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

Tactile Controls

Controls that are discernable or perceptible by touch using hands, feet, or other parts of the body.

High consensus2 sources

Touch Screen Voting Machine

A that captures voter choices via a SCREEN.

Medium consensus2 sources

Tabulation Board

A board whose responsibility is "to handle and process all ballots delivered to the computer area" for counting.

Medium consensus1 source

Tabulation Memory Device

A term that is used, but not defined, in the West Virginia Code: "The 'tabulation memory device' may be removed from the ballot-scanning device only after the polls close and the…

Medium consensus1 source

Tabulation Supervisor

The person "in charge of the operation of the automatic tabulating equipment at the COUNTING STATION." Texas Elec.

Medium consensus1 source

Tabulator Summary Count Record

A record that must be produced by each for purposes of Its detailed TABULATOR AUDIT.

Medium consensus1 source

Tactical Voting

STRATEGIC VOTING.

Medium consensus1 source

Tactile Discernible Controls

Voting machine controls capable of being detected and manipulated through the use of touch alone.

Medium consensus1 source

Tactile Input

A method by which a visually impaired voter may interact with a voting machine.

Medium consensus1 source

Take Home

A type of system in which the paper ballot may be taken from the polling place by the VVPAT voter.

Medium consensus1 source

Tally Board

A body that retains custody of after they are cast.

Medium consensus1 source

Tally Book

def. 1. Nev. Rev. Stat. §293.113.

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.