Election Administration
- Elizabeth McBride
- Jul 12, 2021
- 4 min read
Elections in the U.S. are decentralized. All elections are conducted locally, even federal ones. The voting process relies on the work of thousands of administrators, usually civil servants and clerks at the county and municipal level. Americans vote for only four national offices: president, vice president, senator, and representative. However, the only national election is for the Electoral College where electors then determine the president. All other elections are technically the states’ responsibility; though, it would be more accurate to say that elections are conducted by the 13,000 counties and municipalities.
Because of the decentralized approach to conducting elections, no state administers elections in exactly the same way as another state. Furthermore, election administration varies within a state quite a bit. This decentralized election administration has been present since the beginning of the U.S.
History
The Constitution said very little about the administration of elections, only suggesting that states have the duty to determine the procedures for choosing Electoral College electors. Over time, election administration became a responsibility for local officials. That is why in the first 100 years of the country, county officials were mainly responsible for holding elections. Unlike today, however, voters were not required to register ahead of time and the most common voting method was the voice vote. These two factors meant elections were not nearly as complex as they are today. Additionally, elections didn’t happen frequently and were not time consuming. It wasn’t until the 1880s that states and localities began altering election administration by imposing voter registration requirements, implementing secret ballot systems, and utilizing voting machines. Gradually, the election process became much more complex and time consuming. Voter registration meant election officials had to collect voter applications and maintain lists of voters. The secret ballot provided by local election officials required more resources and preparation. Voting machines required storage, maintenance, and testing. These changes may have been motivated by a mixture of desires to increase efficiency and fairness and to block minorities from voting. While elections are still fairly decentralized, changes in the late 1880s resulted in some degree of uniformity within states.
Two acts further altered the election administration process: the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) of 1993 and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002. The NVRA created a national voter registration form and expanded the number of ways in which people can register to vote. The HAVA provided funding for states and created the Election Assistance Commission which gives guidance on election administration. Both acts put additional responsibilities on the states such as centralization of voter records, improvement of election procedures, uniform procedures for voter registration, etc.
Federal Election Administration
The federal government’s role in election administration is relatively small compared to the state and local government’s role. However, it does have some responsibilities such as prohibiting voter discrimination, providing some funding to state to upgrade election equipment, assisting states with election security, etc. The area of election administration that the federal government has been the most involved in is protecting voting rights. Some of the most recent laws have made it easier for the blind, disabled, and elderly to register to vote and to cast ballots.
State Level Election Administration
Despite movements toward more uniformity, elections today are still largely decentralized, though far less so than it was in the first 100 years of the country. Currently, all 50 states have a chief election official who has the ultimate authority over elections in the state. Which official acts as the chief election official varies from state to state. Most states rely on their secretaries of state for this position whether they are elected or appointed. About 40 members of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) serve as their state’s chief election official. Other states use appointed bipartisan election commissions. Regardless of the structure, top election officials are responsible for a variety of tasks such as ensuring election laws are followed by all local officials, providing training courses or materials, providing a process for certifying and testing voter equipment, etc. These are all macro-level tasks handled by top officials.
Local Level Election Administration
The day-to-day election administration is run at the county or municipal level by a single individual, a board or commission of elections, or a combination of the two. Administrators perform numerous complex tasks to organize and conduct elections. Some of these tasks include setting dates, certifying eligibility of candidates, designing ballots, registering eligible voters, etc.
Professionalization of Election Administration
As mentioned before, the election process became more complex as new policies were put into place. Today it is a multifaceted managerial position that requires skill and expertise. As more new technology has been incorporated in the election process, there is a need for election officials to be knowledgeable in handling technology. States and other organizations are working hard to provide training and resources to help election officials perform their duties. With better training and guidance, election officials will be able to conduct more efficient and higher quality elections.
References
Congressional Research Service. (2018). Federal role in U.S. campaigns and elections: An overview. Congressional Research Service. https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/R45302.html#_Toc523930147
Human Rights Watch. (2020). What democracy looks like. Human Rights Watch.
National Conference of State Legislatures. (2020). Election administration at state and local levels. National Conference of State Legislatures.
Pastor, R. A. (n.d.). The United States administration of elections: Decentralized, pre-modern and contented. ACE Project.
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