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October 31, 2019

October 31, 2019

In Focus This Week

Election 2019: What to watch
What we’ll be watching on November 5

By M. Mindy Moretti
Electionline.org

While most eyes are on 2020, those in the elections world know that Tuesday November 5 is also an Election Day and for many cities/counties/states this will be a way to test new equipment and laws during a typically lower-turnout election.

As with any election, there will mostly likely be lines at some polling places. Polling places may open late. A ballot tabulation machine could get stuck. Results will be late. A website might go down. The weather will be terrible somewhere. There may be a power outage. A gas leak may force an evacuation. A car could even crash into a polling place.

Those things happen every election. This year will be no different. But there are six particular things that we’ll be keeping an eye on Tuesday.

And of course there are always the infamous unknown unknowns.

Equipment
Voters in many states including Georgia, Ohio, Pennsylvania and South Carolina, will be facing voting new voting equipment for the first time. How will the voters handle it? Will poll workers have everything up and running at the times the polls open? Will there be any end-of-the day shut-down problems at polling places? What will elections officials learn from this “small” roll out of new machines that may help them prepare for 2020.

Ranked choice voting
Ranked choice voting is having a relatively big year and it could get even bigger depending on how voters in New York City vote on a charter amendment that would the city to the voting system. Although Mayor Bill de Blasio has not said one way or another where he falls on the measure, some lawmakers have voiced their support for the new system.

Ranked choice is also being used for the first time in Las Cruces, New Mexico. There have been some questions about the system during early voting, but only time will tell whether the voters really approve.

Expanded early and absentee voting
Voters in Virginia and Michigan have expanded opportunities to vote absentee this year. How will that affect turnout, if at all and more importantly how will that affect local elections officials’ ability to provide election results in a timely manner?

In case you hadn’t heard, New York kicked off early voting for the first time this year. How will that impact turnout, if at all? How will that impact results reporting? Will it be considered an overall success or not?

Young voters
Young people turned out in record numbers in 2018. Will they keep up that momentum? In the days and months leading up to the 2019 election, they’ve also run into problems such as residency issues, non-compliant voter IDs and lack of access to polling places. Will those issues factor in to 2019 turnout?

Vote by mail
Voters in Rockville, Maryland will be voting entirely by mail this election. Will the voters meet the deadline? How long will it take the city to process and tabulate the ballots.

In New Jersey, an expanded vote-by-mail law could mean more people than ever casting their ballot that way. What impacts may that have on the turnout and the tabulation?

Secretary of state races
There will be at least two new secretaries of state following the November 5 election when Michael Adams (R) takes on Heather French Henry (D) in Kentucky and Johnny Dupree (D) takes on Michael Watson (R) in Mississippi.  In Louisiana we’ll have to wait a few more days till their runoff election on November 16 to see how incumbent Kyle Ardoin (R) fairs against challenger Gwen Collins-Greenup (D).

Unknown unknowns
And then, to quote former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfield, there are the unknown unknowns.

Good luck to all the elections officials out there!

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2019 Election Updates

New York: Early voting kicked off in the Empire State this week and overall things have been running fairly smoothly. About 55,000 people — including 21,000 in New York City — showed up for the first weekend of early voting. There were some hiccups though and parents in New York City are none-too-pleased that schools are being used as week-long early voting locations. In Rochester, there were reports that ballot printing machines didn’t work and that in some early voting locations only one voting machine was operating. There were reports of problems with e-poll books in Monroe County.

Election News This Week

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla has announced a first-in-the-nation partnership with Equity California,  an LGBTQ civil rights group, to train poll workers to make it easier for gender-nonconforming and transgender voters to cast ballots. Although California does not require a photo ID in order to vote in most instances, when a person’s voter registration name does not match their gender presentation it has the potential to cause problems for the voter. “What’s happening is that they’re coming in, (poll workers) are hassling them or asking for additional IDs and not treating them with respect,” Rick Zbur, executive director of Equality California told the San Francisco Chronicle. “We know that when people are hassled, they avoid unpleasant experiences.” California has an estimated 119,000 eligible transgender voters.

 

While somewhere in New York someone is still probably using a lever-voting machine, turns out that Empire State voters aren’t the only ones who love their traditional voting equipment. In Wellfleet, Massachusetts voters are  still using a 1920s-era wooden ballot box for voting.  That’s all about to end though because the town selectboard voted 302 to buy an electronic vote tabulator. “Let’s retire the horse-and-buggy here and get with the 20th century and try this tabulator,” Selectboard member Kathleen Bacon said according to the Cape Cod Times. “If in two years we don’t like it, we’ll take out the box with the wooden crank and go back to that again.” According to Interim Town Clerk Jennifer Congel, elections workers were at the office till about 3 a.m. counting 2,300 ballots in 2016. “I understand nostalgia, but I think we owe it to our hardworking volunteers and staff to catch up to the times,” Selectboard member Justina Carlson said.

Got ID? During a week-long window which allowed Purdue University students to replace their existing IDs with free voter-compliant IDs, 505 students took advantage of the opportunity. That brings the total of student IDs swapped for compliant IDs to 1,341. In May, the Tippecanoe County Election Board announced Purdue IDs must have printed expiration dates to be used as an acceptable voter ID, complying with Indiana’s voter ID law. Emily Jones, a student director for the Purdue Votes Coalition, told the Journal & Courier the fee vacation was “helpful.” But she hopes the university will hold more “fee vacations”. “We’re looking for more fee holidays, not just for the students’ sake, but for Purdue’s sake,” Jones said. “We don’t want to have a high number of people overwhelm them, and we believe there will be a high volume of students wanting IDs next year.”

What a great idea! Meg Splaine Carnaroli has started nonprofit called Playtime at the Polls. The program will run in 10 Rhode Island elections jurisdictions in 2020. According to The Warwick Beacon, trains volunteers to get kids to play with crayons, Play-Doh and a mock voting booth, all within the polling location. Playtime also does background checks on volunteers before having them work at a polling place. “By creating a fun, educational space for children on Election Day, parents know that while they concentrate on their ballots, their kids will be occupied and learn about the electoral process, which creates the routine of going to the polls on Election Day,” Carnaroli said

Election Office News: The Douglas County, Nebraska elections commission has moved to a new location that is larger and more secure than the old offices. And despite controversy surrounding the move, the Rhode Island State Properties Committee unanimously endorsed a 10-year, $5.5-million lease to house the Board of Elections’ offices and voting machines — now in separate state-owned buildings — under one roof. The agreement will move the BOE out of Providence and into Cranston.

Sticker News: Three cheers to the St. Lawrence County, New York League of Women Voters that donated 60,000 “I Voted” stickers to the county to hand out during early voting. “The local League of Women Voters thanks all of organizations and donors who contributed over $1,200 to buy 60,000 plus stickers this fall,” League President Kathleen Stein told North Country Now. And in Maryland, the State Board of Elections tweeted out that the Maryland Fine Arts Office received more than 650 entries into the state’s “I Voted” sticker competition. Voting runs November 5th to 15th.

Happy Halloween! And last but not least we couldn’t let a Halloween edition of electionline Weekly go by without something spooky. Earlier this month marked the 170th anniversary of the death of the writer Edgar Allan Poe. No one knows for certain what/who killed Poe when he died in Baltimore in 1849, but one theory is that he was caught up in a cooping scheme. Cooping, which was a type of voter fraud was apparently popular in Charm City at the time. One theory is that Poe was given alcohol, forced to vote multiple times and then left for dead. Nevermore.

 

Personnel News: In Kern County, California, Abbe Shugart, assistant registrar of voters, Sarah Webb, chief deputy registrar, and Renea Westfall, elections process coordinator all will retire effective November 15. Jackie St. George is the new assistant registrar. New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver has ended her 2020 bid for Senate. Ami Milano is the new Marion, Massachusetts registrar of voters.

Legislative Updates

Federal Legislation: Sen. Roy Blount (R-Missouri), chairman of the Senate Rules Committee has blocked passage of HR1, the For the People Act. In arguing against passage—which one Senator can stop under the Senate rules—Blount said the legislation would give the federal government unprecedented control over elections in this country.”

Arizona: The Fair Elections Act ballot measure was unveiled this week and if approved by voters it would, among other things, implement automatic voter registration and same day voter registration in Arizona. Also part of the measure, ballots returned by mail would count as long as they’re postmarked by 7 p.m. on Election Day and county elections officials would be required to locate vote centers on tribal lands.

California: The San Diego County Board of Supervisors rejected a request Tuesday from the County Registrar of Voters to establish four satellite locations of the registrar’s office to alleviate expected long voting lines during the March 2020 primary. That proposal, which would have required up to $615,000 in county funding, was intended to prevent expected backlogs caused by same-day conditional voter registration.

Illinois: The Cook County board has approved the Voting Opportunity and Translation Equity ordinance that will require the county to offer fully translated ballots in six additional languages over the next two years. Currently the clerk’s office is required to provide elections materials in English, Spanish, Chinese and Hindi. Moving forward, ballots will also be offered in Korean, Tagalog, Polish, Arabic and Russian.

Maine: A new law will be in effect for November 5 that allows people who are not registered with either of the major political parties to work as election clerks. Everyone who works as an election clerk must be a registered voter, but they no longer have to be a registered Democrat or Republican.

Massachusetts: The Northampton Charter Review Committee recently supported two elections changes — lowering the voting age to 16 and making the city clerk an appointed position — and has held for further discussion the possibility of allowing noncitizens to vote.

The Senate approved language to allow early voting for the state primary election scheduled for Sept. 1, 2020. The amendment to the FY19 Supplemental Budget will provide for the early voting period to begin Aug. 24 and end Aug. 28. The early voting period will also apply to any city or town election held at the same time as the state primary. The amendment also provides an additional $500,000 to offset any additional costs to cities and towns in the commonwealth. The bill will be reconciled between the House and the Senate before being submitted to the governor for his approval.

Michigan: Senate Bills 117 and 297 would allow electronic absentee ballot returns for military voters serving overseas. The voter would sign their absentee ballot with an electronic signature verified by the U.S. Department of Defense.

New Jersey: Atlantic County freeholders on Tuesday increased a printer’s contract by $56,910 — to almost $195,000 — for mail-in and provisional ballots for the November election. The extra costs are due to a change in state law, signed by Gov. Phil Murphy in August, that almost doubled the number of mail-in ballots to be mailed by the Atlantic County Clerk’s Office.

New York: State Sen. Kevin Parker (D-Brooklyn) has introduced a bill that would give incarcerated prisoners the right to vote. The inmate would be considered a resident of the county and town they lived in prior to incarceration, according to the bill.

North Carolina: The Senate voted 49 to 0 and the House voted 114-1 on Senate Bill 683 that restores early voting to the Saturday before Election Day and extends hours on that day from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The bill also includes absentee ballot safeguards.

By a 59 to 51 vote in the House and a 29 to 21 vote in the Senate, Senate Bill 205 is headed to Gov. Roy Cooper’s desk. The bill would remove from voter rolls anyone who is disqualified from jury duty because they are determined not to be a U.S. citizen.

Ohio: Cincinnati councilmembers are considering whether or not to propose a city charter amendment that would lower the voting age to 16.

Also in Ohio, voters in the village of Yellow Springs will be asked to pass charter amendments that would lower the voting age to 16 and allow immigrants who are not U.S. citizens to vote in local elections.

Pennsylvania: The House voted 138 to 61 to approve an election reform package that allows for mail-in ballots, eliminates straight-party voting, shortens the voter registration deadline to 15 days; bans stickers from being used for write-in votes; extends the deadline for voting absentee; allows permanently disabled absentee voters to submit a single application; and provides $90 million to help cover the cost of new voting machines.

Texas: The Denton County commission has postponed a vote on whether or not the county will purchase a mobile polling place.

Legal Updates

Alaska: Judge Yvonne Lamoureux has ruled that Alaskans for Better Elections may begin circulating petitions immediately for a ballot measure that would put ranked-choice voting before the voters. Lamoureux overturned the ruling of the state’s attorney general that said the initiative was too broad.

Kansas: Former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach agreed to legal sanctions to resolve a disciplinary complaint about his conduct in a voting rights case he lost last year. As part of the resulting diversion agreement made public, Kobach admitted that he did not properly supervise lawyers and others on his staff while contesting a lawsuit that challenged how he carried out a new voter ID law.

Michigan: Priorities USA has filed suit in federal court challenging the state’s laws that allow absentee votes to be thrown out if a voter’s signature on the ballot doesn’t match what’s on file. The suit alleges that Michigan’s process for determining whether absentee voters’ signatures are valid violate residents’  due process and equal protection rights.

New Hampshire: According to the New Hampshire Union Leader, the state director of Elizabeth Warren’s campaign has joined the fight against HB 1264. Elizabeth Wester, submitted an affidavit to the court last Monday. In it she claims her campaign is not fully advising college students on the best course of action due to muddled advice from state officials. “To date we have been unable to find any clarification from any state officials and are thus unable to adequately advise students on the ramifications of a decision to register to vote in NH,” Wester wrote. “The lack of clarity from the Secretary of State’s office has left a lot of confusion in college campuses across the state.”

Charles Eugene Cartier Jr., 81, was charged with voting in both Madison, New Hampshire and Attleboro, Mass., during the November 2016 general election. He has been indicted by a Carroll County Superior Court grand jury. The charge is a Class B felony.

North Carolina: The North Carolina Democratic Party, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee have filed suit in Wake County over the state’s 2018 early voting law. The suit seeks to restore voting on the Saturday before Election Day. It claims that the law “unconstitutionally burdens North Carolinians’ right to vote.”

Also in North Carolina, a three-judge panel ruled this week that the plaintiffs would likely win their challenge to the state’s congressional lines at trial, so they issued an injunction against using the 2016 congressional district map in the 2020 elections.

Texas: The Texas Democratic Party — joined by the Democratic campaign arms for the U.S. House and Senate filed suit this week alleging that the state’s move to effectively end the use of what were known as temporary or mobile early voting sites is unconstitutional because it discriminates against young voters by shrinking their access to the ballot box.

Tech Thursday

Guidelines: According to Politico, A new draft of version 2.0 of the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines says that voting machines and ballot scanners “must not be capable of establishing wireless connections,” “establishing a connection to an external network” or “connecting to any device that is capable of establishing a connection to an external network.”

Vendors: Hart InterCivic has patented new technology (U.S. Patent No. 10445966) that tabulates votes made on paper ballots without relying on controversial, unverifiable barcodes to capture voters’ choices. The innovation, built into the recently certified Verity Duo system, was designed by Hart engineers to record votes in the most transparent, easy-to-verify way possible.

Ohio: Voters in Cuyahoga County may be left wondering if their mailed ballots have been received by the county board of elections after the BOE decided to stop sending notification texts/emails to voters because the notification vendor couldn’t meet additional security requirements as mandated by the state. Voter Notify had sent confirmations when the board received voters’ applications for a mail-in ballot, when their ballots were sent out by mail and when their mail-in ballots were received by the board. The change will affect about 25,000 voters who can still go online to find out the status of their ballot.

Opinions This Week

National Opinions: National voting standards | Election security | List maintenance | Voter suppression | Voting age | Ballot harvesting | Voting Rights Act | Voter rolls | Election fears

California: Early primary

Connecticut: Absentee ballot rules | Election Day

Florida: Ex-felon voting rights

Georgia: Voter suppression

Illinois: Election security

Indiana: Paper ballots

Massachusetts: Ranked choice voting

Mississippi: Ease of voting

Montana: Ballot returns

New Jersey: Vote-by-mail

New York: Automatic voter registration | Ranked choice voting, II | Early voting, II

North Carolina: Guilford County

Oregon: Same day registration, II | Open primaries

Pennsylvania: Election reform, II | Election security costs | Polling places

Tennessee: Election process | Voter registration | Early voting

2019 Clearie Awards

EAC opens submission period in Fourth Annual Clearie Awards
Celebrating best practices in election administration

The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) is seeking submissions for its fourth annual national Clearinghouse Awards. Dubbed the “Clearies” for short, the awards provide election offices an opportunity to share their innovative efforts and celebrate successes. The Clearies play an important role in furthering the EAC’s responsibilities under the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA). Under that Act, the EAC serves as a clearinghouse for election administration information.

The Commission will present awards in the categories of outstanding innovations in elections, improving voting accessibility for voters with disabilities, and recruiting, training and retaining election workers. It will also award a special award in 2019 recognizing the most original and creative “I Voted” sticker submitted for consideration. Entries from all sizes of jurisdictions, both large and small, are encouraged to submit their work. All entries must be received by Monday, November 25, 2019. The 2018 winners of the Clearie awards can be found here.

“The EAC Clearie Awards celebrate the innovative and creative approaches that election officials use each day in their work to serve voters,” said EAC Chairwoman Christy McCormick. “These awards are a testament to their work and dedication and highlight best practices that other election administrators can emulate.”

This year’s entries will be judged using the following criteria:

 

  • Innovation
  • Sustainability
  • Outreach efforts
  • Cost-effectiveness
  • Replicability
  • Creating positive Results

Election officials utilize innovative and resourceful initiatives on Election Day. We want to hear about these outstanding best practices in EAC’s 2019 competition. By incorporating Election Day into the submission deadline, we are able to capture activities implemented throughout the 2018 and 2019 elections.

All submissions should be sent to the EAC via an email to clearinghouse@eac.gov. Nominators should use the following subject lines based on entry category: Election Worker Competition, Accessibility Competition, Outstanding Innovations Competition, or Sticker Competition.

All entries must include a summary of the election program nominated. Entrants may attach relevant documents, images and links that can be used to assess the entry. Submissions should also include contact information for the person submitting the program for consideration. Each entry must be submitted in a separate email.

For more information about this year’s competition, please contact Patrick Leahy at pleahy@eac.gov.

Upcoming Events

Surveying RCV in 2019 Webinar — 2019 has been a big year for Ranked Choice Voting.  Join the Ranked Choice Voting Center as they survey RCV updates, initiatives, and implementations from Election Day 2019. When: 11am Nov. 19. Where: Online.

IGO 2020 Mid-Winter Conference — The International Association of Government Officials will hold its 2020 Mid-Winter Conference in Isle of Palms, SC on January 24-30, 2020. This conference will offer approximately 30 hours of continuing education with 9 hours hosted by iGO’s new Certified Public Leader (CPL) Partner, Pepperdine University! Join iGO at Wild Dunes Resort this January to further your education on best practices, industry trends, and emerging technology, all while creating and strengthening professional relationships. iGO’s conferences provide the perfect combination of education and networking events to appeal to current members, prospective members, and non-members alike. Where: Isle of Palms, South Carolina. When: Jan. 24-30.

NASED Winter 2020 — Twice a year, the National Association of State Election Directors members gather to discuss the latest developments in election administration.  Members of the public are welcome to attend at the non-member registration rate. Check back here for more information about the Winter 2020 Conference. Where: Washington, DC. When: January 30-February 2.

NASS Winter 2020 — The National Association of Secretaries of State will hold their Winter 2020 conference at the Fairmont Hotel in Washington, D.C.’s West End. Check back here for more information about the Winter 2020 conference when it becomes available. Where: Washington, D.C. When: January 30-February 2.

Job Postings This Week

electionlineWeekly publishes election administration job postings each week as a free service to our readers. To have your job listed in the newsletter, please send a copy of the job description, including a web link to mmoretti@electionline.org.  Job postings must be received by 5pm on Wednesday in order to appear in the Thursday newsletter. Listings will run for three weeks or till the deadline listed in the posting.

Advanced Data Analyst, North Carolina SBOE— This position is responsible for technical and analytical work with an emphasis on data analytics. Employee uses their knowledge and expertise to participate in the collection, preprocessing and analysis of structured, unstructured, and geospatial data, analyze data from disparate sources to discover trends, propose solutions and strategies to business challenges, and present information using various data visualization tools and techniques. The employee should be able to work collaboratively in cross-functional teams as well as independently with minimal supervision. Salary: $82,485 – $95,000. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Assurance Engineer, Free & Fair — Free & Fair (F&F) seeks an experienced assurance engineer—a developer who is thrilled to work on high-assurance open source elections technologies that demonstrate what is possible with modern applied formal methods-based development processes, methodologies, tools, and techniques. Our focus on national critical infrastructure, transparent engineering, and formal assurance makes this opportunity unique. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Database Administrator, North Carolina SBOE— Responsible for the administration of all county and state campaign finance and elections databases and database server instances. Collaborate and consult with the Infrastructure Group personnel on issues relating to data storage, access, backup/restore, and data archiving. Implement measures to provide for database integrity, backup and recovery, disaster recovery, and business continuity. Establish data security and access policies/practices. Based on knowledge of agency systems and supported applications; develop complex SQL code to automate routine administration tasks, continuously monitor infrastructure resources and processes and generate timely operational and maintenance alerts (including the disposition of county/state transactions, replication, scheduled database jobs, and the status of servers and services). Establish and administer database management, design, and coding standards. Create and maintain technical and procedural documentation. Model database entities and attributes and maintain data dictionary. Communicate database related issues and problems with relevant agency team members, developers, testers, and managers. Recommend and employ third party database tools to enhance efficiency and support capabilities. Salary: $82,485 – $95,000. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Director of Elections, Henderson County, North Carolina— An employee in this class is responsible for planning elections, negotiating and setting up polling places, and training staff and poll workers. Work also includes establishing procedures and methods used in registration; supervising the receiving and processing of voter registrations; filing of candidates for elected office in the County; and providing staff support to the County Board of Elections in coordinating and scheduling meetings, recording minutes, drafting the budget and notifying them of potential voter problems and trends. Independent judgment and initiative, tact and courtesy are required in operating the Elections Office. Work is performed in accordance with the State election laws and policies and procedures established by the State and County Board of Elections. Work is performed under the general supervision of the County Board of Elections and is evaluated through reports, periodic conferences and efficiency of office and elections operations. Salary: $51,558.00 – 96,856.50. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Director of Elections, Northampton County, North Carolina— The Northampton County Board of Elections is accepting applications for a Director in the Elections office to perform administrative and coordinative work in organizing and maintaining voter registrations, County candidates’ filing records, and managing the election process for the County and the Elections Board. Education/Requirements: Graduation from a two-year college with a degree in business or related field and several years of responsible clerical experience dealing with the public, preferable at least a year of experience with the electoral process; or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Must possess a valid North Carolina driver’s license upon hire. Must be willing to work towards certification as a Notary Public and take the N.C. State Board of Elections Treasurer Training within the probationary period (9 months); if classes and/or trainings are available within the allotted time frame. Salary: $35,018 – $61,796. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Director of Elections, Surry County, North Carolina — Surry County is accepting applications for a Director of Elections. This individual is responsible for overseeing, directing and administering the Board of Elections Office. This position requires someone who can thrive in a high-stress, high scrutiny environment. The Director of Elections performs complex technical, supervisory and administrative work directing the registration, voting and election activities for Surry County. The Director of Elections is appointed by the Surry County Board of Elections and approved by the State Board. This position exercises supervision over office staff and precinct election officials, interprets laws, regulations, policies, and procedures and makes appropriate decisions accordingly. Must have the ability to exercise tact and courtesy and to work under pressure and adapt to rapidly changing circumstances. Other duties as required and all duties must be performed in a nonpartisan manner. Salary: $50,544 -$86,004.  Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Director of Elections, Tyrell County, North Carolina— Tyrrell County is seeking qualified applicants for the full time position of Election Director. The Director performs responsible administrative, legal, technical and mechanical work in planning, organizing and directing all aspects of the election process. Plans for various elections on an annual basis covering primaries, second primaries, municipal elections, general elections, special elections, recommends annual budget to the Board; plans for and purchases supplies as needed; identifies number of polling places required and potential location and negotiates usage as needed; insures ADA compliance. Processes voter registrations, assures each voter is placed in the correct precinct and in the correct local, state, and federal districts; oversees the preparation and revisions of geocodes for redistricting, filing of candidates for office including managing their campaign finance, as well as auditing their reports. Handles all ballot preparation for the vendors, proofs, orders and burns the coding from the vendor to the flash and M100 cards used during the election. The Director is responsible for testing the coding against a generated test script used to test the equipment during the Logic and Accuracy testing of the AutoMark (visual and hearing impaired equipment) and the M100 that read the ballots. The training of all workers for One Stop and Election Day as well as preparing the equipment and necessary materials needed at each precinct. The Board Members and the Director meet weekly during an election and are responsible for Election Night with the processing of the unofficial results with accurate reports to the State Board of Elections and to the public in a timely manner. After Election Day the Director moves to the research and processing of Provisional and timely received Absentee Ballots before the Board holds Canvass (making the unofficial local results become official). During the next days the opportunity is there for Challenges, Protests, Recounts or any other related matters before the votes are made official at Canvass on the State level. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Director of Policy & Research, New York City Campaign Finance Board —  The New York City Campaign Finance Board (CFB), a nonpartisan, independent city agency that enhances the role of New York City residents, seeks a Director of Policy & Research to oversee its intergovernmental outreach and policy and data research work. This position will report to the Deputy Director of Public Affairs. Responsibilities: Directly supervise a team of intergovernmental, policy, and data research staff. Create legislative strategies to advance agency priorities at the city and state level. Oversee outreach to elected officials and their offices to support the agency’s legislative work and government outreach. Oversee policy analysis related to campaign finance and voting in New York City and State. Participate in high-level agency discussions around policy development and spearhead agency legislative recommendations in its regularly published reports. Oversee research projects with internal staff and external researchers, as well as overseeing research content for CFB publications, reports, white papers, and policy briefs. Oversee public opinion research performed on behalf of the agency that informs voter communication and education initiatives. Salary: $90,000-$100,000. Application: For the complete job listing & to apply, click here.

Elections Specialist, Douglas County, Colorado — This position is focused on routine customer service and general office/clerical support including data entry, communications, and processing mail. This is a support role capable of performing a variety of tasks, with problem solving abilities, managing multiple competing responsibilities and prioritizing to maintain a continuous flow of election office operations. This is a visible and crucial position requiring exceptional computer, customer service, and communication skills.  This position may require technical work in a lead role capable of performing a variety of complex tasks, with solving problem abilities, managing multiple competing tasks and prioritizing to maintain a continuous flow of operations and temporary support. This position may be classified as an Elections Specialist I or II dependent upon the skills of the candidate and the department’s business needs. Salary: $2,842.00 – $4,017.00 Monthly. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Embedded Systems Engineer, Free & Fair— Free & Fair (F&F) seeks an experienced embedded systems engineer—a developer and engineer who is thrilled to work on a high-assurance open source elections technologies that demonstrate what is possible with modern development processes, methodologies, tools, and techniques. Our focus on national critical infrastructure, transparent engineering, and formal assurance makes this opportunity unique. One component of the BESSPIN Voting System is a custom-built, open source, open hardware platform for demonstrating secure hardware. It includes low- and mid-range FPGAs running softcore RISC-V CPUs, simple I/O devices, and an RTOS. This platform is called CASCADES (Configurable, Affordable System-on-Chip for Analysis and Demonstration of Election Security) and is a CrowdSupply project. A prototype for CASCADES is the Smart Ballot Box that we brought to DEF CON 2019. We call this role an embedded systems engineer, since much of the development that we do spans hardware, firmware, and software design and development. Moreover, we use a mixture of low-level and high-level languages, COTS and novel (FPGA-based) development platforms, and traditional and novel operating systems. We hope that potential applicants do not put themselves in an unnecessarily small box. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Executive Director, U.S. Election Assistance Commission— The incumbent serves as the Executive Director of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC). As such, the position serves as a senior official in a line capacity that is responsible for overseeing the direction and operation of the agency, including the services of supporting Federal agencies (i.e., GSA, NARA, SAC, etc.). Exercises wide latitude with directing agency goals and resources to achieve desired results. Reporting to this position are senior EAC managers with expertise in their areas of responsibility. Provides leadership in the development and implementation of strategies, programs, policies, decisions, and other actions adopted by Commissioners. Evaluates the performance of subordinate managers against performance plans, budgets and EAC goals; performs other administrative functions as may be delegated under the Commission’s authority and EAC policies. Directs the preparation of recommendations, reports, and other materials for Commissioners, Advisory Boards, and public meeting. Develops and prepares written and oral materials, for presentations to congressional, legislative and public/private policy groups, Commissioners, advisory boards, and EAC staff. Encourages an environment that fosters equal employment opportunity (EEO) goals, and the responsibilities outlined in the organization’s affirmative action plan. Ensures equality in selections, training, promotions, details, discipline, and awards. Other duties as assigned. Salary: $156,000. Deadline: Nov. 28. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

General Counsel, U.S. Election Assistance Commission— The General Counsel is appointed for a four (4) term by the Commissioners. The incumbent will serve as the Chief Legal Officer for the EAC and provides legal advice and counsel to the Executive Director on a wide variety of legal matters; provides advice to all of EAC’s Federal Advisory Committees, including the Technical Guidelines Development Committee, EAC Board of Advisors, and EAC Standards Board. The General Counsel also serves as the Designated Agency Ethics Official (DAEO) and is responsible for agency ethics training, financial disclosure and reporting obligations, and communication with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics. Salary: $156K. Deadline: Nov. 28. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Government Affairs Director, Democracy Works — In this role, you’ll be building relationships with officials across the country. Some are already supportive, some are skeptical, and some have had little to no contact with Democracy Works in the past. In some places, you’ll be making new connections around our voter engagement work with officials who are already engaged with our election administration programs, particularly the Voting Information Project. As you lead this initiative, you’ll have support from and collaborate with our election administration outreach staff, the voter engagement product, research, and support teams, and senior leadership. You will: Design, document, and execute a government outreach strategy; Build relationships and communicate with the states about our tools for voters, and communicate state interests internally; Define research processes to ensure that we’re using our state relationships effectively to ensure the accuracy of our election information; Represent state needs in setting our product roadmap; Monitor changes in laws and processes that shape election administration practices in all 50 states, and communicate these developments across Democracy Works; Support an election official advisory group, from creation through ongoing engagement; Travel across the country frequently, meeting with state and local election officials and attending/speaking at statewide and national convenings of election officials; and Create clear and accurate written communications for an audience of election officials. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Managing Director, Voto Latino— The managing director is an internal facing role that will work closely with the president to execute the largest voter registration campaign in the Latinx community. The Managing Director will ensure that all teams and members of the Voto Latino staff have the support, oversight, and resources they need to meet and exceed the organization’s ambitious goals. This role is crucial to ensure the organization has set achievable goals, a strategic pathway to reaching them, is aligned and working together, and knows how to prioritize the work. This role will also help create and maintain a thriving, healthy, and productive organizational culture, and work with team leads on best ways to manage staff. The Managing Director must have experience in 501c(3) and 501c(4) work. The Managing Director will help oversee and manage a $15 million budget cycle. This is not an administrative role; it is a highly strategic and facilitative one that requires a combination of focus and flexibility, as well as a willingness to play an active, behind-the-scenes role. Salary: $140-$150K. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Project Manager, Hart InterCivic— Project Managers at Hart InterCivic are highly motivated “self-starters” who are enthusiastic about providing exceptional customer service. Working with other members of the Professional Services and Operations teams, the Project Manager directs activity, solves problems, and develops lasting and strong relationships with our customers. Hart InterCivic’s unique and industry known culture of innovation, transparency, and customer-centric focus creates an environment where team members will continually grow and be challenged to develop their careers. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Rigorous Systems/Software Engineer, Free & Fair — Free & Fair (F&F) seeks several experienced systems/software engineers—developers who are thrilled to work on high-assurance open source elections technologies that demonstrate what is possible with modern development processes, methodologies, tools, and techniques. Our focus on national critical infrastructure, transparent engineering, and formal assurance makes this opportunity unique. We call this role either/both system engineers or software engineers, since much of the development that we do spans hardware, firmware, and software design and development. Moreover, we use a mixture of low-level and high-level languages, COTS and novel (FPGA-based) development platforms, and traditional and novel operating systems. We hope that potential applicants do not put themselves in an unnecessarily small box. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Software Sales Specialist, VOTEC— VOTEC’s Sales Specialist is responsible for creating news sales with prospects and existing clients in targeted areas in the US. We are looking for an election professional comfortable using insight and consultative selling techniques to create interest that offers unique solutions on their operations, which link back to VOTEC’s solutions. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

State Election Director, North Dakota Secretary of State — A primary purpose of this position is to ensure the elections administered across the state are executed in compliance with laws and rules, and in a manner that is responsive to the public’s needs. In addition to directing the staff and operations of the Elections Unit, this position is responsible for supervision and oversight of the staff and activities of the Information Management and Public Information units. Direct and supervise staff of assigned units. Oversee the staff hiring, performance and evaluation processes within the assigned units. Evaluate and increase the performance and efficiency of the assigned units. Provide support and oversight to the state’s local election officials cooperatively and individually in their administration of elections to ensure that the standards of the Secretary of State and law are met. Oversee the development of conferences, trainings, and educational materials for election officials as required by both statute and the direction of the Secretary of State. Provide oversight of projects and initiatives within the assigned units. Develop, implement, evaluate, and revise policies, procedures, processes, workflows, and electronic systems to administer statutory requirements and maintain public accessibility related to the assigned units. Ensure that responsibilities of the units are executed in compliance with state laws, rules, policies, and procedures in a manner responsive to the public and the needs of the office. Perform activities related to the legislative process including drafting bills, testimony, and fiscal notes; tracking bills; attending legislative hearings; and testifying at legislative hearings. Participate as a member of the office’s leadership team. Salary: $5,500 – $6,400/month + benefits including fully paid family health insurance. Deadline: November 4. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

UI/UX Engineer, Free & Fair — Free & Fair (F&F) seeks an experienced UI/UX engineer—someone who practices user-centric design, finds usable security a fascinating area of R&D, someone who appreciates usable and accessible technologies, and a developer and engineer who is thrilled to work on high-assurance open source elections technologies that demonstrate what is possible with modern development processes, methodologies, tools, and techniques. Our focus on national critical infrastructure, transparent engineering, and formal assurance makes this opportunity unique. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

VP of Engineering, Free & Fair— Free & Fair (F&F) seeks an experienced systems engineering development leader—an executive who can step in and build a dynamic, distributed engineering team, deliver solutions to the market, and execute challenging development activities focused on national critical infrastructure. The VP of Engineering at F&F will be responsible for executing on the Company’s overall technology vision and driving its development execution. This person will recruit world-class talent, manage and evolve development processes and methodologies, and foster an organizational structure to help our high-performing development team deliver applications to the market. This person will keep abreast of and influence research and technology trends, standards, and stakeholders. This person will have the ability to bridge technology with business acumen, will bring experience in developing state-of-the-art customer-facing applications, and will develop and sustain a culture of passion, hard work, and innovation. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

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