The Pathfinder: Our American Elections Mosaic
One of the marvels of the American consumer economy is its consistency. For example, two people can go into a Starbucks on opposite sides of the country simultaneously and order a Caffè Americano. Every time they visit, each will get the same brew, made following the same procedures.
That kind of uniformity works wonders for large national brands, creating business efficiencies and predictability for their customers.
But such uniformity doesn’t apply to how we conduct our elections. We have no U.S. Department of Elections establishing Starbucks-like national election rules or procedures. Instead, what we have is more like a kaleidoscope. It looks like loosely assembled pieces of glass with different shapes, sizes, and colors.
We may discern order in the kaleidoscope, but not easily. Why does one state conduct its elections entirely by mail when the state next door allows people to vote by mail or in person? How can one county allow voters to turn in ballots at drop boxes, while in the neighboring county, early ballots can only be turned in to the clerk’s central office?
That’s how states and localities have decided their systems should work. Over time, such decentralization has produced several democratic reforms – like the secret ballot, women’s suffrage, and lowering the voting age from 21 to 18. More recently, states and localities have explored various methods for running primary elections, such as using ranked-choice voting to decide election winners and much more.
That sort of experimentation and innovation is one of our system’s strengths. But the federal government isn’t entirely out of the loop. As a 2018 Congressional Research Service report noted:
“…the federal government…has steadily increased its presence in campaigns and elections in the past 50 years. Altogether, under current law, dozens of congressional committees and federal agencies could be involved in federal elections.”
The federal government sets the (uniform) rules for things like voting rights, and campaign finance laws (for federal candidates). States generally handle election administration, security, and redistricting.
However, local governments and local election officials are the major force and biggest players in our elections.
As the National Conference of State Legislatures notes:
“…there are more than 10,000 election administration jurisdictions in the U.S. The size of these jurisdictions varies dramatically, with the smallest towns having fewer than a thousand registered voters and the largest jurisdiction in the country, Los Angeles County, with more than 5.5 million.”
Those 10,000 election jurisdictions oversee the races for more than 500,000 elected officials, from president to sheriff. Our electoral system’s foundation rests on the thousands of election officials, professionals, and volunteers who staff the polls, handle the paperwork, and count the votes.
It is a daunting task that’s become even more so in some localities in recent years owing to the spread of misinformation, misunderstanding, and, worse, threats of violence – all of which threaten the health of our institutions.
Violence and threats of violence against election officials are unconscionable violations of both the law and our shared civic values. No official, no volunteer, and no voter should ever have to fear that their participation in the electoral process may expose them to harm.
At the same time, we are responsible for correcting misunderstandings and combating misinformation. The only way to do that is for us to get informed—and encourage others to do so, too. And not only about how and when to vote but also about how our election process works.
Your first stop should be your local election office’s website. If they don’t have one (which, even in our highly wired age, can still be an issue in some places), your first stop should be Ballotpedia’s Voter Toolkit.
We’ve compiled everything you need to know about voting, elections, election administration, and so much more in one handy location.
Do you need to show ID to vote? Our election help desk can answer this and any other election-related question. Is there a school board election in your town (and who are the candidates)? Our comprehensive sample ballot tool has the answers.
And if you want to dive even deeper into how our electoral mosaic works – and what changes lawmakers are proposing – then our election administration tracker can help you stay abreast of the latest developments for every bill in your state (or in all 50) on the election topic that interests you.
The bottom line is that our election system is more vibrant, varied, and interesting than we think. Its continued health depends on each of us engaging with it as informed citizens and voters. Start here, and let’s get to work.
Kaleidoscope photo credit: sabrinabelle via pixabay
The Pathfinder is a monthly column written by Leslie Graves, founder of Ballotpedia, for Preserving Democracy. Exploring topics vital to our understanding of American civics and Democracy, The Pathfinder attempts to cut through the noise of political journalism while exploring issues of vital importance to the American voter.
