Security | Efficiency | Accessibility | Integrity

U.S. Election Assistance

Commission

2018

Annual Report
page 2

 Table of Contents

Our Mission: Help America Vote page 2

Chairman’s Message page 3

Meet the Commissioners page 5

Distributing HAVA Funds page 14

The 2018 Election page 22

Enhancing Security page 29

Securing Systems page 35

Leveraging Data page 39

Providing Assistance page 45

Convening Election Leaders page 52

Highlighting Best Practices page 54

Financial Focus page 60

Executive Director’s Note page 63

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards page 66
page 3

 Our Mission

The U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission helps election officials 

improve the administration of 

elections and helps Americans 

participate in the voting process. 
page 4

Chairman’s Message

Since 2016, much of the public discourse 

around Federal Elections has focused 

on security – and for good reason. 

Election security is not new to election 

officials or the tens of thousands of 

election administration staff members 

and election workers who support that 

work. However, 2016 changed the threat 

environment by pitting state and local 

officials against nation-state actors who 

scanned for vulnerabilities and were 

successful in accessing at least one 

state’s voter rolls, though there is no 

evidence that any data was changed or 

votes affected. These same actors made 

additional attempts to infiltrate election 

systems ahead of the 2018 midterms 

and, by all accounts, will be back again 

in 2020. 

Election officials proved themselves 

more than capable of managing these 

threats in the lead up to, and during, the 

2018 midterm elections by increasing the 

security and resiliency of their systems 

and forming national and regional 

partnerships to improve information 

sharing and cyber protections. Election 

officials also increased voter outreach 

efforts in order to combat the biggest 

threat to election integrity: decreased 

voter confidence. Most importantly, 

election officials served voters and, by all 

accounts, carried out a successful 2018 

Federal Election. 

While the work to secure elections may be 

capturing news headlines and sparking 

conversation across the nation, it’s only 

part of what election officials do each and 

every day. From poll worker recruitment 

and polling place management to postelection audits and election night 

reporting, election officials have a broad 

spectrum of responsibilities. The U.S. 

Election Assistance Commission (EAC) 
page 5

Chairman’s Message

was proud to stand with election officials 

this year and assist in every aspect of 

their work to administer accurate, secure, 

accessible and fair elections. 

We began the year with an all-day 

summit highlighting a range of issues 

state and local election officials would 

face in the lead up to the 2018 Federal 

Elections, such as election security, voting 

accessibility, and how to use election data 

to improve the voter experience. The EAC 

continued hosting summits throughout 

the year, including a Language Access 

Summit, an Election Data Summit and 

an Election Readiness Summit. We 

convened hundreds of election officials, 

data experts, activists and other election 

stakeholders, all with the goal of getting 

ready for the upcoming elections. The 

Commission’s year-long #Countdown18 

campaign provided resources to help 

election officials prepare for the midterm 

elections, and educate voters about 

the process and encourage them to get 

involved. 

When Congress appropriated $380 million 

in Help America Vote Act (HAVA) funding 

to improve the administration of federal 

elections, the EAC set about distributing 

funds to states as efficiently as possible to 

ensure these funds could have a tangible 

impact on the 2018 midterm elections. 

By August 21, 2018, just five months 

after the appropriation, all 55 states and 

territories eligible to receive funds had 

requested them. Just one month later, 

on September 20, 2018, all states and 

territories had received 100 percent of 

their funds. That is a remarkable rate of 

distributing federal funds that is both 

efficient and responsible. 

With these funds, states were able 

to make significant improvements to 

election systems that otherwise may 

not have occurred. While simultaneously 

focusing on the thousands of logistical 

details needed to administer elections, 

states proposed plans to put these funds 

to good use, making significant upgrades 

to cybersecurity, voting equipment 

and voter registration systems, and 

increasing communications efforts and 

post-election auditing. 

It was an honor to serve as Chairman of 

the U.S. Election Assistance Commission 

over the past year. I continue to be inspired 

by the dedication and resourcefulness of 

the election officials I have the privilege 

of knowing and the hard work of the EAC 

staff. I am proud to present this report of 

the Commission’s work and look forward 

to continuing the EAC’s impact in 2019. 

Thomas Hicks

Chairman 

U.S. Election Assistance Commission
page 6

 

Meet the Commissioners

In 2018, EAC Chair Thomas Hicks and EAC Vice Chair Christy 

McCormick traveled to 38 cities in 25 states and territories to 

attend or present at conferences, visit local election offices, 

attend public hearings and meetings, and lead workshops and 

roundtables for election officials.

TX LA

MS

MO

IL

WI

NC

SC

CA

NV

UT

AZ

MT ND

FL

AL

VA

PA

PR

MD

CT

MA

DC

WA

OR
page 7

Meet the Commissioners

Chairman Thomas Hicks

EAC Commissioners serve as resources, 

advisors and conveners. 

For election officials, the Commissioners 

are expert consultants who can provide 

guidance on election administration 

trends and how jurisdictions can 

prepare to tackle the complexities 

of administering secure, accessible, 

accurate, and efficient elections.

The Commissioners alert officials to 

resources and tools that can assist with 

all phases of election administration, 

from high-level best practices to more 

substantive nuts-and-bolts tactical 

approaches for every step in the voting 

process. EAC Commissioners ensure 

election officials are able to benefit from 

federal resources, including information 

sharing networks and working groups. 

They also work to provide opportunities 

for election officials to engage with 

a wide variety of national experts, 

including national security officials. 

The EAC also ensures that the needs of 

election officials are what shape 

the creation of federal resources and 

designations intended to improve 

election administration.

For the federal government, the 

Commissioners regularly brief Members 

of Congress and federal officials from 

across the administration to provide 

a first-hand account of state and 

local efforts to administer elections. 

Commissioners report on what they 

have seen during site visits to election 

offices around the country, how election 

administrators are bolstering system 

resilience and efficiency, and what 

they may need to maintain the level of 

exemplary service that voters deserve 

and expect.

For voters and advocacy groups, 

the Commissioners provide a bridge 

between individual voters and the 

election officials who serve them. 
page 8

Meet the Commissioners

Vice Chair Christy McCormick 

Election administrators must ensure 

elections are accessible to all and 

that voters have the information and 

services they need to participate in 

elections. The Commissioners engage 

voters from across the country to 

capture information about their voting 

experience and ways the EAC can best 

assist the state and local officials who 

serve on the front lines of democracy. 

Throughout the year, EAC 

Commissioners know that traveling 

to election jurisdictions across the 

nation is the best way to fully engage, 

and understand, voters and election 

administrators hailing from such a 

diverse landscape. From local election 

office and polling place visits to 

national conferences and state election 

administrator meetings (and everything 

in between), the Commissioners 

dedicate themselves to meeting election 

leaders and voters on their home turf. 

These interactions provide pertinent

information that shapes the 

Commission’s work, guides its resources 

and informs its strategic plans.

On January 2, 2019, the United States 

Senate confirmed Donald Palmer, 

formerly a fellow at the Bipartisan 

Policy Center and member of the EAC 

Standards Board Executive Board and 

Technical Guidelines Development 

Committee, and Benjamin Hovland, 

previously the Acting Chief Counsel for 

the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules 

and Administration, to serve as EAC 

Commissioners. Palmer and Hovland’s 

confirmation marked the first time in 

nearly a decade that the EAC had a 

full roster of Commissioners. Palmer 

and Hovland’s confirmation also reestablished a full quorum at the EAC, 

which will allow the agency to better 

serve the election community.
page 9

Meet the Commissioners

Chairman Thomas Hicks

Thomas Hicks was nominated by 

President Barack H. Obama and 

confirmed by unanimous consent of 

the United States Senate on December 

16, 2014 to serve on the U.S. Election 

Assistance Commission (EAC). He has 

served as chairman of the commission 

for two terms.

Commissioner Hicks has focused his 

efforts on voter access. Under his 

leadership, the EAC developed a pocketsized voter card that serves as a guide on 

voting rights for voters with disabilities. 

The card is provided in both Braille and 

large print. The EAC has worked with 

advocacy groups and election officials to 

distribute the card.

In addition, Mr. Hicks has addressed 

the difficulties overseas voters have 

when requesting and returning their 

ballots, such as dealing with foreign IP 

addresses and issues with timely ballot 

delivery. He worked with key states to 

set up a help desk. Now, overseas voters 

receive an email response directing 

them to the help desk to obtain their 

ballots.

He serves as the designated federal 

officer for the Board of Advisors, which 

reviews the voluntary voting systems 

guidelines.

Mr. Hicks is a frequent speaker at 

conferences in the United States and 

overseas on issues such as voter access 

and cybersecurity.

Prior to his appointment with EAC, 

Commissioner Hicks served as a 

senior elections counsel and minority 

elections counsel on the U.S. House of 

Representatives Committee on House 

Administration, a position he held from 

2003 to 2014. In this role, Mr. Hicks 

was responsible for issues relating to 

campaign finance, election reform, 

contested elections and oversight 

of both the U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission and the Federal Election 

Commission. His primary responsibility 

was advising and providing guidance 

to the committee members and caucus 

on election issues. Mr. Hicks has talked 

with Americans in every state about 

their voting experiences. In addition, he 

has worked with state and local election 

officials across America to address 

critical election concerns.

Prior to joining the U.S. House of 

Representatives, Mr. Hicks served as a 

senior lobbyist and policy analyst from 

2001 to 2003 for Common Cause, a 

nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that 

empowers citizens to make their voices 

heard in the political process and to 
page 10

Meet the Commissioners

hold their elected leaders accountable to 

the public interest. Mr. Hicks has enjoyed 

working with state and local election 

officials, civil rights organizations and all 

other stakeholders to improve the voting 

process.

Mr. Hicks served from 1993 to 2001 in 

the Clinton administration as a special 

assistant and legislative assistant in the 

Office of Congressional Relations for 

the Office of Personnel Management. 

He served as agency liaison to the 

United State Congress and the president’s 

administration on matters regarding 

federal personnel policies and regulations.

Mr. Hicks received his J.D. from the Catholic 

University of America, Columbus School of 

Law and his B.A. in Government from Clark 

University (Worcester, MA). He also studied 

at the University of London (London, 

England) and law at the University of 

Adelaide (Adelaide, Australia).
page 11

Meet the Commissioners

Vice Chair Christy McCormick 

Christy McCormick was nominated 

by President Barack H. Obama and 

confirmed by unanimous consent of 

the United States Senate on December 

16, 2014 to serve on the U.S. Election 

Assistance Commission (EAC). She 

was quickly elected by her fellow 

Commissioners as Chairwoman of the 

reconstituted Commission for the 2015-

2016 term. 

As the agency’s first chairperson in four 

years, she re-established the operation 

of the Commission itself, as well as the 

Commission’s three advisory boards: the 

EAC Standards Board, Board of Advisors, 

and Technical Guidelines Development 

Committee (TGDC). Chairwoman 

McCormick executed a new management 

policy, secured a long-overdue update to 

the Voluntary Voting Systems Guidelines 

(VVSG), obtained the accreditation of a 

new Voting System Testing Laboratory 

(VSTL), oversaw the hiring of the 

Executive Director and General Counsel, 

and led the reaffirmation of accessibility 

in voting as a top priority for the 

Commission. 

She instituted the EAC’s first Language 

Accessibility Summit, first Election Data 

Summit, and established a working 

relationship with the United States 

Postal Service (USPS) to address postal 

issues in elections. As Chairwoman, Ms. 

McCormick also launched a continuing 

effort with the Federal Voting Assistance 

Program (FVAP) and the Council of 

State Governments (CSG) to improve 

the Election Administration and Voting 

Survey (EAVS), and diligently and 

successfully worked to restore the 

Commission’s standing with Members 

of Congress, the National Association of 

Secretaries of State (NASS), the National 

Association of State Election Directors 

(NASED), local election officials, and 

other stakeholders in the election 

community. 

Prior to her appointment with the EAC, 

Commissioner McCormick served as 

a Senior Trial Attorney in the Voting 

Section of the Civil Rights Division at 

the Department of Justice, a position 

she held from 2006 until joining the 

Commission. In that role, Ms. McCormick 

was responsible for investigating and 

prosecuting violations of federal voting 

statutes, including the Voting Rights 

Act, the National Voter Registration 

Act, the Uniformed and Overseas 

Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) 

and the Military and Overseas Voter 

Empowerment Act (MOVE). Additionally, 

Ms. McCormick worked with election 

officials to monitor compliance with 

federal voting statutes, especially 
page 12

Meet the Commissioners

the Voting Rights Act and its minority 

language requirements, and fair 

administration of elections. She has 

observed numerous elections, and 

worked with election officials all across 

America. 

Ms. McCormick was detailed by the 

Deputy Attorney General to be Senior 

Attorney Advisor and Acting Deputy 

Rule of Law Coordinator in the Office 

of the Rule of Law Coordinator at the 

U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq from 

2009 to 2010, where she worked as 

the U.S. elections expert overseeing 

the Iraq national elections (including 

an extensive election re-count), as 

well as on numerous U.S. and coalition 

Rule of Law efforts. She was the Rule 

of Law liaison to the Kurdish Regional 

Government as well as liaison to 

rule of law advisors at the Provincial 

Reconstruction Teams.

Prior to joining the Department of 

Justice, Ms. McCormick served as a 

Judicial Clerk to the Honorable Elizabeth 

A. McClanahan in the Court of Appeals 

of Virginia from 2003 to 2006. Ms. 

McCormick was an Assistant Attorney 

General and Assistant to the Solicitor 

General in the Office of the Attorney 

General of Virginia from 2001 to 2003. 

She was a member of the U.S. Supreme 

Court legal teams for Black v. Virginia 

(defending the Commonwealth’s criminal 

statute against cross-burning) and Hicks 

v. Virginia (defending a 1st amendment 

challenge to a state trespassing policy), 

as well as in cases on appeal to the 

4th Circuit Court of Appeals. She was a 

Judicial Law Clerk in Virginia’s Seventh 

Judicial Circuit Court from 1999 to 2001.

Ms. McCormick received her B.A. 

from the University of Buffalo, a J.D. 

with honors from the George Mason 

University School of Law (now Antonin 

Scalia Law School), and also attended 

the William & Mary School of Law.
page 13

Meet the Commissioners

Commissioner Ben Hovland

d 

Benjamin Hovland was nominated by 

President Donald J. Trump and confirme

by unanimous consent of the United 

States Senate on January 2, 2019 to 

serve on the U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission (EAC).

Previously, Commissioner Hovland 

served as an election attorney for the 

U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and 

Administration. He has been involved 

with elections since 2000. Much of this 

time has been focused on improving 

access to registration and voting. 

Mr. Hovland’s career has most recently 

focused on the federal government’s 

role in election administration 

and campaign finance regulation. 

Additionally, as the Deputy General 

Counsel for the Missouri Secretary 

of State’s office, he focused on legal 

issues related to the administration of 

state and federal elections, including 

recounts, poll worker training, voter 

registration list maintenance, statewide 

database matching, voter education 

resources and ballot initiative litigation.

EAC Commissioner Benjamin Hovland testifies before the U.S. Senate Committee on 

Rules & Administration during his November 28, 2018 nomination hearing.
page 14

Meet the Commissioners

Commissioner Donald Palmer

Donald Palmer was nominated 

by President Donald J. Trump and 

confirmed by unanimous consent of the 

United States Senate on January 2, 2019 

to serve on the U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission (EAC).

Commissioner Palmer is a former 

Bipartisan Policy Center fellow where 

he focused on the recommendations 

of the Presidential Commission on 

Election Administration to improve the 

voter experience and reform the voter 

registration process. He has also served 

as a senior adviser to the Election 

Assistance Commission.

Palmer is a former Secretary of the 

Virginia State Board of Elections and 

served as the commonwealth’s chief 

election official from 2011-2014. He also 

served as the Florida Department of 

State’s director of elections. During that 

tenure, he served on Election Assistance 

Commission advisory boards, including 

the Standards Board and the Technical 

Guidelines Development Committee, 

representing the National Association of 

State Election Directors. 

Prior to his work in election 

administration, he served as a trial 

attorney with the Voting Section in the 

U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights 

Division, where he enforced the nation’s 

voting laws. Earlier in his career, he 

served as a U.S. Navy intelligence officer 

and judge advocate general, deploying 

overseas to Italy and onboard the USS 

John F. Kennedy. He retired from the 

Navy Reserves in 2012. He earned his 

J.D. from Stetson University College of 

Law.

EAC Commissioner Donald Palmer testifies before the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules 

& Administration during his November 28, 2018 nomination hearing. 
page 15

“States Detail Election-Security Plans”

“States move quickly to tap into money for election security”

“Cybersecurity: States ramp up election protections 

ahead of midterms with $380 million in federal funds”

“State will get $3.5 million 

to improve election systems, 

security”

“Here’s how states plan to spend 

the federal money they’re getting for 

election security”

“States Detail ElectionSecurity Plans” 

 

Distributing HAVA Funds

EAC Grants Director Dr. Mark Abbott presents on the HAVA funds contained in the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act of 2018, and the process for accessing these funds, during a public forum on election 

security on April 18, 2018. How states planned to use HAVA funds received significant national press coverage 

when the EAC released narratives and budgets from 48 of the 55 states and territories eligible to receive 

these funds.

On March 23, 2018, the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act of 2018 was 

signed into law, making $380 million 

available to states to improve the 

administration of Federal Elections, the 

first appropriations for Help America 

Vote Act (HAVA) funds since FY2010. 

These funds came at a critical time. 

Voting equipment across the country 

had surpassed 10, or in some cases, 15 

years of age and election officials were 

working to improve the security of their 

election systems.

With the 2018 Midterm Elections not 

far off, the U.S. Election Assistance 
page 16

Distributing HAVA Funds

Commission (EAC) worked to make funds 

available to states as quickly as possible 

so that they could have an immediate 

impact on election preparation. States 

received grant award notification letters 

in early April, which allowed them to 

incur costs, with prior EAC approval, 

against the forthcoming grant awards. 

The Commission also distributed 

Congressional guidance on how states 

could spend the funding and held 

a public forum on April 18, 2018, to 

provide additional guidance. Funds were 

then available for states to draw down 

and deposit into their election accounts. 

Once the states returned signed 

grant documents and the required 

certifications and assurances, they 

immediately began system upgrades to 

enhance election security ahead of the 

2018 Federal Election. 

Even as election officials across the 

nation prepared for the upcoming 

midterm elections, they wasted no 

time in requesting HAVA funds and 

developing their plans to bolster election 

security and administration. By July 

17, 2018, the EAC announced each of 

the 55 eligible states and territories 

had requested 100 percent of the 

newly appropriated HAVA funds and 88 

percent, or $333,921,264, had already 

been transferred into state accounts. 

On Tuesday, August 21, 2018, less 

than five months after the Omnibus 

Consolidated Appropriations Act of 

2018 was signed into law and 77 days 

before the 2018 midterm elections, the 

EAC published program narratives and 

budgets from 48 of the 55 states and 

territories eligible to receive HAVA funds. 

Case Study: Colorado Improves Audits of ElectionRelated Systems

In 2009, the Colorado General Assembly passed legislation requiring counties 

to conduct risk-limiting audits (RLAs) following an election.A risk-limiting audit 

provides strong statistical evidence that the outcome of an election is correct. 

Because RLAs are centered on examining the original ballot cast, either a paper 

ballot or voter verifiable paper audit trail must exist. 

In 2011, the Colorado Department of State received a $230,000 grant from the 

U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to pilot a risk-limiting audit system 

that would help meet the requirements of that legislation. Colorado conducted 

the first statewide RLA after the November 2017 Coordinated Election.

Colorado intends to use the $6,342,979 the state received in HAVA funds, and 

the required state match, to enhance technology and security in the state’s 

election process, including by improving risk-limiting audits and other audits 

of election-related systems. The Colorado Secretary of State’s office worked to 

improve the existing RLA system prior to the 2018 midterm election. The state 

also plans to add security audits of other election-related systems in 2019 and 

beyond.
page 17

By September 20, 2018, all 55 states and

U.S territories had submitted their final 

plans and budgets and 100 percent of 

the $380 million had been disbursed.

The Commission made all state 

narratives and budgets public in order 

for the election community and the 

American people to have the particulars 

on how the states and territories were 

expending their funds. It is essential 

as part of the EAC’s clearinghouse 

effort, that the states and territories 

have access to the wealth of ideas and 

innovative approaches contained in 

other states’ narratives as they plan 

their own use of the funds. It is equally 

essential that the voting public know 

how states are using these federal 

funds.

Election security enhancements, 

including new voting equipment and 

cybersecurity protections, made up 

nearly two-thirds of total investments 

detailed in state narratives and budgets. 

States and territories allocated the 

remaining third to improve voter 

registration systems, post-election 

audit activities, election-related 

communications, and establishing 

reserves for future programming. 

Distributing HAVA Funds

Congressmen Steny Hoyer (MD-15) and Jamie Raskin (MD-8) visit the 

EAC’s office in Silver Spring, Maryland, to hear about the Commission’s 

progress in distributing HAVA funds and the Commission’s work to 

support secure, accessible and efficient elections.

EAC Chairman Thomas Hicks and Vice Chair Christy McCormick appear before the United States Senate Committee 

on Rules and Administration during the “Election Security Preparations: Federal and Vendor Perspectives” hearing on 

July 11, 2018. The Commissioners delivered testimony on the EAC’s election security work and the status of distributing 

HAVA funds contained within the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 to eligible states and territories.
page 18

The state and territory narratives 

contained expenditures for items such 

as personnel, equipment, sub-grants 

awards, training and accessibility 

improvements. Many of the documents 

also contained information on how grant 

recipients would comply with statutorily 

required activities, such as the five 

percent state funding match.

The steady rate of incoming requests 

the EAC received for this critical funding 

made clear the urgent need for new 

resources and was a testament to 

the dedication of election officials to 

bolster the security of our country’s 

election systems. However, requesting 

HAVA funding was only one of the ways 

states worked to make their election 

systems more resilient, just as the EAC’s 

distribution of HAVA funds was merely 

one aspect of the EAC’s election security 

work. While the long-term impact of the 

new HAVA funding will be determined by 

how states and territories choose to use 

Distributing HAVA Funds

it, Americans should feel assured their 

election systems have integrity because 

of the diligent efforts of election officials 

around the country to improve every 

aspect of their systems.

Still, one message the Commission heard 

repeatedly from state and local election 

officials was that the funds contained 

within the Consolidated Appropriations 

Act of 2018 should be considered a 

down payment, rather than a one-time 

solution. 

The vast majority of states and 

territories plan to spend their allotted 

funds within the next two to three years. 

Each funding recipient is required to 

submit a standard Federal Financial 

Report and updated program narrative 

for each fiscal year and may be audited 

by the EAC’s Inspector General. The 

first Progress and Financial Reports 

from states and territories were due 

to the EAC on December 31, 2018. 

The Commission will produce a brief 

summarizing how HAVA funds are being 

used in the first quarter of 2019 as our 

team provides technical assistance and 

grants management advice to state 

election offices as requested.

“In Vermont, we

have requested 

and received 

our $3 million 

in 2018 HAVA 

dollars from the

U.S. Election 

Assistance 

Commission. The EAC provided this in 

a ver y quick way. Within 3-5 days of 

receiving our application, they got the

money to us. I want to thank the EAC 

for providing a simple and quick way 

to get that money to us.” 

- Jim Condos, Vermont Secretary of State
page 19

Case Study: Cybersecurity

Iowa plans to use $2.3 million of the $4.8 million in 2018 HAVA funds allocated 

to the state to augment cybersecurity protections. At the state level, funds 

will be utilized for firewall upgrades, increased security for the statewide voter 

registration database, and additional staff members to better serve and assist 

counties as they seek to enhance their security measures. 

On the county level, funds will be used to provide more secure access to the 

statewide voter registration database through two-factor authentication. 

Funds will also be used to explore improvements to technology and security 

equipment already available to Iowa counties. The most recent HAVA funds 

will also allow the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office to continue to expand on 

educational and training opportunities available to county Auditors, their staff 

and county IT professionals. 

Case Study: Voter Registration

Massachusetts will spend $4 million of the $7.89 million in 2018 HAVA funding 

the state has received to make several upgrades to its voter registration 

systems. 

In 2016, the Massachusetts Legislature amended state law to allow for the use 

of electronic poll books (e-poll books), subject to certification by the Secretary’s 

Office, to check in voters at the polls. The Secretary’s Office intends to use 

some of this funding for independent cybersecurity testing and guidelines for 

security and usage. After determining specific guidelines for use and certifying 

e-poll books, the Secretary’s Office anticipates offering grants to assist local 

election officials in obtaining such equipment. The Secretary’s Office will work 

with the Comptroller’s Office to add equipment and related services to the 

statewide contract to make the procurement process easier and more cost 

effective for local officials. This program is expected to be in place by 2019. 

Massachusetts also anticipates using a portion of the funding to implement 

automatic voter registration (AVR), which is set to begin on January 1, 2020. AVR 

will require certain modifications to the statewide voter registration database 

and will likely require additional technology. If the law is changed to allow for 

Election Day Registration (EDR) as well, funding will be used to provide the 

equipment needed for local election officials to implement EDR as well. 

Distributing HAVA Funds
page 20

Case Study: Voting Equipment

The majority of Kentucky’s 120 counties utilize voting machines which create 

a Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) once a voter casts his or her ballot. 

However, approximately 29 counties rely exclusively on direct-record electronic 

voting machines (DREs), which do not create paper record.

The Kentucky State Board of Elections (SBE) recently resolved to require 

all future voting equipment purchased by the Commonwealth to provide a 

VVPAT. The resolution will require approximately 13,000 voting machines to be 

replaced and cost approximately $18-$28 million, depending on the vendor and 

type of solution. 

Kentucky will spend $4.6 million of the $5.7 million in 2018 HAVA funds 

available to the Commonwealth towards this replacement effort and for 

training on how to use the new equipment. While the funds will not account for 

the complete statewide replacement purchase price, it will assist the counties 

who solely use DREs to make the transition immediately. 

Once a statewide VVPAT system is adopted, the Commonwealth of Kentucky 

will then have the ability to begin risk-limiting audits as a standard postelection protocol. 

Distributing HAVA Funds
page 21

$3.1 - $5.1 million

$5.2 - $7.8 million

$7.9 - $34.6 million

$600K - $3.0 million

WA

VT NH ME MT ND

OR MN

ID WI NY WY SD MI MA

RI IA PA

NE CT NV OH CA IL IN NJ

UT WV CO DE

KS MO VA KY MD

NC TN OK AZ NM AR SC

MS AL GA

TX LA

AK

HI FL

GM AS PR VI

Distributing HAVA Funds

2018 HAVA Funds made available on March 23.

100% of funds requested by July 17.

100% of funds disbursed by September 20.
page 22

C on

on

A

Y

HOW STATES PLAN TO USE 2018 HAVA FUNDS

Distributing HAVA Funds

$ $

36.3%

$134,542,480

Cybersecurity

AL KY PR

AS MA RI

AZ MD SC

CA MI SD

CO MN TN

CT NC TX

DC NE UT

FL NJ VA

GA NM VI

HI NV VT

IA NY W

ID OH WI

IL OK W

IN OR

27.8%

$103,366,294

Voting

Equipment

AK MA UT

AR MD VI

AS MO VT

CA ND WV

CO NE WY

CT NJ

DC NM

DE OK

GA PA

GU RI

HI SC

ID SD

KY TN

LA TX

14.6%

54,301,840

Reserve

AS NJ

CA NM

CO NV

FL OR

GU PR

HI RI

IA TX

ID VA

MI VI

MN WA

MO

MS

NE

NH

13.7%

52,499,594

Voter

Registrati

L ME U

S MO W

Z NC

A NE

O NJ

T NM

C NV

U OH

I OK

A PR

D RI

N TN

A TX

I VI

5.6%

$20,573,476

Election

Audits

AL NV

CA OH

CT OR

CO RI

GA TX

GU UT

IA VA

ID VT

KY WA

MD

MI

MN

NC

NJ

A T

A A

A

C

C

C

D

G

H

I

I

I

M

M

2%

$7,332,722

ommunicati

AS VA

CO VI

CT WV

DC

FL

GU

IA

ID

IN

MD

MI

NE

NJ

NV
page 23

 

The 2018 Election

EAC representatives were on site in twelve different states and territories in the days leading up, and 

immediately following, the 2018 Midterm Election. On Election Day, Commissioners and staff visited election 

offices, served as poll workers and monitored Election Day threats at the Department of Homeland Security 

(DHS)’s National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC). Staff and Commissioners 

also observed logic and accuracy testing, vote by mail processing and post-election audits.

The 2018 Midterm Election was one of 

the most closely scrutinized in recent 

memory. Speculation about potential 

cyber-attacks and stories about the 

progress made to improve the security 

and resiliency of state election systems 

dominated media coverage and 

remained at the forefront of voters’ 

minds. Election officials took potential 

threats seriously and, in the lead up to 

Election Day, they doubled down on 

efforts to secure election systems and 

educate voters to ensure confidence in 

the process.

During the 2018 midterm election, 

which was projected to see one of the 

highest midterm turnouts in decades, 
page 24

The 2018 Election

election officials were more aware of 

the challenges confronting their systems 

and proved capable of successfully 

navigating potential threats. As a result, 

there were no reports of cybersecurityrelated compromises of election 

infrastructure. 

The Commission’s driving force in 2018 

was to ensure election officials had the 

resources necessary to successfully 

administer secure, accurate and 

accessible elections. The EAC convened 

election officials to discuss some of the 

biggest issues they face, ensured the 

efficient distribution of $380 million 

in newly allocated HAVA funds, and 

elevated best practices in election 

administration to serve as examples 

to other jurisdictions. Representatives 

of the Commission presented at 

conferences, conducted trainings, made 

site visits to election offices around 

the country, regularly spoke with 

election officials about their needs, 

and audits. At the EAC’s headquarters, 

additional staff oversaw a call and email 

center that operated from Thursday, 

November 1 until polls closed on 

Election Day. Staff answered questions 

from voters and election officials across 

the United States. The agency also 

created a unique website splash page 

feature that provided easy access to 

information most requested by voters, 

including polling place location and 

voter registration instructions.

Although the 2018 Federal Elections 

were administered successfully in 

the majority of jurisdictions, in some 

jurisdictions there were reports of 

long lines and wait times, aging and 

malfunctioning voting equipment, 

ballot design issues and understaffing. 

The EAC will continue to work with 

jurisdictions around the country to 

ensure election officials have the tools 

they need to address such issues and 

ensure a positive experience for voters. 

d 

. 

ht 

h 

ng

ey

to 

“I wanted 

to briefly 

say how 

important it 

is to have the 

United States 

Election 

Assistance 

Commission fully filled. As we look 

back at the midterms, I think we know 

we need a strong, fully functioning 

Commission now more than ever.” 

- U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar

“I do think the 

Commission 

has now foun

a new mission 

and it’s an 

important one

I look forward 

to our oversig

responsibility, but also working wit

the Commission as they do everythi

they can to help give state and local

election officials the kind of help th

need from the federal government 

do their job.”

- U.S. Senator Roy Blunt
page 25

Summit: The 2018 Federal 

Election

As any election official will tell you, 

administering a federal election takes 

months of preparation. For the EAC, 

that work began in earnest in January 

2018, when the Commission began 

the year with an all-day summit 

highlighting a spectrum of issues that 

state and local election officials face as 

they work to administer elections and 

serve voters. The event took place at 

the National Press Club and featured 

keynote speakers and expert panelists 

who addressed topics such as election 

security, voting accessibility, and how 

to use election data to improve the 

voter experience. Attendees also 

heard a keynote address from thenActing Deputy Undersecretary of the 

Department of Homeland Security’s 

National Protection and Programs 

Directorate Bob Kolasky.

With more than 125 election officials, 

activists and voters in attendance, the 

The 2018 Election

National Mail Voter Registration Form

As mandated by the Help American Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), the EAC maintains 

the National Mail Voter Registration Act (NVRA) form and its accompanying 

state-specific instructions. The NVRA form can be used by U.S. citizens in 

most states to register to vote or update their registration record through the 

mail. In 2018, at the request of states, the EAC processed nine updates to the 

NVRA form to align its state-specific instructions with changes in state law. To 

support voter registration for citizens with language needs, the NVRA form and 

instructions have been translated into nine languages (Bengali, Chinese, Hindi, 

Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese). The EAC webpage, 

where the form is hosted, was the most visited page on the EAC website in 

2018, registering 184,030 unique visitors. 

In addition to being hosted on the EAC website for download, the NVRA 

form is used by vote.gov, a website managed by the Government Services 

Administration (GSA), and many non-governmental organizations seeking 

to register voters. For example, GSA reported to the EAC that in 2018, the 

English- and Spanish-language NVRA forms were accessed on vote.gov by 

346,339 unique visitors across the 10 states which accept the form but 

do not have online voter registration. Three national non-governmental 

organizations focused on voter registration through online platforms (Rock the 

Vote, TurboVote, and vote.org) reported to the EAC that they supported voter 

registration for more than 2.2 million individuals using the NVRA form.

In addition to maintaining the NVRA form, the EAC further supports voter 

registration by directing EAC website visitors to states’ online voter registration 

portals and relevant information.
page 26

The 2018 Election

summit was a powerful testament to 

the Commission’s convening power. 

Since its inception, the EAC has worked 

with election officials to tackle some of 

the greatest challenges facing American 

elections. The summit provided a space 

for election officials to focus on some 

of the most pressing issues in election 

administration and hear from leading 

experts in the field as they prepared for 

the upcoming Federal Election. 

EAC Election Readiness 

Summit

Just one month before the 2018 

Midterm Elections, the U.S. Election 

Assistance Commission (EAC) hosted 

the EAC Election Readiness Summit 

in the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center to 

inform the public and lawmakers about 

the steps election leaders can take to 

ensure secure, accessible, and efficient 

elections. 

The event featured expert panelists 

and keynote speakers, including U.S. 

Senators Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Amy 

Klobuchar (D-MN), who examined 

election security best practices. 

Panelists also discussed investments 

in accessibility, post-election audits, 

and other vital election activities. 

The summit highlighted innovative 

and cost-effective steps for election 

administrators to consider as they 

looked to 2020 and beyond. In the 

afternoon, the EAC hosted an open 

house for election vendors to display 

and demonstrate their equipment. 

The summit was a bookend event to an 

intense year of preparation for election 

officials around the country, who worked 

tirelessly to improve the security and 

resiliency of their systems.

#Countdown18

The EAC launched a #Countdown18 

online series to highlight the innovative 

work states, counties and municipalities 

were doing to prepare for the upcoming 

Midterm Elections. This five-week series 

featured interviews with election officials 

in the states, leading national experts 

and volunteers and examined efforts 

made possible as a result of the recently 

distributed 2018 HAVA funds. 

The first week of the series focused on 

the additional steps election officials 

across the country took to safeguard 

and improve their Voter Registration 

systems ahead of Election Day, including 

the 29 states and territories that are 

using a portion of their 2018 Help 

America Vote Act (HAVA) funds for these 

efforts. The EAC highlighted the work 

of the Oklahoma State Election Board, 

which expects to move voter registration 

completely online by 2020 and launched 

the first phase of this project, the Online 

Voter Registration Update Service, in 
page 27

The 2018 Election

2018. Veronica Degraffenreid of the 

North Carolina State Board of Elections 

& Ethics Enforcement told the EAC 

about how the new funds were helping 

expedite the process of revamping the 

state’s statewide election information 

management and voter registration 

systems. Rhode Island Secretary of 

State Nellie Gorbea spoke about the 

development of a new voter registration 

system, which will be ready for the 

2020 elections, thanks to the 2018 HAVA 

funds. Washington State Director of 

Elections Lori Augino also outlined the 

state’s new single synchronized voterregistration system, which will be in 

place for 2019’s August primary and 

November general election.

During a week-long “Securing the Vote” 

feature, the EAC focused on election 

Cybersecurity initiatives in Florida, 

New York, Iowa and West Virginia, 

four of the 41 states and territories 

who are using 2018 HAVA funds for 

this purpose. Robert Brehm outlined 

the New York State Board of Elections’ 

plan to further strengthen its election 

infrastructure’s cyber protections. Iowa 

Secretary of State Paul Pate briefed the 

agency on numerous steps his office 

had taken including the formation of 

the Iowa Election Security Working 

Group, post-election audits following 

the November 2018 elections, making 

cybersecurity training a priority for 

all election officials and educating 

voters on the cybersecurity measures 

in place. The series highlighted the 

Florida Department of State’s hiring of 

five cybersecurity specialists to assist 

state and local election officials with 

election security and grants provided to 

Supervisors of Elections for the purchase 

of ALBERT sensors. Representatives 

from the West Virginia Secretary of 

State’s Office also spoke about the 

state’s secure mobile app for uniformed 

and overseas citizens to easily vote 

absentee and partnerships with Harvard 

University’s Belfer Center, the West 

Virginia National Guard and others.

The voting machine is the one ‘handson’ piece of equipment that most voters 

interact with during the election process. 

Whether it be an optical scanner or a 

direct recording electronic machine, the 

quality and reliability of that equipment 

is a critical component to a safe, secure 

election process. During the third week 

of the #Countdown18 series, the EAC 

spoke with officials from Michigan, 

New Jersey, Puerto Rico and Vermont 

about their efforts to Replace Voting 

Equipment.
page 28

Michigan was one of the few states 

working with all new voting equipment 

for the November 2018 elections, and 

Director of Elections Sally Williams 

walked the EAC through voters’ initial 

response to the equipment and the 

checks and balances in place to ensure 

the integrity of the system. New Jersey 

Elections Director Bob Giles outlined a 

pilot program the state is embarking 

on to begin the process of replacing its 

current voting equipment with systems 

that provide a Voter Verified Paper Audit 

Trail for auditing purposes. Roberto E. 

Benítez spoke about the Puerto Rico 

State Elections Commission’s efforts 

to repair voting equipment damaged 

during Hurricane Maria, purchase 

electronic poll books and conduct 

IT infrastructure upgrades. The EAC 

also published an interview featuring 

Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos 

about the acquisition of a new stateof-the-art accessible voting system in 

advance of the 2018 Midterm Election 

and the plan to replace vote tabulators 

after the election.

The right to vote is one of the most 

fundamental, and hard-won, principles 

of our democracy. Yet, the work to 

ensure all eligible citizens are able to cast 

a ballot is still unfinished. The EAC spoke 

with state and county election officials 

about their efforts to ensure Voting with 

Ease, including initiatives to decrease 

wait times, assist military and overseas 

voters and provide language assistance 

at the polls.

General Registrar Michele White told 

the EAC about how Prince William 

County, Virginia went from making 

national headlines in 2012 for its threeto-four hour waits on Election Day, and 

having to keep polls open until 11 p.m., 

to every polling location closing on 

time in 2016. Sam Taylor at the Texas 

Secretary of State’s Office outlined 

programs and extended deadlines in 

place to assist military and overseas 

voters in requesting, and returning, 

marked ballots. Indra Arriaga spoke 

about the Alaska Division of Elections’ 

language assistance program, which 

provides translated election materials 

for languages that are historically 

written and oral language assistance 

for languages which are historically 

unwritten. 

The EAC also featured an interview with 

Jim Dickson, a member of the leadership 

team that was influential in the drafting 

and passage of the National Voter 

Registration Act and the Help America 

Vote Act. Dickson noted the need for 

ongoing research and development on 

accessibility to keep up with constantly 

changing technology. His words serve 

as a poignant reminder that election 

security cannot come at the expense of 

voting systems which are accessible to 

all eligible voters. 

The 2018 Election
page 29

The right to vote is the foundation of 

American democracy and citizens must 

be able to trust that the election process 

is secure and accurately reflects the 

will of voters. During the final week of 

#Countdown18, the EAC focused on 

one emerging trend that ensures voter 

confidence: post-election audits.

Alice Miller, Executive Director of the 

Washington, D.C. Board of Elections, 

spoke with the EAC about the District’s 

election audit processes, which are used 

to verify the tally and that equipment 

counting the ballots performed properly. 

In Connecticut, where post-election 

audits have been conducted for more 

than a decade, Director of Elections 

Peggy Reeves spoke about the state’s 

partnership with the University of 

Connecticut to develop a computerassisted independent audit station 

which will allow election officials to 

manually review an image of each ballot 

subject to audit. New Mexico Secretary 

of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver gave an 

overview of the state’s shift from the 

two percent tabulator audit to its current 

risk-limiting voting precinct audit model. 

Finally, Colorado Director of Elections 

Judd Choate outlined how risk-limiting 

audits were piloted and implemented in 

the state. 

Ending the Friday before Election Day, 

the #Countdown18 series gave voters 

an behind-the-scenes look at their 

own state and local election offices 

and allowed them to see how election 

administrators were working to improve 

their resilience of our election process.

The 2018 Election
page 30

 

Enhancing Security

Cybertraining Election Officials 

For This Year’s Voting

“It was clear that many of those gathering in Orlando 

already have protections in place and are well aware 

of the risks. But some county election offices are 

extremely small, with no IT staff of their own. Dana 

Southerland runs elections in Taylor County, which 

has only 13,000 voters. She said she picked up some 

useful tips, such as changing passwords and being 

careful about opening e-mails...Southerland — who 

is also President of the Florida State Association of 

Supervisors of Elections and helped organize the 

session — said perhaps the most important message 

is that no one is immune from attack, and they have 

to be prepared.”

Pam Fessler

Correspondent, National Desk

IT Management Training 

States had already done a great deal 

of work to improve and shore up their 

systems prior to $380 million in HAVA 

funding was made available through the 

Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018, 

including forming unprecedented 

federal entities and participating in 

tabletop exercises and other training 

sessions aimed at improving the overall 

security and resiliency of election 

systems. 

One of these training sessions is the 

“Election Official as IT Manager,” led by 

the U.S. Election Assistance Commission
page 31

Enhancing Security

(EAC)’s Testing & Certification team.

The EAC customizes each session to 

reflect state-specific voting and election 

systems. With modules on technology 

in election offices, procurement and 

vendor selection, testing and auditing, 

security, risk management, critical 

infrastructure and federal resources, 

the course is aimed at helping election 

officials manage the increasingly 

complex technical demands of planning, 

directing and controlling contemporary 

elections. 

To date, the EAC has provided its IT 

Management Training at no cost to 

eleven states and helped election 

officials improve the security and 

resiliency of their systems. In 2018 

alone, the EAC Testing & Certification 

team conducted 11 “Election Official as 

IT Manager” trainings for approximately 

600 local election officials across nine 

states. These trainings are ongoing and 

the EAC working with DHS has made 

the course available online through the 

FedVTE platform.

Critical Infrastructure 

Designation

In early 2017, the Department of 

Homeland Security (DHS) designated 

elections as part of the nation’s critical 

infrastructure. While the EAC was 

already collaborating with the DHS and 

the Federal Bureau of Investigation 

(FBI) to distribute actionable alerts to 

election officials who had long focused 

on strengthening the security and 

resiliency of their election systems, the 

critical infrastructure designation was 

established by the federal government 

to improve that process and provide 

election officials with additional 

resources and mechanisms for 

information sharing. 

Since the designation, the EAC has 

actively worked to provide state and 

local election officials with a seat at 

the table during discussions about 

how the sector would function and, 

together with election officials, has 

been at the forefront of solutions which 

have dramatically increased election 

security. For example, the EAC led 

the establishment of the Government 

Coordinating Council for the Election 

Infrastructure Subsector (GCC). 

The EAC recognizes the GCC as an 

exemplary proof-point of how local, 

state and federal governments can 

effectively work together toward the 

shared goal of protecting our nation’s 

election infrastructure. DHS has said 

that the GCC was formed faster than 

any other similar critical infrastructure 

sector council to date and the Council is 

comprised of, and a valuable asset to, 

election officials. 

Building on the formation of the GCC, 

the EAC also convened discussions 

between election system vendors and 

the DHS for the formation of the Sector 

Coordinating Council (SCC). 

Thanks to the swift establishment 

of the GCC and the well-established 

relationships between the EAC and 

election equipment vendors, both 

Councils were functioning before 2018, 
page 32

less than one year after the Critical 

Infrastructure designation.

Since then, the GCC has adopted 

and implemented a communications 

protocol document and a sector specific 

plan which provides expedited state 

and local access to security resources. 

The GCC also launched a number of 

working groups and are participating in 

others. Information Sharing and Analysis 

Centers (ISACs) intended to gather, 

analyze, and disseminate intelligence 

related to critical infrastructure are 

also up and running. The Elections 

Infrastructure-ISAC (EI-ISAC), for 

example, allows owners and operators 

of election administration systems to 

better secure their systems against 

cyber threats by providing threat-related 

notifications; assessments of relevant 

news; a 24/7 operations center with 

cybersecurity experts; timely sharing 

of actionable information; and realtime monitoring for network activity by 

malicious actors. 

The SCC announced the creation of their 

own Information Sharing Analysis Center 

called the Special Interest Group (SIG) 

and is now working to establish charters 

and working groups.

The EAC continues its leadership in the 

sector through its collaboration with 

DHS and its involvement the GCC. Two 

months before the election, the EAC 

participated in a DHS classified national 

read-in on the current state of threats to 

election systems through the GCC. The 

critical infrastructure designation also 

accelerated the distribution of traffic 

and threat monitoring systems, known 

as Albert sensors, allowing them to be 

deployed on election networks across 

the country ahead of the 2018 Midterm 

Elections. 

In 2018, EAC Chair Thomas Hicks served 

on the GCC’s executive committee. Vice 

Chair Christy McCormick served as 

an ex-officio member of the GCC and 

Executive Director Brian Newby cochaired the Council’s Digital Network 

Members of the Elections Government Sector Coordinating Council (GCC) during their 

first meeting on October 14, 2017.

Enhancing Security
page 33

Development Working Group. With 

the confirmation of two additional 

Commissioners, the Chair and Vice 

Chair of the EAC will serve as official 

members of the GCC and the remaining 

Commissioners will serve as ex-officio 

members. The EAC is committed to 

working with election officials and their 

federal partners to continue ensuring 

the nation’s election systems are secure.

Materials for Voters

Following the 2016 Presidential 

Election, voters had concerns about 

the security of election systems and 

whether the system as a whole had 

integrity. However, thanks to the work 

of such officials, significant security 

protections were already in place and no 

votes altered during the 2016 election. 

While interference from nation-state 

actors shook voter confidence, election 

systems withstood these attacks and 

administered accurate elections. 

Over the last two years, a core tenant 

of the EAC’s mission has been to help 

election officials as they worked to 

improve security against threats both 

physical and cyber. The Commission 

also worked to educate voters about the 

significant security measures in place 

within election systems. One resource 

the EAC produced this past year was a 

brief Election Security video intended 

to aid election officials as they engage 

community and civic groups. 

This video examines the role 

registration, physical security, poll 

ELECTION

OFFICE

The EAC Election Security video and accompanying 

resources detail the broad spectrum of steps election 

officials take to secure elections.

Enhancing Security
page 34

workers and voting equipment play 

in ensuring safe, accurate, fair and 

accessible elections. It also explains how 

the decentralized American election 

administration system protects election 

integrity and American voters, and 

examines the security measures in place 

for vote by mail ballots, election night 

reporting and voting technology overall. 

In addition, the video highlights ballot 

handling measures, post-election audits, 

and the planning most jurisdictions do to 

ensure election continuity in the face of 

unexpected events or natural disasters. 

While jurisdictions across the nation 

all have unique policies and laws that 

govern how elections are administered 

and secured, this video captured the 

common threads that run throughout 

this essential work. The video, and the 

accompanying presenter’s materials 

and pamphlet on election security, 

were an invaluable resource to election 

officials and voters alike. The Wisconsin, 

“I sit on the executive committee of 

the Government Coordinating Council 

and I sit alongside the Chairman 

of the EAC and 

the Presidents 

of NASS and 

NASED. This 

confederation is 

working really 

well for all of 

us to figure out 

our lanes and what’s become clear to 

ever ybody, including the Department 

of Homeland Security, is the vital role 

that the EAC has played. For 15 years, 

they’ve been a significant partner. 

They’re a trusted source. I think 

DHS has been able to rely on them 

significantly and we certainly have at 

the local level.” 

- Noah Praetz, Director of Elections, Cook County, Illinois

Former U.S. Virgin Islands Election Systems Deputy Supervisor Genevieve Whitaker 

speaks during a panel on Elections & Disaster Recovery during the 2018 EAC 

Standards Board Meeting.

Enhancing Security
page 35

Iowa and California Secretary of State’s 

Offices adapted this video to include 

state-specific information and made 

it publicly available to voters on their 

websites. 

Contingency Planning 

Election officials across the country 

spend a lot of time thinking about what 

could go wrong—and for good reason. 

When an unexpected situation arises or 

disaster strikes, election officials must be 

able to continue operations, with limited 

resources and time. Proactively planning 

for the types of disasters we know are 

possible and developing contingency 

and recovery plans are some of the 

best ways to shore up the security of 

“It’s fair to 

say that the 

majority of 

county clerk

in the rural 

areas of 

Missouri are 

depending 

on the efforts of their election 

service providers who provide 

their voting equipment services, 

their Secretar y of State’s office 

and the coordinated efforts of the 

Department of Homeland Securit

and the Election Assistance 

Commission to be their firewall 

for protection against incoming 

cybersecurity threats.” 

- Shane Schoeller, Clerk, Greene County, Missouri

s 

y 

voting systems. Crises will arise, from 

hurricanes and wildfires to criminal 

threats and power failures. But when 

these kinds of disruptions do occur, 

there is usually a precedent to look for 

guidane on how to best manage them.

In order to ensure election systems 

are secure, election officials must also 

have strong plans in place to protect the 

physical security of voting equipment, 

including contingency plans, to mitigate 

the fallout from disasters that might 

occur. 

Such planning is not limited to hacking 

and data breaches, though cybersecurity 

risks remain at the forefront of the 

public consciousness. Damage to 

election systems by natural disasters in 

communities across California, Texas, 

Puerto Rico, and other jurisdictions 

also demanded significant emergency 

responses in 2017. Significant support 

was required to rebuild election systems 

in many areas ahead of the 2018 

midterms, with more work to be done 

prior to the 2020 Federal Election. 

The EAC has a wealth of real-world 

contingency plans on our website, 

including disaster mitigation training 

materials and other resources that allow 

state and local election officials to see 

how other election offices have handled 

such challenges in the past. In May, Vice 

Chair Christy McCormick also moderated 

an Election & Disaster Recovery panel 

during the EAC’s 2018 Standards Board 

meeting. This discussion allowed 

attendees to hear from officials from 

New Jersey, Virginia and the U.S. Virgin 

Islands with real world experience on 

mitigating the impact of severe natural 

disasters on their election systems. 

Enhancing Security
page 36

u

g

o

m

m

t

 t

o

sa

n

se

ra

m

n

m

d

s 

o 

ls

 

Securing Systems

When the Help America Vote Act (HAV

was passed in 2002, the legislation 

established a Testing and Certification

program within the U.S. Election 

Assistance Commission (EAC) to certi

decertify and recertify voting system

hardware and software and accredit 

test laboratories. This was the first tim

in history that the federal governmen

held this responsibility, allowing state

to procure newly certified voting 

systems without the added expense o

independent testing and certification

Since then, the EAC’s Testing and 

Certification team has served as a cr

first step in maintaining the reliabilit

and security of the voting systems 

in American elections. In all, the pro

has certified 38 voting systems, or 

modifications to a voting system, fr

6 different vendors. In 2018, the tea

tested and certified 10 voting syste

from six different manufacturers. A

least 47 states use the Testing and 

Certification program in some way 

when deciding which voting system

purchase, and state and local electi

officials often request that the EAC

edit and review requests for propo

(RFPs) and other documents used i

itic

y 

al 

A) 

fy, 

e 

t 

s 

f

. 

the election technology procurement 

process.

At the core of the EAC’s Testing and 

Certification work are the Voluntary 

Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) which 

test election system functionality, 

accessibility, accuracy, auditability and 

security capabilities. HAVA mandates 

that the EAC develop and maintain these 

standards together with our partners 

at the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology (NIST) the EAC Technical 

Guidelines Development Committee 

(TGDC), a diverse EAC advisory board 

comprised of representatives from 

the election community, public sector, 

private sector and interest groups. 

The most recent generation of the 

guidelines, VVSG 2.0, were adopted by 

the TGDC on September 12, 2017. The 

VVSG 2.0 are a nimble set of high-level 

principles, supplemented by specific 

requirements for how systems can 

be tested and how accredited test 

laboratories can validate that a system 

complies with those requirements. 

Both the Standards Board and Board 

of Advisors passed resolutions 
page 37

The EAC hosted local election officials for a public forum on election security in Miami on April 

18, 2018, just a few weeks after the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 provided $380 

million in new Help America Vote Act (HAVA) funds.

during their 2018 annual meetings 

recommending that the EAC move 

forward with considering the draft VVSG 

2.0 Principles and Guidelines document 

for full adoption. Both boards also 

passed an amendment to the resolution 

recommending that the EAC adopt, 

within the Testing and Certification 

Quality & Program Manual, a provision 

providing for the ability of VVSG 2.0 

requirements and Test Assertions to be 

updated in the absence of a quorum of 

EAC Commissioners. 

The EAC also accredits independent 

voting system test laboratories (VSTLs) 

that evaluate voting systems against 

the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines 

(VVSG). The National Institute of 

Standards and Technology (NIST) assists 

the EAC through its National Voluntary 

Laboratory Accreditation Program 

(NVLAP) to provide recommendations 

regarding laboratory accreditation. 

After the EAC receives NVLAP’s 

recommendations, the program 

conducts further review to address 

additional issues, such as conflict 

The EAC election security forum in Miami gave state and local election 

officials from across the nation the opportunity to provide statements 

about their election cybersecurity efforts. The discussion also featured 

details about new HAVA funding.

Securing Systems
page 38

Securing Systems

of interest policies, organizational 

structure and recordkeeping protocols, 

before the Commissioners vote on full 

accreditation.

The Commission also operates a 

Quality Monitoring Program to ensure 

voting systems certified by the EAC 

are the same systems being sold by 

manufacturers. This program is a 

mandatory part of the Testing and 

Certification program and includes 

elements such as fielded voting 

system review, anomaly reporting, and 

manufacturing site visits.

If issues do arise, the EAC issues System 

Advisory Notices to inform jurisdictions 

and members of the public of an existing 

anomaly or issue with an EAC-certified 

system. The advisory notice describes 

the issue identified, the root cause of the 

issue if known, and the current status 

of a solution. The EAC also follows up 

with additional advisory notices as more 

information is gathered until the issue is 

resolved. 

However, the work of the EAC Testing 

and Certification team doesn’t end with 

certifying a system, or ensuring systems 

used by election jurisdictions are 

identical to those tested and certified by 

the agency. In 2018, the program worked 

with state and local election officials 

to ensure the proper management of 

election systems and the rigor of postelection checks on those systems. The 

team also authored the white paper 

“Wiping Election Equipment Before 

Disposal, Sale or Destruction” outlining 

the steps election officials must take 

to ensure any proprietary information, 

election data and personal information 

has been properly sanitized from those 

devices once they reach the end of their 

useful life.

Table Top Exercises

In March 2018, the EAC worked with 

others in the election industry to create 

and execute a national role-based 

tabletop exercise (TTX). The purpose of 

the tabletop exercise was to simulate 

scenarios that could occur during an 

election in order to get election officials 

to actively communicate, implement 

incident response plans, and ultimately 

increase awareness and preparedness 

for the 2018 midterm elections. 

Following this initial TTX, the EAC 

provided assistance in the development 

and implementation of tabletop 

exercises for election officials in 

Illinois, Ohio and Colorado. The EAC 

also participated and assisted in 

the planning of the Department of 

Homeland Security’s Tabletop the Vote 

2018: National Election Cyber Exercise, 

which included 44 states, the District of 

Columbia and federal partners. 

Members of the EAC Testing & 

Certification team also contributed to 

manuals and cybersecurity playbooks 

developed by use for third-party entities 

to support election officials. 
page 39

Risk-Limiting Audits

As states look to bolster election 

security, many jurisdictions are refining 

their post-election audit processes or 

piloting new initiatives, including risklimiting audits (RLAs), a type of postelection audit which provides strong 

statistical evidence that the election 

outcome is correct.

In 2018, the EAC Testing and Certification 

team provided risk-limiting audit 

assistance and training across five 

states. The program also compiled 

feedback from jurisdictions that had 

either implemented or piloted RLAs into 

the white paper “Risk-Limiting Audits – 

Practical Application.”

Research is ongoing for integrating RLAs 

into state and federal-level elections, and 

for testing and potentially implementing 

other statistics-based post-election 

audits. The EAC will continue to provide 

support and resources to jurisdictions 

that are considering implementing postelection audits.

RI VA

CO IN MI

States where the EAC provided risk-limiting audit 

assistance and training in 2018

Securing Systems
page 40

 

Leveraging Data

Election Administration & 

Voting Survey 

State and local election officials across 

the country use a myriad of data to 

improve election processes. Since 2004, 

the U.S. Election Assistance Commission 

(EAC) has administered the Election 

Administration and Voting Survey (EAVS), 

the most comprehensive nationwide 

data about election administration in 

the United States. This biennial survey 

collects data from all 50 states, the 

District of Columbia, American Samoa, 

Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin 

Islands at the state and local level by 

county or county equivalent. In addition 

to providing a detailed picture of how 

elections are administered across the 

country, data collected through the EAVS 

is used to help election officials identify 

trends, anticipate changing voter needs 

and the impact of proposed policies, and 

determine how to invest often limited 

resources. The EAVS has documented 

the impact of policy and administrative 

changes over time, such as the rise of 

online voter registration, a growing 

number of Americans voting before 

Election Day and more jurisdictions 

using technologies such as electronic 

poll books. 

The EAVS collects data on the most 

recent federal general elections, which 

is then analyzed and summarized in 

a final report submitted to Congress 

and released to the public by June 30 

the following year. The EAVS report 

and underlying data are then used by 

election officials, journalists, academics, 

“The effective 

use of data 

to manage all 

aspects of the 

election process 

is extremely 

important. 

However, data 

alone is not enough. The quality of 

the data you use always has to be 

considered.” 

- Robert Torres, Acting Secretary of the Commonwealth of 

Pennsylvania 
page 41

Leveraging Data

advocates and other stakeholders to 

better understand and improve future 

elections and the voter experience.

 Additionally, the EAC leverages EAVS 

data to develop resources for election 

officials and the voters they serve. 

The wealth of data within the EAVS 

includes information on voter 

registration, mail, absentee, and early 

voting, turnout by method, military and 

oversees voting, polling operations, poll 

workers, provisional ballots, and voting 

technology. For some of these issues, 

such as provisional ballots, the EAVS is 

the sole source of nationwide data and 

trends. 

The EAC conducts the EAVS to meet its 

Help America Vote Act of 2002 mandate 

to serve as a national clearinghouse 

and resource for the compilation of 

information on the administration 

of Federal Elections, and statutory 

requirements under the National 

Voter Registration Act (NVRA) and 

the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 

Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA). 

Alongside the EAVS, the EAC also 

administers the Election Administration 

and Policy Survey (Policy Survey, 

formerly referred to as the Statutory 

Overview), which collects information 

on the policy and administrative 

frameworks in which elections are 

conducted in each state. Information 

collected through the Policy Survey 

is meant to complement and provide 

relevant context for the extensive data 

collected through the EAVS. Together, all 

the components of and data contained 

within the EAVS comprises the nation’s 

leading source of election data, which 

for nearly 15 years has been an 

invaluable resource for improving the 

way America votes. 

EAVS

Dives

Poll Workers + Polling Places Deep

Election Technology

Voter Registration

Provisional Ballots

Early Voting
page 42

Leveraging Data

“Evaluation is 

an opportunity 

to gather 

data and 

demonstrate 

the ways 

policies and 

programs that 

have been enacted in jurisdictions 

can enhance the way you do your jobs 

and more broadly, the way citizens 

experience the democratic process.”

- Dr. Bridgett King, Assistant Professor, Department of 

Political Science, Auburn University

EAVS DEEP DIVES

From the fall of 2017 until summer 

2018, the EAC released a series of 

election data issue briefs known as 

“EAVS Deep Dives,” which looked at 

election administration trends and 

voting behavior ahead of the 2018 

midterm elections. This series examined 

EAVS data released between 2004 and 

2016 and provided an in-depth look 

at a variety of timely issues related 

to election administration. The briefs 

offered analysis that helps demonstrate 

the changing landscape of U.S. elections, 

including the steady expansion of 

alternatives to traditional in-person 

Election-Day voting, the rapid increase 

in the use of online voter registration, 

and the rise in electronic poll book 

usage, among other important findings. 

With election officials and policy makers 

increasingly focused on election security 

following the 2016 elections, the issue 

briefs’ findings on election technology 

and fail-safe procedures, such as 

provisional ballots, were particularly 

relevant.

The Voter Registration Deep Dive 

focused on the impact of technology, 

methods of voter registration and list 

maintenance activities.

The Early, Absentee and Mail Voting

Deep Dive demonstrated the growing 

trend of states offering early, no-excuse 

absentee and mail voting, and the 

increasing number of voters casting 

ballots before Election Day. 

The Poll Workers and Polling Places

Deep Dive showed a decline in the 

number of physical polling places across 

the country, the continued challenges 

jurisdictions reported facing in recruiting 

poll workers, and age data for poll 

workers.

The Election Technology Deep Dive 

analyzed evolving election technology 

and its implications for election 

efficiency, integrity, accessibility, voter 

experience and confidence, and the 

roles of election officials at all levels.

The Provisional Ballot Deep Dive 

reported the rate at which provisional 

ballots are issued and counted during 

Federal Elections, and the impact of 

different state policies on provisional 

ballot usage and acceptance.

Products such as the EAVS Deep Dives 

are part of an EAC initiative to make the 

survey data more accessible, usable and 

impactful for both election officials and 

voters. 
page 43

ELECTION DATA SUMMIT

While the EAVS is the most 

comprehensive survey on election 

administration in the United States, it 

only scratches the surface of available 

election data. In order to give state and 

local election officials and other election 

stakeholders the ability to discuss a 

broad spectrum of election data and 

highlight innovative and emerging 

data-driven practices from around the 

country, the EAC hosted its second 

Election Data Summit in Philadelphia 

on July 12, 2018, in partnership with the 

Pennsylvania Department of State. 

Held just four months before the 

midterm elections and four months 

after Congress allocated $380 million 

in new funding to states to improve 

the administration of elections for 

Federal office, the summit examined 

ways election officials are using data to 

improve election processes and inform 

decision making. Each panel during the 

summit focused on a distinct aspect of 

the election cycle and explored different 

sources of election data, including voter 

registration databases, electronic poll 

books, line management tools, voting 

equipment, and post-election audits. 

The event convened some of the nation’s 

most respected election experts, each 

of whom brought a unique perspective 

to the conversation about how best to 

use election data and research future 

trends.

During the event, a Voter Registration

panel explored how voter registration 

data is used, collected and shared 

in light of recent trends towards 

modernizing voter registration systems 

and increased sharing of registration 

data among states.

An Election Day Preparation panel 

examined how data can be used to 

identify polling locations, recruit poll 

workers, anticipate needs and establish 

systems to collect information and 

respond to emergencies ahead of 

Election Day.

Securing Systems
page 44

Leveraging Data

The EAC hosted its second Election Data Summit in 

Philadelphia on July 12, 2018, in partnership with the 

Pennsylvania Department of State, just four months prior 

to the Midterm Elections and four months after Congress 

allocated $380 million in HAVA funding.

An Election Day panel examined 

how data-savvy election officials are 

leveraging a number of tools, such as 

mail-ballot tracking systems, electronic 

poll books and line management tools 

to strengthen specific aspects of voting 

operations and inform decision-making 

in real time during voting and in the 

post-election period. 

Finally, the Post-Election panel focused 

on how officials can best use election 

data and research trends moving 

forward, with an emphasis on results 

and participation data, provisional ballot 

resolution tools, post-election audits, 

after-action reports and evaluations.

2018 EAVS

Months before the 2018 midterm 

elections, preparations for the 2018 

EAVS, the eighth biennial survey of its 

kind, were already underway. The EAC 

worked to build on improvements from 

the 2016 survey in order to make the 

survey easier to complete, strengthen 

data quality and completeness, and 

encourage greater use of the data by 

election officials and other election 

stakeholders. As part of its efforts to 

make the EAVS easier to complete, the 

EAC is piloting online data collection for 

the 2018 EAVS. EAC technical assistance 

and data collection for the 2018 EAVS 

began in late 2018, but the main effort to 

collect, analyze, and report on the data 

will take place in 2019.

Once the 2018 EAVS report and 

underlying data is published in June 
page 45

“Anyone who hasn’t jumped into the data collection 

game: Just start collecting it. You might not know 

what to do with it yet, but if you miss the opportunity 

to collect, you’re just prolonging that cycle from 

actually getting started.”

 - Kara Rahn, Director of Elections, Chester County, PA

2019, the EAC plans to continue 

developing products that make the data 

more accessible and useful to election 

officials, voters and other stakeholders. 

For example, data from the 2018 EAVS 

will be used to update the EAVS Data 

Interactive, a visualization tool launched 

in 2017 that allows users to examine 

specific data at the state and local level 

and compare jurisdictions side-by-side. 

The EAVS Data Interactive is just one of 

the tools the EAC will provide to election 

officials and voters in the coming year to 

help them to make informed decisions 

about election administration and policy.

In July, the EAC launched the EAVS Online Template to collect 

data for the 2018 EAVS. The online tool replaces the Excel 

Data Entry Template that was used in previous years, will 

make the survey easier to complete and strengthen data 

quality. Feedback from jurisdictions will be used to improve 

the template and inform additional modernization efforts 

for the 2020 EAVS.

Securing Systems
page 46

 

Providing Assistance

Voters with Disabilities

The Help America Vote Act (HAVA) 

contained landmark provisions requiring 

the secure, private and independent 

casting of ballots for voters with 

disabilities. Since then, states have 

made significant efforts to eliminate 

barriers and close the voter registration 

and voter participation gaps that exist 

between voters with disabilities and 

voters without disabilities. However, 

obstacles still exist for voters with 

disabilities and additional progress is 

needed to realize the true promise of 

HAVA. 

Today, more than 35 million Americans 

with disabilities are eligible to vote 

in the United States, accounting for 

roughly one-sixth of the total electorate. 

This ever-growing population of 

voters also faces educational, cultural 

and political barriers that can make 

participating in elections difficult. Since 

our establishment, the EAC has worked 

to expand access, regardless of a 

voter’s abilities, by providing resources, 

promoting best practices, educating 

voters with disabilities about their 

rights, and testing and certifying voting 

systems to ensure they are both secure 

and accessible to all.

In 2018, the EAC hosted public forums 

to gather feedback from voters with 

disabilities about challenges they can 

face when casting a ballot. In June, 

Chairman Thomas Hicks and Vice 

Chair Christy McCormick conducted a 

town hall discussion with voters with 

disabilities and advocates from across 

America at the annual National Disability 

Rights Network (NDRN) conference. 

During this event, participants shared 

their voting experiences and offered 

suggestions for improvement. EAC 

Commissioners then shared this 

valuable feedback with election officials 

and continued their communication with 

voters with disabilities through the 2018 

midterm election. 

“Ensuring the rights of voters with 

disabilities isn’t a choice, nor is it 

a partisan issue. It’s the law. We 

can never forget that as we work to 

improve elections.”

-Joint op-ed from Commissioners Hicks and McCormick 

published on the 28th anniversary of the Americans with 

Disabilities Act
page 47

While there is no one solution that can 

be applied across the thousands of 

jurisdictions that comprise America’s 

decentralized election system, there are 

common threads in how best to serve 

voters with disabilities. The EAC elevates 

best practices which can serve as 

exemplary models to election officials, 

such as technological improvements, 

better training for election workers, 

ensuring there are multiple options 

which accommodate the diversity of 

disabilities and regular engagement with 

voters with disabilities. 

The EAC also ensures voters are 

educated about their rights. The EAC has 

distributed more than 20,000 federal 

voting rights cards in Braille, large 

print and plain language to voters with 

disabilities, advocacy organizations, and 

election officials across the United States 

since 2016. EAC Commissioners stress 

the need to find election solutions that 

will both increase security and expand 

access in Congressional testimony, 

meetings with state and local election 

officials, public appearances and public 

articles. The EAC also promotes best 

practices throughout the year with voter 

outreach, updated materials and online 

campaigns.

While jurisdictions have made advances 

in providing access to voters with 

disabilities since the passage of HAVA, 

more work needs to be done to meet 

the promise of private and independent 

voting for all. Moving forward, election 

officials should be continuously 

reminded to do all they can to ensure 

accessibility at every point in the voting 

process. 

Providing Assistance

Since 2016, the EAC has distributed more than 20,000 federal voting rights cards in Braille, 

large print and plain language in order to ensure voters with disabilities are educated about 

their rights.
page 48

The EAC composes and promotes “case studies” of best practices that 

can serve as exemplary models for election officials. In 2018, several of 

these features focused on how to better assist voters with access needs. 

Contra Costa County, California, for example, provided specialized 

training to its election workers, placing them in the shoes of voters who 

need assistance to give them a new perspective and providing real-life 

examples of situations that can occur at a polling place on Election Day. 

Other jurisdictions, such as El Paso County, Colorado, have partnered 

with disability rights groups and resource centers to create universally 

accessible polling places. By seeking out partners and building 

relationships within the community, election officials can benefit from 

additional expertise and make the most of their often-limited resources.

Providing Assistance
page 49

“It is incumbent upon us to not just 

provide the bare minimum in terms 

of languages or information, but to 

go beyond that to really inform voters 

how our system works.”

- Rhode Island Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea

Over 115 state and local election officials, advocates and stakeholders from language 

communities joined the EAC at the Newseum for the third annual Language Access for Voters 

Summit on Tuesday, July 24, 2018. The event was hosted in partnership with the Arizona State 

University Pastor Center for Politics and Public Service and Democracy Fund Voice.

Providing Assistance

Language Access

According to U.S. Census Bureau data, 

there are more than 25 million people in 

the U.S. with limited English proficiency. 

More than 60 million – or nearly one in 

five – people in the United States speak 

a language other than English at home. 

Such individuals can face challenges 

when attempting to register to vote and 

cast a ballot. 

From translated materials to bilingual 

assistance at the polls, election officials 

across the country take a number of 

steps to help such voters overcome 

language barriers and participate 

in the elections process. In certain 

jurisdictions, such assistance is required 

by language provisions outlined in 

Section 203 in the federal Voting 

Rights Act. The most recent round 

of determinations in 2016 identified 

263 jurisdictions that met coverage 

thresholds for particular languages, 

including the entire states of California, 

Florida and Texas.

The EAC helps election officials meet the 

requirements of Section 203 by offering 

a glossary of election terminology in 

six languages other than English, a 

voter guide to federal elections in 11 

languages, and the National Mail Voter 

Registration Form in nine languages 

other than English.
page 50

Providing Assistance

For the last three years, the EAC has 

also hosted a Language Access for 

Voters Summit to share information 

and generate new understanding 

and appreciation between various 

stakeholder communities. The 2018 

Language Access Summit, hosted in 

partnership with Democracy Fund Voice 

and the Arizona State University Pastor 

Center for Politics and Public Service 

brought together election officials, 

voting rights groups, representatives of 

language communities, and other key 

stakeholders to discuss demographic 

changes, updates for jurisdictions 

complying with federal law and ways to 

cultivate long-term relationships with 

diverse communities. It also included a 

discussion of assessing and procuring 

resources to meet better assist voters 

with language needs. Summit panelists 

included experts representing Asian 

American, Latino, American Indian, 

Alaskan Native, and additional language 

communities from across the country.

In the first session, Current Issues 

and Looking Ahead to 2021, panelists 

discussed demographic shifts, what they 

mean for serving voters with language 

needs, current and issues faced by 

jurisdictions covered by Section 203 and 

those who are close to coverage.

In Cost Effective Practices for Providing 

Language Assistance, panelists offered 

cost-effective strategies for providing 

language assistance, with an emphasis 

on the particular challenges faced by 

smaller and medium-sized jurisdictions 

with limited budgets, and jurisdictions 

covered for multiple languages.
page 51

be a priority for many of the nation’s 

election officials, particularly as shifting 

demographics increase the need for 

language assistance and potentially, 

increase the number of jurisdictions 

covered by Section 203 requirements. 

Access for Militar y and 

Overseas Voters

Another group which faces unique 

challenges in registering to vote and 

in requesting, receiving and returning 

their ballots are military and overseas 

personnel and their families. Our 

country’s active duty service members, 

their families, and Americans living 

overseas are charged with taking on 

significantly more responsibility than 

Above and Beyond Section 203: 

Voluntary Assistance and Other 

Proactive Measures highlighted the 

ways election officials have gone above 

the requirements of the law, such as 

providing language assistance on a 

voluntary basis, or providing assistance 

in languages not covered by Section 203. 

The final discussion, Trends in Election 

Administration and their Impact 

on Language Access, focused on 

the changing landscape of election 

administration and how such changes 

can impact voters with limited English 

proficiency and other language minority 

voters.

Anticipating and meeting the needs of 

language minority voters will continue to 

Providing Assistance
page 52

the average voter if they want to cast 

a ballot on Election Day. These citizens 

move often, do not have the option of 

going to a physical polling place and 

often must make their voting plans 

months in advance in order to cast a 

ballot. 

Such citizens are supported by the 

Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 

Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA). Because 

of issues that can arise with the timely 

and accurate delivery of election 

materials, however, the voting process 

can be an arduous one for voters and 

election officials alike. Compounding 

these issues is the fact that all countries 

do not have the same high level of 

postal service delivery that we enjoy 

here in the United States. 

The EAC works to ease the burden on 

UOCAVA voters through our federal 

partnerships with the Federal Voting 

Assistance Program (FVAP), the United 

States Postal Service (USPS) and others. 

The Commission monitors for innovative 

solutions to help UOCAVA voters cast 

their ballots, such as West Virginia’s 

blockchain-based Mobile Voting App 

Pilot Project, and highlights other 

proactive measures election officials can 

take to ensure as many UOCAVA ballots 

as possible are counted. 

Ahead of the 2018 Midterm Election, the 

EAC hosted an online event to discuss 

two pre-election dates important to both 

election officials and voters: September 

22, the 45-day deadline for states to 

send absentee ballots to UOCAVA voters 

and National Voter Registration Day 

on September 25. Moderated by EAC 

Chairman Thomas Hicks, the discussion 

featured FVAP Director David Beirne 

and Brian Miller from National Voter 

Registration Day. Both detailed their 

organizations’ activities to ensure voters 

knew how they could cast their vote in 

the upcoming midterms. 

The EAC is committed to continuing our 

efforts to ease the burden on UOCAVA 

voters and working to ensure they are 

able to cast their ballots. 

Providing Assistance
 

Convening Election Leaders

When the Help America Vote Act In 2018, members of the U.S. Election 

(HAVA) established the U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s Standards 

Assistance Commission (EAC) in 2002, Board and Board of Advisors met 

this landmark legislation also established separately in Miami to discuss the 

three advisory boards to assist the intent and application process for newly 

EAC in carrying out its mandates under 

the law. The EAC Standards Board 

is comprised of 110 state and local 

election leaders representing each state timely election-related issues, including 

and U.S. territory. The EAC Board of disaster recovery contingency planning. 

Advisors is comprised of 35 members of 

national associations, federal agencies During this time, members of both 

and Congressional appointees. The boards received a briefing about the 

14-member Technical Guidelines intent and application process for the 

Development Committee (TGDC) is $380 million in newly appropriated HAVA 

comprised of members appointed jointly funds. Members heard from several 

by the EAC and the director of NIST, who 

also serves as the Committee’s chair. 

These advisors convene regularly, 

including an annual in-person meeting, 

to discuss best practices in election 

administration and assist with the 

development of the Voluntary Voting 

System Guidelines (VVSG), a set of 

specifications and requirements voting 

systems are tested to determine if the 

systems meet required standards. All The U.S. Election Assistance Commission and Pennsylvania three boards are essential to the EAC’s Department of State hosted an Election Data Summit which mission. brought together some of the nation’s most respected election 

data experts to examine ways election officials could use data 

to improve processes and inform decision making.

appropriated HAVA funds, examine 

election security efforts, review the next 

generation of the VVSG and tackle other 

page 53
page 54

security experts, including David Wulf, 

Acting Deputy Assistance Secretary for 

the Department of Homeland Security’s

(DHS) Office of Infrastructure Protectio

and Robert Kolasky, Acting Deputy 

Undersecretary for National Protection 

Directorate at DHS. A number of electio

leaders also discussed state and local 

efforts to strengthen election security 

during a public forum.

During their 2018 annual meetings, 

both the Standards Board and Board 

of Advisors passed resolutions 

recommending that the EAC move 

forward with considering the draft VVS

2.0 Principles and Guidelines document 

for full adoption. Both boards also 

passed an amendment to the resolutio

recommending that the EAC adopt, 

within the Testing and Certification 

Program Quality & Program Manual, 

a provision providing for the ability 

of VVSG 2.0 requirements and Test 

n, 

n 

G 

n 

Convening Election Leaders

EAC Vice Chair Christy McCormick moderates a 

conversation with national security experts at the 2018 

EAC Election Readiness Summit on Capitol Hill on October 

3, 2018, just one month before the election.

Assertions to be updated in the absence 

of a quorum of EAC Commissioners.

These discussions helped guide the work 

of the EAC and election officials around 

the country in the lead up to the 2018 

midterms. 

Michelle Tassinari, Director and Legal Counsel at the Office of the Secretary of the 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, talks about cost-effective practices for providing 

resources to voters who need language assistance at the Language Access for Voters 

Summit.
page 55

 

Highlighting Best Practices

2018

Born of the U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission (EAC)’s mandate to 

serve as a national clearinghouse of 

information on election administration, 

the annual “Clearie” awards recognize 

and celebrate the hard work and 

innovative thinking it takes to conduct 

an election. Election officials are known 

for their commitment to the values 

expressed in the EAC Clearie awards: 

excellence, innovation, maintaining 

accuracy and integrity in the election 

process, and ensuring all eligible 

citizens can cast a ballot. The Clearies 

are a testament to their work and 

dedication and highlight best practices 

other election administrators can 

emulate.

This year’s Clearie awards were 

dedicated to the life and legacy of 

Wendy Noren and R. Brian Lewis. 

Wendy Noren served as Boone County 

Clerk for over three decades and was a 

member of the EAC’s Board of Advisors 

before passing away in March 2018 

following a long battle with cancer. R. 

Brian Lewis was an early and steadfast 
page 56

proponent of the Help America Vote 

Act (HAVA), and of election officials, and 

served as Counsel to the Office of the 

Senate Majority Leader and the Senate 

Rules and Administration Committee 

before his passing. Both were luminaries 

in the field of election administration 

who will long be remembered for their 

hard work, integrity, and friendship.

The “Clearies” seek entries in three 

distinct categories: voting accessibility, 

outstanding innovations in elections, 

and recruiting, training and retaining 

election workers. The EAC received 

entries from dozens of states, counties 

and advocacy organizations. An 

independent panel of judges from across 

the country evaluated entries based 

on efficacy, innovation, sustainability, 

Highlighting Best Practices

cost-effectiveness and replicability. In 

the end, 10 innovative approaches were 

selected to receive an award.

The 2018 “Clearies” recipients featured 

jurisdictions that differed greatly 

in terms of size, number of voters 

served and budgets available to them. 

Some made cutting-edge technology 

changes to their systems, while others 

streamlined operations and election 

worker training. Yet, all demonstrated 

the dedication, adaptability and 

resourcefulness necessary for ensuring 

accurate, accessible and secure elections 

in the 21st century.

The EAC is proud to lift up the fresh, 

inspiring approaches of the 2018 

“Clearie” award winners. 

Outstanding 

Innovations in Elections

City of Rochester Hills, Michigan

The City of Rochester Hills’ Election Day Precinct Support Portal allowed 

precinct workers to submit requests or questions via a smart phone or 

tablet using a simple Google Form. Form submissions were fed into a shared 

Google Sheet in real time that was monitored by phone staff and runners moving between 

precincts. Support calls were ranked by priority and dropped to the bottom of the Google 

Sheet once they were resolved. In this way, Rochester Hills was able to provide critical 

Election Day support across 32 precincts with just three staff. Election Inspectors were able 

to submit the request with the assurance that someone was responding. The Portal also 

generated valuable data, including requests per precinct, individual responder rates and a 

breakdown of the different assigned priority levels.
page 57

 New Mexico Secretar y of State 

 Weber County, Utah

 The Weber County Elections Office won for its “Winning in Weber” program to engage 

 students, veterans, teens, seniors, individuals with disabilities, and children in the 

electoral process. Sample programs that are part of the “Winning in Weber” initiative 

include engaging students at Weber State University in the elections process, providing civic 

lessons for students at local public and private schools, leading story hour readings and 

discussions for children, and being the first county in Utah to sponsor the Vote in Honor of 

a Veteran Program. In addition, the Weber County Elections Office has extensive knowledge 

in election security, provides technical support and best practice advice to election officials 

in other counties, and fosters collaborative relationships with advocates who support voters 

with disabilities. 

 Wisconsin Elections Commission

 Wisconsin manages each municipality’s election data on a state-wide database 

 known as “WisVote.” The challenge of securing WisVote is compounded as the number 

of database users increases. After researching several commercial possibilities, the WEC 

concluded the most effective option was to create “Securing WisVote,” a series of online 

learning modules focused on cybersecurity best practices, and tailored for election officials 

across the state. By creating a baseline training program open to all local governments, the 

WEC helped bridge cybersecurity awareness gaps within the WisVote user population and 

enhanced overall cybersecurity in local governments statewide. 

Highlighting Best Practices
page 58

Accessibility for Vot

with Disabilities

ers 

Highlighting Best Practices

 Contra Costa County, California

 Contra Costa County conducts a survey of each of its 268 polling places after every 

election and is often able to identify ways to improve the accessibility of these 

locations. Following the November 2016 election, Contra Costa County Clerk, Recorder 

and Registrar Joseph Canciamilla realized improvements could be made to how election 

workers were trained to create a welcoming environment for all voters across the county 

and created the Accessible Polling Place Location and Equipment (APPLE) class. This class 

brought a fresh approach to accessibility training because it placed election workers in the 

shoes of voters who may need assistance to provide instruction on establishing accessible 

polling places and ensuring they remained accessible throughout the day. The county also 

provided an Accessibility Kit to give election workers further information on how to remove 

any accessibility barriers at their polling place. More than 700 election workers, nearly half 

of the county’s total Election Day volunteers, have taken the class since it was launched in 

January 2018.

 Martin County, Florida

 While preparing for the 2016 Presidential Elections, the Martin County Elections 

 Office discovered the county had limited resources for voters who were deaf 

and hard of hearing. Following outreach to voters in the disability community, the office 

uncovered an additional need for engaging individuals with developmental disabilities. The 

Elections Office fostered partnerships across both communities and created “Count Me in 

Too,” a series of educational videos aimed at helping these individuals exercise their right 

to vote. The videos aired on local television and were posted on the Martin County Election 

Office’s website. During the 2016 Presidential Elections, voter registration and turnout 

among voters who indicated they had special needs increased by 8 percent. The same 

educational materials were also used during the 2018 Federal Elections.
page 59

 Iowa Secretary of State

 Iowa Secretary of State Paul D. Pate launched the Helping Veterans and Iowans 

with Disabilities Vote Project in 2015 to ensure members of both communities knew 

about the resources available to help them vote privately and independently. New 

administrative rules were implemented, the Secretary of State’s website improved its 

accessibility and an outreach coordinator was hired. The Secretary of State’s Office also 

conducted training sessions and workshops across the state, distributed curbside voting 

signs to all 1,700 precinct locations, and utilized videos and social media to get the word 

out. Partially funded by a Help America Vote Act grant from the Department of Health 

and Human Services, the project educated thousands of veterans and Iowans with 

disabilities about resources available to assist them in casting a ballot. 

Recruiting, Training 

and Retaining Election 

Workers

Highlighting Best Practices

 Bernalillo County, New Mexico

 Bernalillo County is the most populous in New Mexico with 420,262 registered voters, 

 and the Clerk’s Office trains hundreds of citizens during election years to work as poll 

officials. Ahead of the 2018 Midterm Election, the county overhauled its poll official training 

program to maximize learning and reduce election worker errors. The centerpiece of the new 

training program was an online video series called “Learn the Vote” – the first online election 

worker training program in New Mexico. Online training reduced class time by one-and-a-half 

to two hours, allowed poll officials to review materials as often as needed and reduced poll 

official errors in the 2018 General Election. This allowed the Clerk’s Office to redirect staff 

time previously spent fixing errors made by poll officials into successfully completing the 

election canvass within the statutory 13 days and completing the General Election audit in less 

than two days.
page 60

Montgomer y County, Mar yland

 Since 2004, the Montgomery County Board of Elections (BOE) has conducted the 

Future Vote Initiative to encourage students from grades 6 to 12 to participate 

in elections. To date, 43,619 students have participated in the Future Vote Initiative, including 

over 10,000 who have served as election judges after their sixteenth birthday. The program 

recruits energetic, tech savvy students, many of who are also bilingual, into the election 

workforce and saves the county money. The program also provides an experience for young 

people that will shape their values and character and give them an understanding of what it 

means to exercise their vote and empower others to do the same. 

 

 The City of Ely, Minnesota

Highlighting Best Practices
page 61

 

 

Financial Focus: Grants Administration

more than 

$3.68 billion

Amount the EAC has disbursed since 

its establishment 15 years ago to 

the 50 states, American Samoa, the 

Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 

District of Columbia, Guam and the U.S. 

Virgin Islands.

In FY2019, the EAC’s Office of Inspector 

General (OIG) will announce its audit 

plans for the 2018 HAVA Funds awarded 

under Section 101 of the Help America 

Vote Act (HAVA). The EAC estimates 

that as many as 10 states a year could 

receive a federal audit focused on how 

the funds are being spent.

The Grants Office at the EAC is providing 

ongoing training and technical 

assistance to support states and their 

localities in effectively managing 

federal funds. Once the audit schedule 

is released by the OIG, EAC will be 

available to states on the list to conduct 

both pre- and post-audit assistance 

visits to help prepare for and respond to 

findings from the audits. 

page 61

Additional information on HAVA grants can be found on www.eac.gov.

The EAC also publishes an annual Expenditure Report. The most recent 

report, published on Aug 16, 2018, can be found at: 

www.eac.gov/expenditurereport.
page 62

 

Financial Focus: Grants Administration

14 states* have expended 

100 percent of their initial 

HAVA funds and interest.

*Arkansas, Connecticut, Guam, Idaho, 

Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, 

Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio,

Rhode Island, and U.S. Virgin Islands.

27 states* have less than 

10 percent of initial HAVA 

funds remaining. 

*Alabama, American Samoa, Delaware, 

District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, 

Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, 

Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New 

Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North 

Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, 

South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, 

Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, 

and Wyoming. 

page 62

14 states* have more than 

10 percent of initial HAVA 

funds remaining.

*Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, 

Hawaii, Kentucky, Massachusetts, 

Michigan, New Hampshire, Oregon, 

Puerto Rico, South Dakota, Tennessee, 

and Vermont. 
page 63 page 63

Financial Focus: Operations

FY18 Appropriation Total: $10.1 million

Funds allocated to:

U.S. Election Assistance National Institute of Standards 

Commission (EAC) & Technolog y (NIST)

$8.6 million $1.5 million

FY17 Appropriation Total: $9.6 million

$1.5 million

FY15 Appropriation Total: $10 million

FY16 Appropriation Total: $9.6 million

Funds allocated to: 

U.S. Election Assistance National Institute of Standards 

Commission (EAC) & Technolog y (NIST)

$8.1 million

Funds allocated to: 

U.S. Election Assistance National Institute of Standards 

Commission (EAC) & Technolog y (NIST)

$8.1 million $1.9 million

Funds allocated to: 

U.S. Election Assistance National Institute of Standards 

Commission (EAC) & Technolog y (NIST)

$8.2 million $1.4 million

FY14 Appropriation Total: $10 million

Funds allocated to: 

U.S. Election Assistance National Institute of Standards 

Commission (EAC) & Technolog y (NIST)

$8.1 million $1.9 million
page 64

Executive Director’s Note

Unless you are steeped in the world of 

election administration, it is difficult to 

appreciate the many competencies an 

election official must master and the 

tremendous pressure that accompanies 

those expectations. At the same time, 

the issues and threats surrounding 

elections are ever-evolving and funding 

for election offices is often limited, 

meaning election officials must be 

resourceful and adaptable. 

As the nation’s only clearinghouse 

of information on Federal Election 

administration nationwide, the U.S. 

Election Assistance Commission (EAC)’s 

core mission is to support election 

officials through the distribution of 

assistance and products that help 

America vote. The EAC accomplished 

this in 2018 by producing timely 

products at critical moments in the 

election cycle, convening key leaders to 

discuss the most pressing issues facing 

election administrators, and ensuring 

election officials received materials 

and intelligence in time to make such 

resources actionable. 

The fiscal year began with the 

establishment of the Government 

Coordinating Council (GCC), the 

culmination of the EAC’s work to 

establish a cybersecurity working group 

of state and local election administrators.

When $380 million in Help America Vote 

Act (HAVA) funds were made available 

via the Consolidated Appropriations Act 

of 2018, the EAC worked to ensure states 

received funding with enough time for 

it to have an impact during the 2018 

election. All eligible states and territories 

received letters within 30 days allowing 

them to incur costs, and 100 percent of 

the funds were disbursed by September 
page 65

Executive Director’s Note

20, just under six months after the 

omnibus was signed into law. 

This past year held a number of other 

exciting developments for the EAC as 

well, including the nomination of two 

additional Commissioners, Benjamin 

Hovland and Donald Palmer, who were 

confirmed on January 2, 2019, marking 

the first time in ten years that the EAC 

has a full panel of Commissioners. The 

reestablishment of a full quorum will 

allow the agency to move forward on 

key initiatives, such as finalizing the next 

generation of Voluntary Voting System 

Guidelines, and increase our ability to 

reach out across the nation to engage 

and assist the election community.

As we move into 2019, the EAC’s work 

will build on the strong foundation 

established in 2018. The EAC’s expert 

staff and its Commissioners remain 

ready to support state and local election 

leaders in every aspect of their work. 

We will produce resources and services 

at the most impactful times for election 

officials and voters alike. We will also 

use our robust research and unique 

convening power to address leading 

election administration issues and 

elevate best practices as examples for 

other jurisdictions. 

While we don’t know what tomorrow 

will hold for elections, we do know 

that the competency and dedication of 

election officials who work to ensure 

American elections are secure, accurate, 

accessible and conducted with integrity, 

is steadfast. The 2018 Federal Election 

confirmed what we already knew 

about election officials. Just as in 2016, 

they were ready for 2018, and will 

be prepared for whatever challenges 

2020 brings. The EAC shares their 

commitment to upholding these values 

and will continue to serve as a vital 

federal resource. 

As we reflect on the past year 

and look forward to 2019, I am 

grateful to Chairman Hicks and Vice 

Chair McCormick, and incoming 

Commissioners Hovland and Palmer, 

for their service and am proud to stand 

with the EAC’s talented and dedicated 

staff to improve the way America votes.

Brian D. Newby

Executive Director

U.S. Election Assistance Commission
page 66

Executive Director’s Note

EAC Executive Director Brian Newby speaks with Senator Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) at the EAC Election 

Readiness Summit on October 3, 2018.

Election administrators must be masterful project managers with expert knowledge in 

many areas in order to successfully oversee an election. 
page 67

 

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards

Three federal advisory committees, 

the Standards Board, the Board of 

Advisors and the Technical Guidelines 

Development Committee (TGDC), help 

the U.S. Election Assistance Commission 

(EAC) complete its mandate under the 

Help America Vote Act (HAVA). 

Board of Advisors

The Board of Advisors is a 35-member 

board composed of representatives 

from the National Governors 

Association; National Conference of 

State Legislatures; National Association 

of Secretaries of State; National 

Association of State Election Directors; 

National Association of Counties; the 

International Association of Government 

Officials (created from the merger of 

the National Association of County 

Recorders, Election Officials and Clerks, 

and the International Association of 

Clerks, Recorders, Election Officials 

and Treasurers); Election Center; U.S. 

Commission on Civil Rights and the 

Architectural and Transportation 

Barriers Compliance Board. 

Other members include representatives 

from the U.S. Department of Justice, 

Office of Public Integrity and the Civil 

Rights Division; the director of the U.S. 

Department of Defense Federal Voting 

Assistance Program; four professionals 

from the field of science and technology, 

one appointed by each the Speaker 

and Minority Leader of the U.S. Senate; 

the Speaker and Minority Leader of 

the U.S. House of Representatives. The 

chairs and ranking minority members 

of the U.S. House of Representatives 

Committee on House Administration 

and the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules 

and Appropriation each appoint two 

members representing voter interests. 
page 68

e 

During FY18, the EAC Board of Advisors 

was comprised of the following 

members. 

Members

National Governors 

Association

2 appointments

Jeffrey McLeod

Director

Center for Best Practice’s Homeland 

Security and Public Safety Division

Washington, DC

Rahmeyer, Shaun

Administrator

Office of Cyber Defense Coordination

Carson City, NV 

National Conference of State 

Legislatures

2 appointments

Senator Daniel Ivey-Soto

New Mexico State Legislature 

Albuquerque, NM

Senator John Murante

Nebraska State Legislature, District 49

Gretna, NE 

National Association of 

Secretaries of State

2 appointments

The Honorable Jim Condos

VT Secretar y of State, 

and NASS President

Montpelier, VT

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards

The Honorable Connie Lawson

IN Secretar y of State, 

and NASS Immediate Past President

Indianapolis, IN

National Association of Stat

Election Directors

2 appointments

Gary Poser

Director of Elections

Minnesota Secretary of State

Saint Paul, MN

Linda H. Lamone

Administrator of Elections

Maryland State Board of Elections

Annapolis, MD

National Association of 

Counties

2 appointments

Ricky Hatch

Weber County Clerk/Auditor

Ogden, UT
page 69

Alysoun McLaughlin

Deputy Election Director

Montgomery County

Gaithersburg, MD

United States Conference 

Mayors

2 appointments

Vacant

The Election Center

2 appointments

Tim Mattice

Executive Director

Katy, TX

Ernie Hawkins

Chair, Board of Directors

The Election Center

Elk Grove, CA

International Association 

Government Officials

2 appointments

merger of IACREOT and NACRC

Michael B. Winn

Travis County Director of Election

Austin, TX

Neal Kelley

Registrar of Voters, Orange Count

Santa Ana, CA

of 

of 

s

y

United States Commission 

on Civic Rights

2 appointments

Patricia Timmons-Goodson

U. S. Commission on Civil Rights

Vice Chair 

Washington, DC

Michael Yaki

U. S. Commission on Civil Rights

Commissioner

Washington, DC

Architectural and 

Transportation Barrier 

Compliance Board

2 appointments 

Marc Guthrie

Public Member, U.S. Access Board

Hebron, OH

Sachin Pavithran

Public Board Member

Providence, UT

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 70

Chief Office of Public 

Integrity, United States 

Department of Justice

1 appointment 

 

Richard C. Pilger

Director, Election Crimes Branch

U. S. Department of Justice

Washington, DC

Chief, Voting Section 

Civil Rights Division U.S. 

Department of Justice

1 appointment 

Chris Herren

Chief Voting Section

Civil Rights Division

U. S. Department of Justice

Washington, DC

Director, Federal Voting 

Assistance Program U.S. 

Department of Defense

1 appointment 

David Beirne

Director

Federal Voting Assistance Program

U.S. Dept. of Defense

Alexandria, VA

Speaker of the House

1 appointment 

Elliot Berke

Managing Partner

Berke Farah LLP

Washington, DC

Democratic Leader

1 appointment 

Philip B. Stark

Associate Dean, Mathematical & 

Physical Sciences and Professor of 

Statistics

University of California - Berkeley

Berkeley, CA

Senate Majority Leader

1 appointment

Sarah Ball Johnson

City Clerk

Colorado Springs, CO 

Senate Minority Leader

1 appointment

Barbara Simons, PhD

Board Chair

Verified Voting 

Association for Computing Machinery

San Francisco, CA

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 71

Senate Rules & 

Administration CMTE - Chair

2 appointments

Matthew Clay McDonald

Attorney/Partner

Jones Walker LLP

Mobile, AL

Shane Schoeller

Greene County Clerk

Springfield, MO 

Senate Rules & 

Administration CMTE - 

Ranking Member

2 appointments

James C. Dickson 

Co-Chair

Voting Rights Task Force 

National Council on

Independent Living

Washington, DC

Mark Ritchie

President

MN World’s Fair Bid Committee

Minneapolis, MN 

House Administration

- Chair

2 appointments

T. Russell Nobile

Attorney at Law

WiseCarter

Jackson, MS

Spencer Ritchie

Associate

Forman Watkins & Krutz LLP

Jackson, MS

House Administration - 

Ranking Member

2 appointments

Gregory T. Moore

Executive Director

NAACP National Voter Fund

Upper Marlboro, MD

James R. Burn, Jr.

Attorney

Abes Baumann

Pittsburgh, PA 

U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission - Designated 

Federal Officer (DFO)

Thomas Hicks

Chairman 

U.S. Election Assistance Commission 

Silver Spring, MD

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 72

Standards Board

The Standards Board is a 110-member board comprised of 55 state and local election 

officials selected by their respective chief state election official with a defined process to 

assure input from the state’s local election officials’ organization. HAVA prohibits any two 

members representing the same state to be members of the same political party. The 

board selects nine members to serve as an executive board, of which not more than five 

are state election officials, not more than five are local election officials and not more than 

five are members of the same political party. 

During FY18, the EAC Standards Board was comprised of the following members. 

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards

State Local

ALABAMA

John H. Merrill Steven L. Reed

Alabama Secretary of State Probate Judge

Montgomery, AL Montgomery, AL

A LASKA 

Josie Bahnke Carol Thompson

Director, Division of Elections Absentee & Petition Manager

State of Alaska Alaska Division of Elections

Juneau, AK Anchorage, AK

 
page 73

State Local

AMERICA SAMOA 

Uiagalelei Lealofi Fiti Tavai

Commissioner of Elections IT/Data Systems & UOCAVA Division Head

Pago Pago, AS Pago Pago, AS 

ARIZONA

Eric H. Spencer Reynaldo Valenzuela Jr.

State Election Director Assistant Director of Elections

Phoenix, AZ Maricopa County Elections

 Phoenix, AZ

ARKANSAS

Mark Martin Melanie Clark

Arkansas Secretary of State Jackson County Clerk

Little Rock, AR Newport, AR

CALIFORNIA

Susan Lapsley Neal Kelley

Deputy Secretary of State Registrar of Voters

Sacramento, CA Orange County

 Santa Ana, CA

COLORADO

Dwight K. Shellman III Rudy Santos

County Support Manager Chief Deputy Clerk

Colorado Department of State, Weld County Clerk & Recorder’s Office

Elections Division Greeley, CO

Denver, CO 

CONNECTICUT

Peggy Reeves Timothy T. DeCarlo

Assistant to the Secretary of the State for Registrar of Voters

Elections, Legislative and Waterbury, CT

Intergovernmental Affairs

Hartford, CT 

 

DELAWARE

Elaine Manlove Howard G. Sholl, Jr.

State Election Commissioner Deputy Director

Dover, DE Dept. of Elections for New Castle County

 Wilmington, DE 

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 74

State Local

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Alice P. Miller, Esq. Michael D. Gill, Esq.

Executive Director Board Member

District of Columbia Board of Elections District of Columbia Board of Elections

Washington, DC Washington, DC

FLORIDA

Maria Matthews Paul Lux

Division Director Okaloosa County Supervisor of Elections

Florida Division of Elections Crestview, FL

Tallahassee, FL 

 

GEORGIA

Brian Kemp Lynn Bailey

Georgia Secretary of State Richmond County Elections Director

Atlanta, GA Augusta, GA

GUAM

Maria I.D. Pangelinan Joseph P. Iseke

Executive Director Election Program Coordinator

Guam Election Commission Guam Election Commission

Hagatna, GU Hagatna, GU 

HAWAII

Aulii Tenn Shirley Magarifuji

Counting Center Section Head Election Administrator, County of Maui

Office of Elections Wailuku, HI

Pearl City, HI 

IDAHO

Tim Hurst Patty Weeks

Chief Deputy Secretary of State Nez Perce County Clerk

Boise, ID Lewiston, ID

ILLINOIS

Bernadette Matthews Lance Gough

Assistant Executive Director Executive Director

State Board of Elections Chicago Board of Election Commission

Springfield, IL Chicago, IL

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 75

State Local

INDIANA 

J. Bradley King Terri J. Rethlake

Indiana Election Division Director Clerk of Circuit Court, St. Joseph County

Indianapolis, IN South Bend, IN

IOWA

Ken Kline Dennis Parrott

Deputy Commissioner of Elections Jasper County Auditor

Des Moines, IA Newton, IA 

KANSAS

Bryan A. Caskey Lori Augustine

Director of Elections Trego County Clerk

Topeka, KS WaKeeney, KS 

KENTUCKY

Jared Dearing Kenny Barger

Executive Director Madison County Clerk

State Board of Elections Richmond, KY

Frankfort, KY 

LOUISIANA

Kyle Ardoin H. Lynn Jones

Assistant Secretary of State Clerk of Court, Calcasieu Parish

Baton Rouge, LA Lake Charles, LA

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 76

State Local

MAINE

Julie L. Flynn Katherine L. Jones

Deputy Secretary of State Portland City Clerk

Augusta, ME Portland, ME

 

MARYLAND

Nikki Baines Charlson Katie Brown

Deputy Administrator Election Director

Maryland State Board of Elections Baltimore County Board of Elections

Catonsville, MD

MASSACHUSETTS

Michelle K. Tassinari Vacant

Director/Legal Counsel, Elections Division, 

Office of Secretary of the Commonwealth 

Boston, MA 

 

MICHIGAN

Sally Williams Jan Roncelli

Director, Bureau of Elections Clerk, Bloomfield Township

Lansing, MI Bloomfield Township, MI

MINNESOTA

Gary Poser Debby Erickson

Director of Elections Administrative Services Director 

Minnesota Secretary of State Crow Wing County

Saint Paul, MN Brainerd, MN

MISSISSIPPI

Hawley Robertson Baretta Mosley

Senior Attorney, Elections Division Lafayette County Circuit Clerk

Jackson, MS Oxford, MS

MISSOURI

Chrissy Peters Dennis Von Allmen

Co-Director of Elections Howell County Clerk

Jefferson City, MO West Plains, MO

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 77

State Local

MONTANA

Dana Corson Rina Fontana Moore

Director of Elections and Voter Services Cascade County Clerk & Recorder

Montana Secretary of State Great Falls, MT

Helena, MT 

NEBRASKA

Heather Doxon David Shively

Election Specialist II Lancaster County Election Commissioner

Lincoln, NE Lincoln, NE

NEVADA

Justus Wendland Joseph P. Gloria

HAVA Administrator Registrar of Voter, Clark County

Nevada Secretary of State North Las Vegas, NV

Carson City, NV 

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Anthony Stevens Robert Dezmelyk

Assistant Secretary of State Moderator, Town of Newton

Concord, NH Newton, NH

NEW JERSEY

Robert Giles Linda Von Nessi

Director, New Jersey Division of Elections Essex County Clerk of Elections

Trenton, NJ Newark, NJ

 

NEW MEXICO 

Kari Fresquez Dave Kunko

Bureau of Elections Director Chaves County Clerk

Santa Fe, NM Roswell, NM

NEW YORK

Douglas A. Kellner Rachel L. Bledi

Commissioner, Co-Chair Commissioner

NYS Board of Elections Albany County Board of Elections

New York, NY Albany, NY

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 78

State Local

NORTH CAROLINA

Veronica Degraffenreid Michael Dickerson

Election Preparation & Support Manager Mecklenburg County Director of Elections

Raleigh, NC Charlotte, NC

NORTH DAKOTA 

Jim Silrum DeAnn Buckhouse

Deputy Secretary of State Election Coordinator

Bismarck, ND Fargo ND

OHIO

Patricia Wolfe Steve Harsman

Election Administrator Deputy Director

Ohio Secretary of State Montgomery County Board of Elections

Columbus, OH Dayton, OH

OKLAHOMA

Carol Morris Doug Sanderson

Assistant Director of Support Services Secretary 

Oklahoma State Election Board Oklahoma County Election Board

Oklahoma City, OK Oklahoma City, OK

OREGON

Stephen N. Trout Derrin (Dag) Robinson

Director of Elections Harney County Clerk

Oregon Secretary of State Burns, OR

Salem, OR 

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 79

State Local

PENNSYLVANIA

Jonathan Marks Shari Brewer

Commissioner of Elections Director, Butler County Board of Elections

Harrisburg, PA Butler, PA

PUERTO RICO 

Ramón Allende Santos Walter Vélez Martínez

Ayudante del Comisionado Secretario

San Juan, PR Dorado, PR

RHODE ISLAND

Rob Rock Louise Phaneuf

Director of Elections Town Clerk, Town of Burrillville

Providence, RI Harrisville, RI

SOUTH CAROLINA 

Marci Andino Wanda Hemphill 

Executive Director Director, York County Board of 

State Election Commission Registration & Elections 

Columbia, SC York, SC

SOUTH DAKOTA

Kristin Gabriel Carri Crum

South Dakota HAVA Coordinator Clay County Auditor

Pierre, SD Vermillion, SD

TENNESSEE

Mark Goins A.J. Starling

Coordinator of Elections Davidson County Election Commissioner

Nashville, TN Nashville, TN

TEXAS

Keith Ingram Dana DeBeauvoir

Director, Elections Division Travis County Clerk

Texas Secretary of State Austin, TX

Austin, TX 

UTAH 

Justin Lee Sherrie Swensen

Director of Elections Salt Lake County Clerk

Salt Lake City, UT Salt Lake City, UT

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 80

State Local

VERMONT

William Senning Sandra “Sandy” Pinsonault, MMC

Director of Elections & Campaign Finance Dorset Town Clerk

Montpelier, VT Dorset, VT

VIRGIN ISLANDS

Lisa Harris Moorhead Kevermay Douglas

Member, Virgin Islands Board of Elections Deputy Supervisor of Elections

Kingshill, VI Kingshill, VI

VIRGINIA

Christopher E. “Chris” Piper Greg S. Riddlemoser

Commissioner of Elections General Registrar

Richmond, VA Stafford, VA

WASHINGTON

Stuart Holmes Jerry Pettit

Election Information Services Supervisor Kittitas County Auditor

Olympia, WA Ellensburg, WA

 

WEST VIRGINIA

Brittany Westfall Brian Wood

SVRS Coordinator, Elections Putnam County Clerk

West Virginia Secretary of State Winfield, WV

Charleston, WV 

WISCONSIN

Meagan Wolfe Barbara K.D. Goeckner

Elections Division Administrator City of Amery Deputy Clerk

Madison, WI Amery, WI

WYOMING

Kai Schon Jackie R. Gonzales

State Election Director Albany County Clerk

Cheyenne, WY Laramie, WY

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards

DESIGNATED FEDERAL OFFICER

Christy McCormick

Vice Chair

U.S. Election Assistance Commission
page 81

Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC)

The Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC) assists the EAC in developing 

the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG). The chair of the TGDC is the director of the 

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The TGDC is comprised of 14 other 

members appointed jointly by the EAC and the director of NIST. 

During FY18, the TGDC was comprised of the following members.

Chair

Walter Copan

Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology

Director, National Institute for Standards and Technology

EAC STANDARDS BOARD

Robert Giles Greg Riddlemoser

Director, New Jersey Division of Elections General Registrar

Trenton, NJ Stafford, VA

EAC BOARD OF ADVISORS

Linda Lamone Neal Kelley

Administrator of Elections Registrar of Voters

Maryland State Board of Elections Orange County

Annapolis, MD Santa Ana, CA

ARCHITECTURAL AND TRANSPORTATION BARRIER

COMPLIANCE BOARD (ACCESS BOARD)

Marc Guthrie Sachin Pavithran

Public Member Public Board Member

U.S. Access Board Providence, UT

Newark, OH

INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERS (IEEE)

Vacant

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards
page 82

EAC Advisory & Oversight Boards

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE ELECTION DIRECTORS(NASED)

Lori Augino Judd Choate

Director of Elections Director of Elections

Washington Secretary of State’s Office Colorado Department of State

Olympia, WA Denver, Colorado

Technical Experts

McDermot Coutts Diane Golden

Software Development Director Director of Programs and Technical Assistance

& Team Leader Association of Assistive Technology Act Programs

Unisyn Voting Solutions Kansas City, Missouri

San Diego, California

Jeramy Gray David Wagner

Assistant Clerk-Recorder Professor

Chief Information Officer Computer Science Division

Los Angeles County Clerk University of California, Berkeley

& Recorder’s Office Berkeley, California

Los Angeles, CA

AMERICAN NATIONAL STANDARDS INSTITUTE (ANSI)

Mary Saunders

Vice President, Government Relations and Public Policy 

American National Standards Institute 

Washington, DC

DESIGNATED FEDERAL OFFICER

EAC Commissioner
U.S. Election Assistance

Commission

www.eac.gov