All in the Family Running for Political Office in Indiana

Overview

The U.South. is characterized by a highly decentralized ballot administration arrangement. The entities that do the rubber-meets-the-road functions of running an election are typically on the county or city/town level. The country is responsible for certain aspects of elections likewise, and the federal regime has a part, likewise. The issue is that no country administers elections in exactly the same manner equally some other state, and there is quite a bit of variation in election administration even within states. Each state's election administration structure and procedures grew organically, equally times inverse and administering an election became an increasingly complex task.

The diversity of ballot administration structures between and within states is alternately seen as a positive or a negative aspect of the system, depending on who is looking, and when. Critics say the level of local control can lead to mismanagement and inconsistent awarding of the law. This often comes into focus in big federal elections peculiarly, when the media and the public focus on how different the voting experience can be depending on where a voter lives. On the other paw, this decentralization allows individual jurisdictions to experiment and innovate—to see how elections might best be run for the state and the locality'due south particular circumstances. The dispersed responsibility for running elections also makes information technology extremely hard, if not impossible, to rig U.S. elections at the national level. It also holds authorities in local jurisdictions accountable for the management of their ain elections, so if something goes incorrect citizens can go direct to their local authorities rather than blame bug on the distant federal government.

The following page summarizes the dissimilar election administration structures in u.s.. All tables and much of the content on this page is adapted from Chapter two of the book "Administering Elections: How American Elections Work" by Kathleen Hale, Robert Montjoy and Mitchell Brown, published by Palgrave Macmillan 2015.

History

In the early years of the nation elections were an occasional responsibility of a canton official. Elections were clerical in nature, didn't happen frequently and weren't fourth dimension consuming. Officials would announce an election and voters would come up and vote. Voters weren't required to annals ahead of time and voting was washed orally.

A series of changes to the ballot process in the late 1800s made it a more complex undertaking, requiring more time and attention:

• The adoption of voter registration required election officials to receive voter applications and maintain lists of voters.
• The motility away from ballots provided by parties to a secret election provided by local ballot officials required additional preparation and resources.
• The adoption of early voting machines that needed to exist stored and maintained.

Legislatures began more than and more to formalize election administration policy in statute, seeking to provide some caste of uniformity inside the state. With this came an increased need for state ballot offices to interpret these increasingly circuitous procedures and help manage growing engineering science needs.

The role of state election offices take go even more of import since the National Voter Registration Human action (NVRA) of 1993 and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002, both of which put additional responsibilities on the state, including more uniform procedures for voter registration, centralization of voter records and disbursement of funds for the procurement of updated voting equipment and improvement of ballot administration procedures.

However, the structure of election administration in the states today is still largely decentralized and contains a great deal of variation, although far less so than it was a century ago.

Election Administration at the State Level

Each state has a chief election official who has ultimate say-so over elections in the state.

• 24 states take an elected secretary of state equally the chief election official—Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New United mexican states, N Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, S Dakota, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming.
• Two states—Alaska and Utah—have an elected lieutenant governor as the chief election official.
• 3 states—Maine, New Hampshire and Tennessee—have a chief election official selected by the legislature.
• Five states—Delaware, Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Texas—have a chief election official appointed past the governor. In all only Delaware, the main election official is called the secretary of state; in Delaware the position is Commissioner of Elections.
• Nine states—Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Due north Carolina, New York, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin—have a board or a commission that oversees elections. Appointments to these commissions are usually made by the governor, and confirmed by the Senate. They are about often structured so as to be bipartisan, with a certain number of members from each of the major political parties.
• Vii states—Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Rhode Island, Tennessee and West Virginia—use a combination of a chief election official and a board or committee.

Duties of the chief election official or election lath/commission vary. Secretaries of state have other duties in addition to the direction of elections. For example, they may administer business filings and licensing in the state, and human action as the keeper of the country seal. Enforcing campaign finance regulations may fall to a secretary of state or state elections board in some cases, and in others would fall to a split up ethics commission.

When there is both an elected individual and a board or commission charged with elections, the sectionalisation of duties varies. Rhode Isle is one case of shared responsibilities. There, the secretarial assistant of state's role is in accuse of election design, layout and coding; sending out mail ballots; certifying candidates; and overseeing procurement for voting equipment. The land board of elections packages equipment, supplies and precinct tabulators and delivers them to each urban center/town before the election; troubleshoots technical problems on Election Day; and receives and tabulates statewide results.

Regardless of who the main election official is, there are some duties that fall to the state office of elections. These include: ensuring that election laws are followed by local officials statewide; administration of a statewide voter registration database required by HAVA; assisting local election officials by providing preparation courses or materials on running elections in the state; and providing a process for testing and certifying voting equipment for utilize in the state. Some land offices provide certification programs for local election officials on election procedures and may also help  pay for certain types of elections, or a portion of expenses. More information on ways that states help bear the cost of elections is found on NCSL'south Ballot Costs: What States Pay folio.

Tabular array i contains information on the title, methods of selection, and appointing government for chief ballot officials in all 50 states.

E = Elected

A = Appointed past land official

B = Appointment past and service under a board

AB = Appointed lath or official also has some responsibility

EB = Elected official or board also has some responsibleness

Table one: Title, Method of Pick, and Appointing Regime for Principal Election Officials

Land	Title of main ballot official	Selection	Appointing authorisation
Alabama	Secretary of State	E
Alaska	Lieutenant Governor	Due east
Arizona	Secretarial assistant of State	Eastward
Arkansas	Secretary of Country	EB
California	Secretarial assistant of Land	E
Colorado	Secretary of Land	E
Connecticut	Secretary of State	E
Delaware	State Commissioner of Elections	A	Governor
Florida	Secretary of State	A	Governor
Georgia	Secretary of State	EB
Hawaii	Chief Election Officer	B	Land Elections Commission
Idaho	Secretarial assistant of State	Due east
Illinois	Executive Director	B	Land Board of Elections
Indiana	Secretary of Country	EB
Iowa	Secretary of Land	E
Kansas	Secretary of Country	E
Kentucky	Secretary of State	EB
Louisiana	Secretary of State	E
Maine	Secretary of State	A*	State Legislature
Maryland	Administrator of Elections	B	State Board of Elections
Massachusetts	Secretary of Land	East
Michigan	Secretary of Country	E
Minnesota	Secretary of State	E
Mississippi	Secretary of State	Eastward
Missouri	Secretarial assistant of Country	Due east
Montana	Secretarial assistant of Country	E
Nebraska	Secretarial assistant of State	E
Nevada	Secretary of State	E
New Hampshire	Secretary of State	A*	State Legislature
New Jersey	Secretary of State	A	Governor
New United mexican states	Secretary of Land	E
New York	Co-Directors	B	State Board of Elections
North Carolina	Director	B	Land Board of Elections
North Dakota	Secretary of Land	E
Ohio	Secretary of Country	E
Oklahoma	Secretary of the Land Election Board	B	Country Senate
Oregon	Secretarial assistant of Land	Due east
Pennsylvania	Secretarial assistant of Republic	A	Governor
Rhode Island	Secretary of State	EB
Due south Carolina	Executive Managing director	B	Country Ballot Commission
South Dakota	Secretary of State	E
Tennessee	Secretary of State	AB*	Land Legislature
Texas	Secretary of Land	A	Governor
Utah	Lieutenant Governor	Eastward
Vermont	Secretarial assistant of State	E
Virginia	Commissioner	A	Governor
Washington	Secretary of Country	E
W Virginia	Secretary of State	EB
Wisconsin	Ambassador	B	Country Elections Committee
Wyoming	Secretary of Land	E

Source: Administering Elections

*Unhurt, Montjoy and Mitchell categorize the selection method as E for elected since these positions are elected by the legislature. NCSL has categorized Maine, New Hampshire and Tennessee equally A for appointed, with the appointing potency beingness the state legislature, in society to differentiate between states that elect their main election official by popular ballot.

Election Administration at the Local Level

Elections are usually administered at the county level, though in some New England and Midwestern states it falls to cities or townships to run elections. In all, this means that there are more 10,000 election administration jurisdictions in the U.S. The size of these jurisdictions varies dramatically, with the smallest towns having only a few hundred registered voters and the largest jurisdiction in the country, Los Angeles County, with more than iv.7 million.

At the local level, elections tin can be run by a single private, a board or commission of elections, or a combination of  two or more entities (more details found in Table two).

• 22 states have a single individual who administers elections at the local level.
  • The election official is usually elected, merely this tin can vary within the state. In Nebraska, for example, counties with fewer than 20,000 people have an elected private. Counties with 20,000 to 100,000 people take an election official appointed by the county board. And counties with more than than 100,000 take an election official appointed past the governor.
  • Some states take an individual who administers elections in the bulk of jurisdictions, but an election board that administers elections in the larger cities.
  • In larger jurisdictions there may be an election administrator or supervisor whose sole responsibility is the administration of elections, whereas in most smaller and medium counties the county clerk, recorder, registrar, assessor, auditor or controller may serve as the election official in addition to conducting other county duties.
• x states use a board of elections for the primary responsibilities of local election administration.
  • These are typically bipartisan in nature, with appointments fabricated either at the state level (Delaware, Maryland, Due north Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee) at the local level (New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island), or a combination of the two (Kentucky), and with input from political parties.
• 18 states divide election administration duties betwixt two or more than offices (more details found in Table 2).

    The post-obit map outlines the institutional configuration of local election officials.

When election duties are divided between one or more offices on the local level, the most common division is between voter registration and the actual administration of elections. The sectionalization of duties betwixt different entities varies greatly and is not detailed here.

As an instance of what this division looks similar, in Arkansas an elected canton clerk runs the day-to-twenty-four hours operations of registration and voting, including absentee and early voting. There is a three-member county lath (2 chosen past majority and minority parties and the 3rd by the state board of elections from the bulk party in the state) which deals with Election Day procedures, including appointing election officials, delivering supplies to the polls, counting ballots and canvassing returns.

Table 2 outlines of names of offices involved in election administration in states with divided duties.

Tabular array 2

Table ii: States with Multiple Ballot Officials

State	Names of Offices
Alabama	Probate Gauge Clerk of Excursion Court Sheriff Lath of Registrars
Arizona	Director or Administrator County Recorder
Arkansas	County Board of Election Commissioners County Clerk
Connecticut	Registrars of Voters Town Clerk
Georgia	Judge of Probate County Board of Registrars
Indiana	County Election Board Clerk of Circuit Court or Board of Registration
Louisiana	Clerk of District Courtroom Registrar of Voters
Maine	Town/Metropolis Clerk Registrar of Voters
Massachusetts	Urban center/Town Clerk Board of Registrars of Voters
Michigan	County Clerk County Election Commission Urban center/Township Clerk Metropolis/Township Election Commission
Mississippi	County Board of Ballot Commissioners Canton Registrar (Clerk of Circuit Court)
Nevada	County Clerk Registrar of Voters in Clark and Washoe Counties
New Hampshire	Moderator Town/City Clerk Superintendent of Checklist (towns)/Board of Registrars (cities)
New Jersey	Canton Clerk Canton Board of Elections
New United mexican states	County Board of Registration County Clerk
S Carolina	County Board of Registration Commissioners of Elections
Texas	County Clerk (or County Tax Assessor-Collector) County Elections Administrator
Virginia	County/Urban center Electoral Boards County/Metropolis Registrars

Source: Administering Elections

Professionalization of Ballot Administration

As the job of an ballot administrator has evolved information technology's become more and more circuitous. Gone are the days when this was a largely clerical position. At present it's a multifaceted managerial position with a lot of moving parts. And, as more and more engineering science is involved in the election process, ballot officials have had to have on the role of It managers also. The nature of ballot assistants today highlights the need for professionalization of the field, and, in fact, states and other organizations are seeking to provide the preparation and back up election officials need to perform finer in this environment.

• Every state election office provides some level of back up for local election officials, ranging from publishing digests of ballot laws to voluntary trainings to full-on mandatory certification programs. There has been an increment in state-provided training for election officials, with 32 states requiring training in 2016, compared to 21 in 2002 (more details on NCSL's webpage Election Costs: What States Pay).
• Well-nigh states take a country clan of election officials that meets periodically to hash out election procedures. These organizations as well may advocate for ballot administration changes in the legislature.
• The U.Due south. Election Help Committee (EAC) serves as a national clearinghouse of information on election assistants and provides a diversity of resources of election officials, including ballot management guidelines, webinars, best practices and opportunities for local officials to meet and exchange ideas.
• The Election Eye (aka the National Association of Election Officials) conducts a series of conferences, workshops and seminars throughout the year and also runs the Certified Elections/Registration Administrator (CERA) plan along with kinesthesia from Auburn University'southward public administration program. These college-level courses provide professional person growth and development opportunities for ballot officials, with the goal of continuous improvement of democracy.
• The University of Minnesota'due south Humphrey Schoolhouse of Public Affairs conducts an online certification program in ballot assistants.
• The National Clan of Secretaries of Country (NASS) and the National Association of State Election Directors (NASED) provide opportunities for state ballot officials to exchange information and best practices.
• The International Association of Government Officials (a newly created organisation created past a merger of the International Association of Clerks, Recorders, Election Officials & Treasurers (IACREOT) and the National Association of County Recorders, Election Officials & Clerks (NACRC)) holds events and disseminates data in back up of local ballot officials.

Legislative Action

Though not a frequent topic for legislative action, legislators do periodically examine how election administration is structured in their state. In 2016, the following bills were enacted:

• Florida SB514 raised the base salary of supervisors of elections, which had not been increased in some time.
• Louisiana passed a series of bills affecting registrars of voters, relating to their retirement benefits (HB39), merit evaluations (HB470), qualifications (HB471) and appointment (HB593).
• Maine SB 582 prohibited a registrar from serving when an immediate family unit fellow member is a candidate for federal office.
• Maryland HB1077 prohibited the Montgomery County Board of Elections (the country's about populous county) from selecting a new ballot director on a political party-line vote.
• Oklahoma SB849 exempted State Election Lath members and personnel from the state's merit arrangement of personnel administration.
• Virginia passed a serial of bills relating to preparation requirements for local electoral boards (HB88, SB574/HB1030) and HB1145 reassigned certain election administration duties to general registrars.

Search bills from previous years using NCSL's 2011-2016 Elections Legislation Database.

Boosted Resources

• NCSL's The Canvass, Local Election Officials Feel the Heat—And What Legislators Tin can Practise About It (Nov 2021)
• NCSL'south webpage on Election Costs: What States Pay
• Administering Elections: How American Elections Work by Kathleen Hale, Robert Montjoy and Mitchell Brown, published by Palgrave Macmillan 2015
• The Street-Level Bureaucrats of Elections: Pick Methods for Local Election Officials, by David Kimball and Marth Kropf, 2006
• Help America Vote Act: A New Blueprint in Land Ballot Reform, by R. Doug Lewis, 2004
• Republic Fund: Election Line

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Source: https://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/election-administration-at-state-and-local-levels.aspx

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