Thinking about Elections

WHO PAYS FOR ELECTIONS? Although many people think the federal government is the major player, this isn’t so. While the federal government occasionally provides grants, these grants aren’t for everyday costs of election administration. It is state, county, and municipal governments that pay for elections: ballots, software, training, etc. Each state does it differently based on state laws.

The real-world consequences of this are uneven levels of funding and preparedness. So, when there are problems such as poll workers not accepting a voter’s ID that is valid for their state, or a voter doesn’t get a call back or answer from their local elections office, I think about funding and resources. What improvements need to be made to poll worker training so poll workers know what IDs are acceptable? How many staff does an elections office have responding to questions? How many do they need, say, to respond to questions within two days? What resources do local election offices need? Many problems would be solved with more funding and more stable funding. This applies not just to daily operations, but also to major one-time purchases like voting equipment.

It often takes an act of the US Congress or of a state’s legislature to provide the money needed to replace equipment. County election departments don’t have the funding to be able to plan for the replacement of equipment like the scanners/tabulators voters use to cast their ballots at polling places. Election equipment, like any equipment, wears out or changes in technology make it obsolete. For comparison, think of how often you replace a laptop or cell phone.

When you hear about problems or experience frustrations, think about funding and resources and contact your state legislators. They have the primary responsibility for funding election departments through the state’s budget and legislation.

https://electioninnovation.org/research/who-pays-for-election-admin/