As November approaches, election officials are managing an enormous number of priorities at once: staffing, testing, ballots, polling places, mail ballot processing, security, voter education and the post-election work that follows.
For many jurisdictions, the procedures for reconciliation, chain of custody, canvassing and post-election audits are already well established. At this stage, the opportunity is not necessarily to create new processes, but to confirm that existing ones are fully documented, reflected in training and ready to be executed consistently when the pace accelerates.
That final review matters because the public’s experience with an election does not end on Election Night. Canvassing, certification of results and, where applicable, post-election audits are among the critical processes that follow. Clear procedures and complete documentation can also help election officials explain how ballots and election materials were accounted for and how results were verified.
With November approaching, here are a few areas worth reviewing as teams finalize their preparations.
1. Chain of custody: Confirm the process from beginning to end
Chain-of-custody procedures are likely already a familiar part of election operations. The final weeks before Election Day offer an opportunity to confirm that those procedures are clearly documented and that everyone who will be responsible for a transfer understands exactly what is expected.
The U.S. Election Assistance Commission recommends that chain-of-custody procedures be defined in advance of every election, documented and followed consistently throughout the election process. Its guidance also notes that most election materials require at least two witnesses when transferred, although specific requirements vary by jurisdiction.
A few things worth confirming:
• Handoffs are clearly defined. Staff should know who is responsible for materials at each stage, where transfers take place and what documentation is required.
• Documentation is specific. Effective records can capture when and where a transfer occurred, who transferred and received the materials, who witnessed the transfer, relevant seal or identifying information, and the condition of the materials when appropriate.
• The process covers the full election lifecycle. Chain of custody continues beyond the return of materials on Election Night and should remain consistent with applicable canvass, audit, recount and records-retention requirements.
As a final training check, consider whether the people responsible for these steps have had an opportunity to walk through what a custody transfer looks like in practice, rather than simply reviewing the procedure on paper.
2. Strong reconciliation supports an efficient canvass
Reconciliation and canvassing are also familiar territory for election officials. The value of reviewing them now lies in making sure the records produced throughout the election will give the canvassing team what it needs after Election Day.
The EAC’s Guide to the Canvass identifies Election Day, early voting and mail ballot reconciliation records, chain-of-custody documentation, issue logs, provisional ballot documentation and other election records among the materials that can be reviewed as part of the canvass. The guide emphasizes the importance of complete and accurate documentation throughout the process.
When reconciliation is completed consistently at each stage, the canvassing team begins its work with a clearer record of what happened. When something does not reconcile immediately, good documentation can also make it easier to identify the source of the discrepancy and determine what needs additional review.
The practical question before November, then, is not simply whether a reconciliation procedure exists. It is whether everyone involved has the same understanding of what complete reconciliation looks like.
That can include confirming which figures must reconcile, what supporting documentation must accompany the records, how discrepancies should be documented and escalated, and when a location or process can be considered fully closed out.
3. Confirm your audit requirements and readiness before Election Day
Post-election audit requirements differ significantly across the country. There is no single national auditing standard, and approaches can include traditional, risk-limiting, fixed-percentage, tiered, procedural or other forms of audits, depending on state and local requirements.
For jurisdictions required to conduct an audit, much of the preparation can be confirmed before Election Day: applicable procedures, staffing responsibilities, the records and ballots that may be needed, how sampled ballots will be located and retrieved, any space and logistical arrangements needed for the audit, and how the process will be communicated to observers and the public.
Whatever type of post-election tabulation audit is used, the underlying records matter. EAC guidance notes that audits rely on trustworthy records and a secure chain of custody, reinforcing the connection between the work performed before and on Election Day and the verification activities that follow.
For jurisdictions conducting risk-limiting audits, or RLAs, preparation can be particularly important because the audit uses statistical methods to determine the evidence needed to provide confidence in the reported outcome. But the broader principle applies regardless of audit type: an audit is easier to administer when responsibilities, records and procedures have already been identified.
4. Make documentation part of readiness
There is another reason to review these processes now: documentation is not only an operational tool. It can also support transparency.
Election officials may already have strong procedures for custody, reconciliation, canvassing and audits. But those procedures are most useful when they can be consistently followed, reviewed and, where appropriate, clearly explained to others.
That means looking at documentation through two lenses. First, does it give staff what they need to perform and verify the process? Second, does it create a clear record of what occurred?
That record can become especially valuable after Election Day, when voters, observers, candidates, the media and other stakeholders may have questions about how results moved from unofficial reporting to canvass and certification.
A short readiness check for November
As teams finalize preparations, these are four areas worth confirming:
1- Review chain-of-custody handoffs from beginning to end, including who is responsible at each stage and the applicable witness, signature, seal and documentation requirements.
2- Confirm a clear standard for what complete reconciliation documentation looks like and how discrepancies should be handled.
3- Review applicable post-election audit requirements and confirm the required materials, ballot-retrieval procedures, staffing and space.
4- Build documentation into closeout procedures, including time for review and discrepancy resolution, and make sure key procedures are clear enough to be followed consistently by staff and explained accurately to observers and the public when appropriate.
None of this assumes jurisdictions are starting from scratch. In most cases, they are not. Election officials have spent months, and often years, developing and refining these procedures.
But the final weeks before an election offer a valuable opportunity to check that what exists on paper aligns with training and practice, that responsibilities are understood across the team, and that the documentation needed after Election Day will be there when it matters.
Closeout is not separate from Election Day readiness. It is part of it.
Sources
U.S. Election Assistance Commission, Chain of Custody Best Practices
U.S. Election Assistance Commission, Guide to the Canvass
U.S. Election Assistance Commission, Post-Election Audits Quick Start Guide
Congressional Research Service, Election Administration: An Introduction to Risk-Limiting Audits