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Election Requirements

Fundamentally, the LMRDA exists to guard the integrity of the election process. That is why unions must be able to prove that their election processes meet four key requirements:

1. The right to vote by secret ballot — Unions must ensure that all eligible voters are allowed to vote. All votes must be cast in secret. Furthermore, nothing in the election process or the administration of that process can be allowed that results in the identification of any voter with the contents of his or her vote.
   
   
2. Adequate safeguards and controls — Election officials must ensure that a documented election process exists and is followed. This process must be sufficient to meet the dictates of Title IV of the LMRDA and sufficient to evidence the process to answer any questions that arise out of disputes or challenges. The security of ballots must be maintained at all times by restricting and controlling access. In addition, checks and balances in the handling of ballots, ballot packages, mailing, and receipt of ballots must prevent individuals from having any opportunity to mark, tamper, modify, duplicate, or steal ballots.
   
   
3. Election observation and transparency — All candidates must be allowed to have an observer present as part of the election process. Election officials must also afford candidate-designated observers with the opportunity to monitor any portion of the election process. Observers must be given the opportunity to be present any time ballots are handled, mailed, received, or counted, and election results must be posted promptly after the conclusion of an election.
   
   
4. Accountability and accuracy — Election officials must maintain an audit trail of the election process sufficient to substantiate the integrity of the election, which means that they must be able to account for all ballots (whether printed, mailed, received, unused, or destroyed) throughout the entire election process. Only votes verified as being from eligible voters and that are marked in a way that the voter’s intent is clear must be counted, which helps ensure that vote counts are accurate and verifiable. Complete election records must be maintained for one year after the completion of voting.
   
   

How well did your last election stack up to these requirements? Take our self-assessment quiz to find out.

Answer the following questions to see how your current system measures up.

2. Can you verify adequate safeguards and controls:

• Were ballots safeguarded in a manner that did not allow access and opportunity for any one to mark, tamper with, modify, duplicate, or misappropriate ballots during any one of these election periods or activities?
  
  Yes     No
• Transport of ballots from the printer?
  
  Yes     No
• Storage of ballots prior to mailing?
  Yes     No
• Preparation of ballot packages?
  Yes     No
• Destruction of any “soiled” ballots?
  Yes     No
• Storage of ballot packages prior to mailing?
  Yes     No
• Storage of unused ballots?
  Yes     No
• Transport of ballot packages to the post office?
  Yes     No
• Pickup of undeliverable ballot packages from the post office and transport back to the union?
  Yes     No
• Storage of undeliverable ballot packages prior to archiving?
  Yes     No
• Pickup from the post office of completed ballots at the close of the election period and transport to the tally location?
  Yes     No
• Storage of completed ballots prior to counting?
  Yes     No
• During the counting process?
  Yes     No
• Storage of counted and voided ballots after counting?
  Yes     No
• Pickup from the post office of late ballots after the close of the election and transport to the union?
  Yes     No
• Collection and archiving of all ballots and related materials?
  Yes     No

Ready to Evaluate now? [ Click here ]

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3. Can you verify observation and election process transparency:

• Were all candidates afforded the opportunity to designate an election observer and that designated election observers were given adequate notice, afforded reasonable opportunity, and allowed sufficient access to monitor the election process?
  Yes     No
• During pickup and transport of ballots from the printer?
  Yes     No
• During preparation of ballot packages?
  Yes     No
• During all trips to the post office to mail original or replacement ballot packages?
  Yes     No
• During all trips to the post office to pick up undeliverable, completed, or late ballots?
  Yes     No
• During the vote count and tally?
  Yes     No

Ready to Evaluate now? [ Click here ]

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4. Ballot accountability and accuracy

• Can you account for all of the ballots printed and used in the election?
  Yes     No
• Was there a documented process for accepting or voiding ballots?
  Yes     No
• Was there a documented process for determining voter intent or voiding individual votes?
  Yes     No
• Was there an action taken to verify that the count was accurate?
  Yes     No
• Was the election process documented and a sufficient record of actions (who, what, when and where) maintained to substantiate that the individual steps in the election were conducted in accordance with the LMRDA and OLMS guidelines?
  Yes     No
• Without simply taking the printer’s word for it, did you verify how many ballots were printed?
  Yes     No
• Without simply taking the printer’s word for it, did you account for any ballots that were printed, but that you did not receive?
  Yes     No
• Did the count of unused ballots, plus the count of ballots destroyed, plus the count of ballots mailed, plus the count of ballots mailed as replacements for undeliverable ballots, plus the count of replacement ballots mailed to members to replace lost or misplaced ballots equal the count of ballots received from the printer?
  Yes     No
• Did the count of replacement ballots mailed equal the count of ballots returned as undeliverable plus the count of documented requests for replacement ballots?
  Yes     No
• Could you identify replacement ballots from ballots mailed to the same member as part of the original mailing?
  Yes     No

Of the ballots received and picked up from the post office:

• Was a count made of the ballots at the post office before transporting them back to the union?
  Yes     No
• Did the count at the post office equal the total number of votes tallied plus the number of ballots that are held as voided?
  Yes     No
• Did you account for the late ballots that were picked up at post office after the close of the election?
  Yes     No

EVALUATION:

If you answered YES to every question: [ click here ]

If you answered NO to any question: [ click here ]

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