Election Center (The Center for Election Innovation & Research)

Election Center (The Center for Election Innovation & Research)
Name	Election Center (The Center for Election Innovation & Research)
Formation	2019
Type	Nonprofit organization
Headquarters	United States
Fields	Election administration; cybersecurity; voting technology
Leader title	CEO

Election Center (The Center for Election Innovation & Research) is a nonprofit organization focused on improving election administration practices across the United States. The organization engages in election cybersecurity, voter registration processes, and voting technology research, working with a range of state and local officials, vendors, and advocacy groups. It connects technical expertise with policy initiatives to address operational challenges evident in major events such as the 2020 United States presidential election and subsequent electoral cycles.

Overview

The organization operates at the intersection of election administration, cybersecurity firms, and public policy, offering tools, research, and guidance to secretary of state offices, county clerk offices, and election management bodies. It convenes stakeholders from Bipartisan Policy Center-adjacent networks, engages with technology companies such as Microsoft, Google, and Amazon Web Services, and collaborates with academic partners including Stanford University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University. Its activities span advisory roles similar to those of think tanks like the Bipartisan Policy Center and research centers such as the Brennan Center for Justice and the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

History and Formation

Founded in 2019 amid heightened attention to election security after the 2016 United States presidential election and Russian interference assessments by the United States Intelligence Community, the organization drew founders and funders from technology, philanthropy, and policy sectors. Early formation involved connections to philanthropic institutions such as the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the MacArthur Foundation, and private donors associated with Philanthropy Roundtable networks. It positioned itself alongside entities like the National Association of Secretaries of State, the National Governors Association, and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to provide technical assistance and rapid response during electoral crises.

Mission and Activities

The group's mission emphasizes improving the resilience of election infrastructure through technical assistance, research, and operational support. Activities include tabletop exercises with state election officials, deployment of rapid-response teams modeled on disaster response organizations such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, development of risk-limiting audit guidance akin to work from the MIT Election Data and Science Lab, and producing best-practice toolkits referenced by county election officials and state legislatures. It also conducts training in partnership with professional associations like the National Association of Counties and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems.

Research and Policy Work

Research outputs address topics including risk-limiting audits, ballot design, chain-of-custody procedures, and election cyber hygiene. Studies draw on methods from research centers such as the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and the Oxford Internet Institute, and cite data sources used by institutions like the U.S. Census Bureau and the Pew Research Center. Policy reports are circulated to staffers on the United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, members of the United States House Committee on House Administration, and state legislative caucuses. The organization has published analyses comparing voting system vendors, practices mirrored in procurement debates involving firms like Dominion Voting Systems, ES&S, and Hart InterCivic.

Partnerships and Funding

Funding has come from a mix of private foundations, technology companies, and individual donors, aligning the organization with philanthropic actors such as the Rockefeller Foundation, the Gates Foundation, and donors associated with Open Society Foundations-adjacent networks. Operational partnerships include collaborations with state election offices, nonpartisan groups like The Carter Center, and capacity-building organizations such as Code for America and National Democratic Institute. The organization has received in-kind technical support and cloud services from firms including Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, and Amazon Web Services.

Controversies and Criticism

Critics have raised questions about transparency in funding, potential influence from large technology donors, and relationships with voting system vendors that have been central to high-profile litigation such as cases involving Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic. Commentators from The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal have reported on concerns about perceived partisanship, despite the group's stated nonpartisan posture. Legal and policy debates have involved stakeholders including state attorneys general, members of the Federal Election Commission, and advocacy organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union and the Heritage Foundation.

Impact and Legacy

The organization has influenced adoption of practices such as risk-limiting audits, chain-of-custody protocols, and cybersecurity frameworks that echo recommendations from the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Its rapid-response model has been invoked during major elections and has informed training curricula used by the Election Assistance Commission and academic programs at institutions like Georgetown University and Columbia University. Long-term legacy debates involve comparisons to historical reforms following incidents like the 2000 United States presidential election and the subsequent reforms catalyzed by the Help America Vote Act of 2002.

Category:Nonprofit organizations based in the United States