometimes several 

weeks after Election Day. The purpose of 

the canvass is to account for every ballot 

cast and ensure that every valid vote cast is 

included in the election totals. This involves 

accounting for every absentee ballot, every 

early voting ballot, every ballot cast on 

Election Day, every provisional ballot, every 

challenged ballot, and every overseas and 

military ballot. 

Laws and regulations for conducting the 

canvass vary by State and at times by local 

jurisdiction. These laws and regulations can 

specify who is responsible for the canvass, 

who must participate in the canvass, when 

the canvass can start, when the canvass 

must be completed, what information must 

be contained in the canvass, and which 

portions of the canvass process are open to 

the public. Following are recommendations 

to consider when conducting the canvass. 

These recommendations should be vetted

with Federal, State, and local laws, 

regulations, and relevant case law to ensure 

they are properly and lawfully implemented. 

Election officials should contact their State 

officials when there is a question as to 

whether a practice is permitted or prohibited 

under State law.

 2005 Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) definition of 

canvass: compilation of election returns and validation of the 

outcome that forms the basis of the official results by political 

subdivision. (VVSG Version 1, Volume 1, A-6)

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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election
1

The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election

Planning for the Canvass

 • Begin planning for the canvass well 

 before the election. Distributing tasks 

 and efforts throughout the election 

 cycle will allow you time to focus on 

 other tasks that will require significant 

 time and resources prior to and on 

 Election Day. 

 • Review State and local laws and 

 regulations related to canvassing an 

 election. This will provide you the 

 legal and procedural framework for 

 conducting the canvass. Do this well 

 in advance of the election so it can be 

 incorporated into training and 

 educational materials.

 • Develop a timeline; this will help you 

 prioritize tasks and keep record of 

 tasks that still need to be completed. 

 Examples of what to include in the 

 timeline are: dates for notices or legal 

 publications, board appointments, 

 observer identification, training dates 

 for temporary staff/canvass board 

 members/observers, and order for 

 processing ballots. A typical processing 

 order is: Election Day tallies, early voting 

 tallies, absentee ballots, challenged 

 ballots, overseas ballots and provisional 

 ballots. However, this will vary in 

 accordance with State laws and 

 procedures.

3
 • Identify and recruit canvass board(s) 

 members, observers, staff, duplicating 

 teams, etc. The composition and rules 

 for participating in these boards and 

 teams will vary by State and possibly 

 by jurisdiction; make sure to be up-to-

 date with this information and share it 

 with key stakeholders and the public.

Note: Depending upon State and local laws 

and regulations you may have several 

different boards involved in the canvass. 

For example, a Duplication Board to approve 

ballots that must be duplicated and a Writein Board to approve write-in ballots. In this 

document these boards are referred 

collectively as the “Canvass Board”.

 • Observers: Prepare guidelines (rules of 

 conduct/behavior) for observers. 

 Clearly identify their rights as 

 prescribed by State and/or local laws 

 or regulations, and make these 

 guidelines available at entrance points 

 to the observation room and in any 

 other areas where you make election 

 information available to the public, such 

 as your agency’s Website. For example, 

 observer guidelines generally specify 

 that observers must stay within 

 specified “observer sites”and cannot 

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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election
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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election

5

 talk to board members or election 

 officials except in special 

 circumstances (e.g. to point out an 

 error). Clearly state that you have the 

 right to eject any observer that is loud 

 or disruptive.

 • Require observers to wear an 

 identifying badge that contains their 

 name and sponsoring organization, if 

 applicable.

Note: Require representatives of 

organizations to wear a name badge 

identifying their organization. This will assist 

you in dealing with the observers if you 

can tell who is there as a member of the 

general public and who is representing an 

organization.

 • If possible, provide a brief orientation 

 to cover the guidelines and have the 

 attendees sign in to document their 

 presence. 

 • Notify the local TV stations, radio 

 stations, and newspapers of the dates 

 and times of canvass activities that are 

 open for public review.

 • Notify political parties, civic 

 organizations, and advocacy groups 

 of the dates and times of canvass 

 activities that are being conducted 

 and provide information for 

 obtaining a pass.

Important: Unless restricted by State or 

local law or regulation, it is recommended 

that every canvass activity be open to the 

public.

Note: When your printed ballots are 

received you have your first statistic for the 

canvass: the number of printed ballots that 

must be accounted for.
Preparing for the Canvass

 • Set up all processing areas and clearly 

 mark “observer sites.” 

 • Collect and compile all of the materials 

 and components that you will need to

 complete the canvass. Including:

 – Rosters, signature cards, etc. from 

 all precincts, vote centers, and early 

 voting locations

 – Electronic media and printouts from 

 all precincts, vote centers, and early 

 voting locations

 – Early and absentee/mail-in ballots 

 – Provisional ballot

 – Challenged ballots

 – Qualified write-ins

 – Overseas and military ballots

 – Results of required election audits 

 conducted after the election, where 

 applicable

 – Any spoiled ballots

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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election
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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election

Conducting the Canvass

 • Maintain a written report of every

 action taken during the canvass and 

 those individuals present or 

 responsible.

 • During the canvass, a ballot may have 

 to be duplicated for a variety of 

 reasons depending on local statutes: 

 it was not voted on an official ballot, 

 the ballot is returned in a damaged 

 condition, or has been marked by an

 unacceptable marking device. 

 • Clearly mark both the “original” and 

 the “duplicate” ballots. Have two 

 members of the Canvass Board 

 review each duplicated ballot.

 • For each precinct, compare the 

 number of ballots cast with the 

 number of voters recorded by the

 poll workers. How does this number 

 compare to the number of voters 

 who signed in the Signature Roster 

 or whose name appear on the Poll

 List? Resolve any discrepancies.

 • Document any precinct exceptions; 

 this includes mismatches, overvotes, 

 damaged ballots, and other voter 

 errors.

7
 • Conduct a similar accounting of the 

 results from each vote center and 

 early voting location.

Important: Present the reconciled results 

from the precincts, vote centers, and early 

voting locations to the Canvass Board for 

their review and approval.

 • Reconcile the provisional and 

 challenged ballots. 

 • If required under State law, send a 

 written notification to voters whose 

 provisional or challenged ballots are 

 rejected and provide the reason for 

 the rejection.

Tip: If a provisional ballot is rejected 

because the voter is not registered, send

the voter a registration card with the 

written notification. If you do not send 

written notification, you may also consider 

making an announcement on your free 

access system letting these voters know how 

they may register to voter.

Note: The number of accepted and rejected 

provisional ballots, when added up, must be 

equal to the total number of provisional 

ballots cast; and the number of accepted 

and rejected challenged ballots, when added 

up, must be equal to the total number of 

Important: Present the reconciled 

provisional and challenged ballots to the 

Canvass Board for their review and approval.

 • Tally all valid write-in votes.

 • Verify all military and overseas ballots.

3 Section 302(a)(5)(A) and (B) of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002 

requires that the appropriate State or local election official establish a free 

access system for provisional voters to use to learn whether their vote was 

counted, and, if it was not counted, the reason why it was not counted; it 

also requires that voters be provided written information regarding this free 

access system at the time they cast their provisional ballot.

 See above.

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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election
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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election

 • If any military or overseas ballot is 

 rejected, notify the voter and provide 

 the reason for the rejection.

Note: If a military or overseas ballot is 

rejected because the voter is not registered, 

include a registration card with this 

notification.

Important: Every ballot that is rejected 

should be reviewed by an election supervisor 

and made available to the Canvass Board for 

their review.

Documenting the Canvass

Documentation of the canvass consists of 

three components: certified returns, 

informational statistics, and a narrative.

 • The certified returns are the tally of all 

 of the valid ballots cast in the election. 

 This is usually in the form of a report 

 from the election management system.

 • The informational statistics provide

 an overview of the election process. 

 They tell how many ballots were cast 

 (in person, mail in, provisional, 

 challenged, etc.) how many were 

 accepted and how many were rejected. 

 These statistics provide information 

 about how the election was conducted

 and how people voted.

Note: All rejected ballots should be 

presented to the Canvass Board for their 

review and approval.

 • The narrative is the story of the canvass. 

 It is a list of issues encountered and a 

 discussion of the results of corrective 

 actions.

Certifying the Election

 • Present all of the canvass 

 documentation; including certified 

 returns, statistics, and narrative to the 

9
10

 Canvass Board for their review and 

 approval.

 • Invite the media to attend this meeting 

 of the Canvass Board.

 • Prepare detailed minutes of the 

 meeting of the Canvass Board and 

 make these minutes a part of the 

 documentation package.

 • Following the Canvass Board’s 

 certification of the election and if 

 required by State law, provide each 

 candidate with a notice of certification

 of the election.

 • Retain copies of the canvass to make 

 available for public review and consider 

 posting an electronic version on your 

 website for easy accessibility.

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The Quick Start Management Guide on 

Canvassing and 

Certifying an Election
For information regarding this publication or to 

request additional copies at no cost, please contact: 

Address 

U.S. Election Assistance Commission 

1201 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 300 

Washington, DC 20005

Attn: Election Management Guidelines

Telephone

(202) 566-3100 

(866) 747-1471 (toll free)

Fax

(202) 566-3127

E-mail Address

HAVAinfo@eac.gov

Website

www.eac.gov

The EAC is an independent bipartisan commission created by 

the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA). It is charged with 

administering payments to states and developing guidance to 

meet HAVA requirements, implementing election administration 

improvements, adopting voluntary voting system guidelines, 

accrediting voting system test laboratories and certifying voting 

equipment and serving as a national clearinghouse and resource 

of information regarding election administration.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION