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Dre (direct Recording Electronic) Voting Machine

Primary definition

A direct recording electronic (DRE) voting machine directly records the voter's selections in each race or contest. It does so via the image of a ballot that appears on an electronic display screen. Typical DRE machines have flat panel display screens with touch screen or keypad input, although other technologies have been used (including paper and push button displays). The defining characteristic of these machines is that votes are exclusively captured and stored electronically, and that after the voter leaves, no tangible hard copy record of the voters selections remains. Some DREs, however, are equipped with printers capable of printing voter-verifiable paper records that sighted voters can review to verify that a hard copy record of their selections is accurate.

Also known asDRE · direct-recording electronic voting machine · DRE voting machine · electronic voting machine · touch-screen voting machine · DRE system · direct record electronic · direct recording electronic
1 sources cited4 related termsReviewed Aug 10, 2026
Counting Votes 2012View source

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A direct recording electronic (DRE) voting machine directly records the voter's selections in each race or contest. It does so via the image of a ballot that appears on an electronic display screen. Typical DRE machines have flat panel display screens with touch screen or keypad input, although other technologies have been used (including paper and push button displays). The defining characteristic of these machines is that votes are exclusively captured and stored electronically, and that after the voter leaves, no tangible hard copy record of the voters selections remains. Some DREs, however, are equipped with printers capable of printing voter-verifiable paper records that sighted voters can review to verify that a hard copy record of their selections is accurate.

Counting Votes 2012 · 2024

Cite this term

Permanent URL · stable across revisions
Election Security Glossary. (2026). Dre (direct Recording Electronic) Voting Machine. In Election Security Glossary. Retrieved August 21, 2026, from https://electionsecurityglossary.com/glossary/dre-direct-recording-electronic-voting-machine

Sources

1 cited · last checked Aug 10, 2026

01

Counting Votes 2012
Counting Votes 2012

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