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Link copiedVoting systems in the United States go through multiple layers of review. Accredited laboratories test systems against federal technical requirements, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) decides whether to certify them, states may add their own requirements, and election officials perform further checks before use. Certification is therefore an important checkpoint, not the end of the security process.
What counts as a voting system?
A voting system is more than a machine at a polling place. It can include hardware, software, firmware, ballot-definition functions, scanners or ballot-marking devices, tabulation components, reporting functions, audit records and technical documentation.
The exact configuration matters because voting system testing and certification apply to a defined system and version, not simply to a manufacturer's brand name.
Who sets the standards, tests the systems and certifies them?
Three roles are important to distinguish.
The EAC operates the federal Voting System Testing and Certification Program under the Help America Vote Act of 2002. It accredits test laboratories, reviews test plans and reports, maintains federal voting-system standards and makes the federal certification decision.
A Voting System Test Lab, or VSTL, performs the detailed laboratory testing. These are independent laboratories accredited by the EAC after technical evaluation through NIST's National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides technical support for standards and laboratory evaluation. NIST does not federally certify voting systems and does not perform the certification testing itself; the EAC makes that decision after testing by an accredited VSTL.
What are the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines?
The Voluntary Voting System Guidelines, or VVSG, are specifications and requirements used to evaluate voting systems for federal certification. They cover areas including functionality, accessibility, usability, auditability and security capabilities.
The current major standard is VVSG 2.0, adopted by the EAC in 2021 and ready for testing in 2022. Under the EAC's lifecycle policy, new submissions now use the current major standard rather than earlier major VVSG versions.
That does not mean every system already in use was certified to VVSG 2.0. The EAC's current records still include systems certified under earlier standards. Existing certifications do not automatically disappear when a newer VVSG is introduced.
VVSG 2.0 also requires software independence: an undetected software fault or change must not be able to cause an undetectable change in the election outcome.
How does federal voting-system certification work?
The technical campaign can be extensive, but the main stages are straightforward.
1. The manufacturer applies
A registered manufacturer submits a specific voting-system configuration to the EAC for testing. Registration itself is not certification.
2. An accredited laboratory creates a test plan
The manufacturer engages an EAC-accredited VSTL. The laboratory develops a plan showing how the system will be evaluated against the applicable VVSG requirements, and the EAC reviews the plan.
3. The laboratory tests the system
The VSTL performs conformance testing to determine whether the submitted system meets the applicable requirements. Testing can examine functionality, accessibility, reliability, security controls, data handling and other behaviour required by the standard.
The process can also establish which software and components are actually being tested. A trusted build creates executable software from reviewed source code under controlled conditions. A physical configuration audit compares the submitted system with the manufacturer's technical documentation.
4. The VSTL reports its results and the EAC reviews them
The laboratory produces a test report identifying the system, standard, tests and results. The EAC conducts a technical review rather than treating the laboratory report as automatic approval.
5. The EAC decides whether to certify the system
If the requirements are satisfied, the EAC can grant federal certification to the specified system configuration. The EAC publishes records of certified systems, systems under test, withdrawn systems and systems whose certification status has changed.
6. Changes are controlled after certification
Certification does not cover unlimited future changes. Manufacturers must report relevant modifications, and some changes require additional testing or certification. Configuration management helps identify versions, control changes and preserve the approved configuration.
Does federal certification mean a system is approved in every state?
No. State participation in the EAC programme is voluntary, although many states incorporate federal certification into their own requirements.
States may impose additional standards or conduct their own certification testing. The EAC certifies systems against federal VVSG requirements; it does not certify them against each state's individual laws and standards.
A federally certified system can therefore require additional state review before it may be purchased or deployed in a particular jurisdiction.
What testing happens after a jurisdiction buys the system?
Testing continues after certification.
A jurisdiction may perform acceptance testing to confirm that delivered equipment performs as required and corresponds to the certified system that was purchased.
Before an election, officials conduct election-specific checks under state and local procedures. Logic and accuracy testing, or L&A testing, is intended to identify malfunctioning equipment or incorrect election-specific setup. Officials may verify, for example, that the correct ballot styles are loaded and that known test votes are captured and tabulated as expected.
Certification and L&A testing answer different questions: certification evaluates a system against technical requirements; L&A testing checks whether equipment is ready for a particular election.
How is a certified voting system kept secure in use?
A certified system still has to be securely stored, configured, transported and operated. Election officials may use restricted access, secure storage, chain-of-custody procedures, configuration controls and checks that confirm the installed software is the expected version.
A cryptographic hash function, for example, can create a digital fingerprint of a file. Comparing hash values can help detect whether software differs from a known reference version.
These operational safeguards matter because laboratory certification cannot replace secure deployment and election-specific procedures.
What does certification prove and what does it not prove?
Federal certification provides evidence that the specific system tested met the applicable VVSG requirements through the EAC's conformity-assessment process.
It does not mean that the system is automatically approved in every state, that every individual device is correctly configured for every election, that no fault can ever occur, or that later modifications are automatically covered. It also does not replace acceptance testing, L&A testing, physical security or post-election verification.
The broader assurance process relies on several layers rather than one certificate.
How do the testing and security layers fit together?
A simplified path is:
Technical requirements → accredited laboratory testing → EAC federal certification → state review → procurement and acceptance testing → election-specific L&A testing → secure operation → post-election verification.
Not every jurisdiction follows an identical path, but the sequence shows why saying that a voting system is "certified" describes only one stage. Standards define what must be tested; laboratories perform the testing; the EAC makes the federal certification decision; states determine their additional requirements; and election officials prepare and protect the equipment used in each election.
Related ESG terms
- Voting System
- Voting System Testing
- Voluntary Voting System Guidelines
- Voting System Test Lab
- Certification Testing
- Acceptance Testing
- Logic and Accuracy Testing
- Software Independence
Frequently asked questions
1. Does NIST certify voting machines?
No. NIST supports standards development and laboratory evaluation, but it does not make federal certification decisions. EAC-accredited Voting System Test Laboratories perform the certification testing, while the U.S. Election Assistance Commission reviews the results and decides whether to grant federal certification.
2. Does every state require EAC-certified voting systems?
Not in exactly the same way. State participation in the federal programme is voluntary, but many states use EAC certification within their own rules. States can also impose additional testing, certification or approval requirements, so the relevant state process must be checked separately.
3. Is logic and accuracy testing the same as certification testing?
No. Certification testing evaluates whether a defined voting system meets specified technical requirements. Logic and accuracy testing takes place during election preparation and checks whether equipment is functioning and configured correctly for the specific election, including its ballot styles and contests.
4. Can certified voting-system software be changed?
Changes are controlled. Manufacturers in the EAC programme must report relevant changes to previously certified systems, and some modifications require additional review, testing or certification. Federal certification applies to a defined system configuration rather than every later version carrying the same product name.
Sources and further reading
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission — Voting System Testing & Certification Program
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission — Voluntary Voting System Guidelines
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission — Certified Voting Systems
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission — Voting Systems Under Test
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission — Testing and Certification Program Manual Version 3.0
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission — What is a trusted build and why is it used?
- National Institute of Standards and Technology — Voluntary Voting System Guidelines
- National Institute of Standards and Technology — Testing FAQs: HAVA Certification and Testing
- National Institute of Standards and Technology — VVSG Principles and Guidelines
