Category Overview

Voting Systems — Election Security Glossary

1,792 election security terms in the Voting Systems category, with definitions sourced from NIST, CISA, EAC, and 30+ authoritative documents.

Browse all 1,792 terms in Voting Systems

Mail Ballot Packet

The "packet of information provided by the designated election official to eligible electors in the mail ballot election.

Medium consensus1 source

Mail Ballot Precinct

Any "precinct containing less than two hundred active registered voters at the closing of voter registration ...

Medium consensus1 source

Mail Ballot Precinct Ballot

A "ballot used in a precinct with fewer than two hundred active registered voters regularly voting by mail in primary, general, and special elections." Wash.

Medium consensus1 source

Mail In Ballot

BALLOT. MAIL.

Medium consensus1 source

Maintainability

The "ease with which maintenance actions can be performed based on the design characteristics of equipment and software and the processes the manufacturer and ELECTION have in…

Medium consensus1 source

Maintenance Log

A "written record which contains all information relating to system testing, performance of scheduled and non-scheduled maintenance requirements recommended by the vendor or…

Medium consensus1 source

Major Interface

An interface "at the level of those identified in the system overview.

Medium consensus1 source

Major Political Party

A "political organization whose candidate for any one (1) of the offices of the United States house of representatives, governor or secretary of state, received not less than ten…

Medium consensus1 source

Malware Detection Software

Software, such as "antivirus software, antispyware software, and rootkit detection," which "can identify common known malware that attempts to infect an DEVICE, as well as…

Medium consensus1 source

Manager Of Election

In South Carolina, one of three appointed to conduct voting at a ELECTION OFFICIALS POLLING PLACE.

Medium consensus1 source

Mandatory Recount

A that must be conducted if certain conditions are satisfied.

Medium consensus1 source

Manual Audit Capacity

requires that a voting system used in an election for Federal office "produce a permanent HAVA paper record with a manual audit capacity for such system.".

Medium consensus1 source

By ESG Editorial Team · Drawing on NIST, the EAC, VVSG, IEEE, and 30+ authoritative sources on voting system design and certification

Voting systems are the machines, software, and supporting infrastructure through which voters mark, cast, and have their ballots counted. The category includes optical scanners, ballot-marking devices, direct-recording electronic (DRE) systems, hand-marked paper ballots, and the back-end systems that aggregate results from precincts and report them to the public.

Why this category matters for election security is rooted in the trust voters place in the systems that record their intent. A voting system that loses votes, that miscounts, or that allows manipulation without detection undermines the legitimacy of the entire election. Conversely, a system that is well designed, well tested, and well understood by election officials produces results that withstand scrutiny even when contested. The work of building and maintaining that trustworthiness is continuous.

Federal testing and certification programs establish a baseline. The Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG), administered by the Election Assistance Commission, define the technical and security requirements a system must meet to be used in federal elections. State testing goes further in some cases, certifying specific configurations, requiring additional documentation, or limiting the use of particular system features. Once a system is in the field, the work of securing it continues through patch management, configuration control, and pre-election logic and accuracy testing.

The terminology in this category reflects the technical and procedural landscape that voting systems inhabit. The concepts here are not optional. Every term describes a system property that has been the subject of standards, recommendations, and in some cases federal law.

Key Concepts

Voting System

The integrated hardware and software used by voters to cast ballots and by election officials to count them.

Optical Scan

A voting system that reads marked paper ballots using optical sensors and counts the marks electronically.

Ballot Marking Device

A device that allows voters to mark their choices on an electronic interface, then prints a human-readable paper ballot.

Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail

A printed paper record produced simultaneously with an electronic vote, allowing the voter to confirm their choices before casting.

Cast Vote Record

The permanent record of a single vote as captured and stored by a voting system, in electronic and/or paper form.

Direct Recording Electronic

A voting system that records votes directly into electronic memory, with or without a contemporaneous paper record.

Voluntary Voting System Guidelines

The federal technical standards published by the EAC that define security, accuracy, and accessibility requirements for certified voting systems.

How These Terms Relate

These concepts together describe the technical core of how votes are cast and counted. A voting system is more than a single device. It is an integrated chain of hardware, software, and procedures that begins when a voter enters the booth and ends when results are reported. The terminology here covers that full chain. Optical scan, ballot-marking devices, DRE systems, and VVPAT each represent different points on a spectrum of automation and paper reliance. The choice between them is a policy decision shaped by jurisdiction, voter expectations, and the trade-offs between speed, accessibility, auditability, and security.