News
Standards of Conduct
The Institute for Election Administration Research & Practice
"Freedom can best be maintained and nurtured through the democratic process. The success of the democratic process requires fair and open elections which accurately reflect the will of the electorate."
In 2004, these words from the Election Center’s Task Force on Election Reform introduced the Principles of Election/Registration Officials and its companion Standards of Conduct for Election/Registration Officials, developed by the nation’s election administrators and voter registrars as the ethical standard for the field.
In 2021, in response to concerns about public trust in elections raised during the 2020 election, these documents were revisited to ensure that they address the current challenges facing the field. The Standards of Conduct, developed by Election Center members and enhanced by the Election Center’s cross-partisan Committee on Ethics in Practice and The Institute for Election Administration Research & Practice, help to bridge these principles with action. They are a tool for election officials to clearly communicate with the public about their work, and what it means to administer elections with transparency, honesty, and integrity.
The principles and actions outlined in the Standards are nothing new for election officials. What is new is our national effort to share these Standards publicly and increase engagement with the public about election officials' work. We encourage individuals and election offices nationwide to join us.
For more information on adopting the Standards of Conduct or any questions, please contact hilary.rudy@coloradosos.gov
JEOLC presentations 2024
The JEOLC Conference Presentations have been added to our Member Resources Page.
Professional Practice Paper Awards
We are happy to announce the winners of the Professional Practice Papers Awards for 2023. Please login as a member below to view the winners.
CERA/CERV Faculty Publications
The Future of Election Administration
Mitchell Brown
Kathleen Hale
Bridgett A. King
Once again, the Election Center is pleased to announce the Palgrave Macmillan publication of The Future of Election Administration written by three of our esteemed CERA faculty at Auburn University; Mitchell Brown, Kathleen Hale & Bridgett A. King.
About this Book
Stakeholders in the operation of American elections are keenly focused on policy reform, resource allocation, administrative professionalism, voter access and accessibility, equipment security, and system integrity. The Future of Election Administration is an edited volume that gathers the perspectives of today’s most forward-thinking practitioners and experts of policy, advocacy, and research about the importance of particular election practices, the professional and operational challenges that election administrators and voter registrars face, and emerging issues in the field. Through its combination of multiple perspectives to describe, analyze, and anticipate key dynamics and dilemmas as well as its emphasis on the practical aspects of administration, this book makes a unique contribution to the election administration literature.
About the authors
Mitchell Brown is Professor of Political Science at Auburn University, USA. Her scholarship focuses on empowerment processes for marginalized groups, including electoral strategies and program evaluation for public and nonprofit organizations. She contributes regularly to the CERA program.
Kathleen Hale is Professor of Political Science and director of the graduate program in election administration at Auburn University, USA. She serves on the Election Center’s Board of Directors and the MIT Data and Election Sciences Lab advisory board, and directs Auburn University faculty in CERA, the national professional certification program for election officials established in partnership with the Election Center.
Bridgett A. King is Assistant Professor of Political Science and director of the MPA Program at Auburn University, USA. Her research focuses on political participation, voter disenfranchisement, and citizen perceptions of the electoral system. Formerly a voting rights researcher in the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, she contributes regularly to the CERA program.
Reviews
"This volume has assembled state-of-the-art work by some of the very best election administration scholars. With extant theory as its foundation, this work exhibits the highest of thought and evidence on many challenging topics related to voting, including federalism, resources, professionalism, technology, and even the quality of democracy itself. In doing so, this work succeeds in both contextualizing election administration in the American political climate and illuminating a path forward for future research." (Kyle L. Saunders, Professor, Political Science, Colorado State University, USA)
"Both The Future of Election Administration and its open access companion, The Future of Election Administration: Cases and Conversations provide a much-needed framework for organizing the multiple stakeholders in the field of election science. Combined, they highlight the pressing questions in the field, the progress that has been made, the experiences on the ground that make a difference, and the future challenges we face."" (Lonna Atkeson, Professor, Political Science, University of New Mexico, USA)
The Future of Election Administration:
Cases and Conversations
Edited by Mitchell Brown, Kathleen Hale & Bridgett A. King
- Highlights practical problems, questions, and challenges for understanding, studying, and taking part in election administration
- Provides guidance from practitioners across the country on tackling the various issues faced in election administration
- Presents a series of case studies at the national, state, and local level to underscore issues and suggestions
About this Book
As the American election administration landscape changes as a result of major court cases, national and state legislation, changes in professionalism, and the evolution of equipment and security, so must the work of on-the-ground practitioners change. This Open Access title presents a series of case studies designed to highlight practical responses to these changes from the national, state, and local levels. This book is designed to be a companion piece to The Future of Election Administration, which surveys these critical dimensions of elections from the perspectives of the most forward-thinking practitioner, policy, advocacy, and research experts and leaders in these areas today. Drawing upon principles of professionalism and the practical work that is required to administer elections as part of the complex systems, this book lifts up the voices and experiences of practitioners from around the country to describe, analyze, and anticipate the key areas of election administration systems on which students, researchers, advocates, policy makers, and practitioners should focus. Together, these books add to the emerging body of literature that is part of the election sciences community with an emphasis on the practical aspects of administration.
About the authors
Mitchell Brown is Professor of Political Science at Auburn University, USA. Her scholarship focuses on empowerment processes for marginalized groups, including electoral strategies and program evaluation for public and nonprofit organizations. She contributes regularly to the CERA program.
Kathleen Hale is Professor of Political Science and director of the graduate program in election administration at Auburn University, USA. She serves on the Election Center’s Board of Directors and the MIT Data and Election Sciences Lab advisory board, and directs Auburn University faculty in CERA, the national professional certification program for election officials established in partnership with the Election Center.
Bridgett A. King is Assistant Professor of Political Science and director of the MPA Program at Auburn University, USA. Her research focuses on political participation, voter disenfranchisement, and citizen perceptions of the electoral system. Formerly a voting rights researcher in the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, she contributes regularly to the CERA program.
Reviews
"Both The Future of Election Administration: Cases and Conversations and its companion, The Future of Election Administration provide a much-needed framework for organizing the multiple stakeholders in the field of election science. Combined, they highlight the pressing questions in the field, the progress that has been made, the experiences on the ground that make a difference, and the future challenges we face." (Lonna Rae Atkeson, Professor, Political Science, University of New Mexico, USA)
Conference & Events
Election Center Committees
Attention Active Election Center Members!
Please join one or more of the following Election Center Committees and get involved with shaping programs and policies. To join a Committee please call 281-396-4309 or e-mail services@electioncenter.org and tell us what committee(s) you would like to serve.
Program Planning Committee
The Program Planning Committee serves to provide the Election Center Executive Director and Program Director with the theme, agenda and prospective speakers during the development of each Special Workshop and National Conference. The Committee convenes via telephone and e-mail as needed.
Postal Task Force
The Postal Task Force serves as the Election Center&aposs liaison with the United States Postal Service (USPS) to provide open and ongoing communications among the organizations and to help ensure a strong partnership that services the needs of the nation&aposs voters in exercising their democratic rights. We meet twice per year at JEOLC in January and the National Conference in August and via e-mail with significant announcements.
Election Legislative Committee
The Legislative Committee serves as the Election Center&aposs liaison with the United States Congressional staffers to provide open and ongoing communications to Election Center members regarding new and pending federal legislation related to elections administration and voter registration. The Committee serves at the pleasure of the Election Center Executive Director and the two Committee Co-Chairs are Travis Weipert, CERA, Johnson County Auditor, Iowa and David H. Stafford, CERA, Supervisor of Elections, Escambia County, Florida. We meet once per year at the National Conference in August and during the year via e-mail and conference calls with significant federal legislation.