Emergencies happen—but elections must go on.
COVID-19 hit while presidential primaries were in full swing, with state primaries starting as well. Common emergencies are more likely to be place-specific, time-limited events such as natural disasters, power outages or internet interruptions. Others might last longer, including global pandemics.
Federal elections are held on a Tuesday in November, a time when hurricanes and blizzards are a distinct possibility in some parts of the country.
And elections are by no means November-only events: Depending on the state, primary elections, municipal elections, school board elections and special elections mean rarely a month goes by without balloting going on somewhere. That means there’s also an election somewhere in the middle of tornado season, wildfire season or flood season. And in 2020, presidential primaries were just getting underway at the same time as a global pandemic.
“Overall, we’re a small fraction of the county’s budget. But if we make a mistake, or can’t respond to an emergency, the entire outcome of the election is on the line.”
—Mark Earley, supervisor of elections, Leon County, Fla.
How do election officials cope with emergencies? By following state laws; looking ahead with continuity of operations plans, also known as COOPs; focusing on practical measures such as protecting supplies, equipment, power and internet connectivity; and building relationships with partners who can assist when needed.
Mark Earley, the supervisor of elections in Leon County, Fla., knows more than a thing or two about election emergencies. He says there’s value in election-specific plans in the case of emergencies and the creation of COOPs at the state and local levels. Emergencies can be “hurricanes large and small, infrastructure failures, potential attacks, human errors or maybe you’ve got a problem with your mailing envelopes,” Early says, and that makes it hard to write a one-size-fits-all document.
In fact, it’s like Goldilocks finding the right porridge. If the COOP is too specific and tries to address all eventualities, it might not apply when the problem strikes. On the other hand, if a COOP is too broad, its guidance may be useless.
“We’ve tried general COOPs and detailed COOPs. General is better. That gives you a flexible framework,” Earley says. “It’s not just the physical implications of an emergency, which will be unique each time. It’s also the social and political environment, and we have to be careful about communicating.”
In his COOP, Earley identifies points of contact in the community and which members of his team can be liaisons with them or the public.
Creating a COOP is a big task, but by working with templates, it is doable. Ideally, a COOP captures in a single document all the information that describes an organization’s ability to withstand an incident or disaster and the processes that must be followed to recover. While it can be helpful to consider the kinds of emergencies that might arise, taking an all-hazard approach means the plan is not cause-dependent and can be used no matter the specific circumstance.
Earley says a plan must be a flexible, living document with frequent updates. And at least some version of it must be printable—and printed out in advance—in case the power or the internet goes out. He notes that extension cords may be the key to all emergency situations: “Everybody thinks about generators, but they are useless if you don’t have 30-amp or 50-amp cords.”
(See the Election Assistance Commission’s website for more on contingency planning.)
Practicalities
The best preparation for an emergency is to establish and follow good practices every day. Earley, who has managed through several hurricanes and COVID-19, says that COOPS are best if they address all steps in the process, not just Election Day disasters. For elections, that might mean storing plenty of spare equipment and materials, such as ballot envelopes and tabulators. He says elections do not lend themselves to just-in-time inventory management because the repercussions are just too great if something goes wrong.
This “be prepared” management approach applies to just about everything. For example, Earley’s main servers are housed in a different building, and he keeps redundant servers. For everyday work (not tallying votes) he maintains multiple internet connections. The same with power: He has uninterruptable outlets and generators to keep the power on.
He even has his facilities swept by canine bomb units every day during in-person voting.
If anything goes wrong, Earley has a contingency plan. For instance, if a roof comes off (not a frivolous concern in Florida), he has alternative storage areas identified and access to trucks to get his equipment moved quickly. His latest voting system is built on pull-out shelves that he had built in-house. That was for ease of testing the equipment—something done for every piece of equipment before every election—but it means he can roll 25 voting systems onto a truck in no time to get them out of harm’s way.
And when an incident is over, doing a “lessons learned” exercise will improve operations for the next time. “This is my 10th presidential election, and every one has been different. By looking at each, we’re improving processes every time,” Earley says.
Relationships Matter
Earley’s focus on well-defined procedures and backups is clear; he has a laser focus on relationships as well. He knows whom to contact in an emergency and ensures well in advance that those folks, such as his county’s emergency management services, understand his needs: “We’re not life and limb, but we need to be part of their plan.” In his case, if emergencies hit during lulls in the election calendar, he can offer emergency assistance to others with forklifts, warehouse space, generators and more.
Relationships outside the county borders help, too. Earley has shared equipment and resources with colleagues in other counties, depending on the hurricane’s path. Whether small or large, jurisdictions tend to be each other’s backups to get to the election finish line. And, of course, staying in touch with the state is key.
The best planning is done in a nonemergency setting, Earley says. In-house relationship-building can include tabletop exercises with election staff and county or state counterparts to game out responses to possible incidents including power outages, cyberattacks, weather events and more. These exercises give local officials a chance to think through emergency situations outside of a crisis situation, when the stakes are low and, ideally, there is still time to identify and develop needed resources and plans.
All of this takes money, of course. So, Earley budgets for emergencies—and when the worst doesn’t happen, he gives back to the county, often up to 10% of his budget. “Overall, we’re a small fraction of the county’s budget. But if we make a mistake, or can’t respond to an emergency, the entire outcome of the election is on the line.”
Election Emergencies and State Laws
At least 45 states have statutes that deal with election emergencies in some way. No matter the cause of the crisis, statutes provide broad guidance. States may:
- Allow an election to be delayed or rescheduled.
- Allow a voting location to be moved.
- Authorize the governor or the chief election official (most often the secretary of state) to take emergency actions specific to elections beyond authority granted in the case of a general state-declared emergency.
- Require local jurisdictions to create or adopt a COOP for elections.
- Adopt special procedures to ensure military and overseas citizens can vote.
- Provide options for first responders who are serving out of their jurisdiction.
- Allow the use of absentee, provisional or emergency ballots if a direct-recording voting system is not working.
A few states have additional requirements. For instance, in New York, a second day of voting can be added in some emergencies (N.Y. Election Law § 3-108). In South Dakota, sample ballots can be used if a polling place runs out of them in an emergency (S.D. Codified Laws Ann. § 12-16-17).
For a complete list of state statutes that relate to election emergencies, see Table 1 on NCSL’s Election Emergencies webpage.
Wendy Underhill directs NCSL’s Elections and Redistricting Program.