Equipment for use in elections comes from a wide variety of sources and in many different shapes, sizes and possible functions which can be quite confusing.
There are essential issues that require consideration in determining the range, method of acquisition and maintenance of election-related equipment.
Legislative definitions of equipment for use by the electoral management body: It can be useful to include the functions that equipment serves in legislation.
There needs to be a balance between too restrictive a legislative definition of the materials from which equipment, or its components, must be made as it can restrict the ability of the electoral management body to take advantages of technological change or new materials available in the market.
The election environment: Different equipment configurations will be more suitable for different climatic, security, and maintenance support conditions.
Equipment should meet the following conditions to be effective:
• capable of performing under, for example, extremes of heat, dust, or humidity, when these are likely to be encountered;
• capable of providing high levels of security where security risks are high (or conversely has high security features where these are not necessary);
• capable of being understood by its likely operators and/or voters;
• can be maintained and logistical supported locally;
• not waste resources, no matter how low the initial cost.
Costs and benefits to voter service: It is necessary to consider cost effectiveness when evaluating potential equipment acquisitions.
Equipment should bring real and reliable benefits to voter service in a cost-effective manner more than promote a progressive corporate image for the electoral management body.
Management Issues
The electoral management body needs to carefully plan equipment provision at both the strategic and operational levels to ensure effective and economical supply of all election equipment needs.
The following are significant matters requiring consideration when developing equipment management programs:
• integrate equipment management programs with the overall election planning process so that appropriate equipment types and acquisition timing is achieved;
• establish reliable source data for the quantities of equipment required, the locations at which they are be required, and the links to systems providing voter registration data and voting station location data;
• plan equipment needs well in advance to ensure that required equipment is available in sufficient time for use, and to avoid any penalty costs of last-minute acquisitions. Pay special attention to items with long supply lead times, either due to complex and/or innovative design specifications, or sourcing from distant or international sources;
• develop detailed specifications for all equipment needs to ensure that the functionality required of equipment is achieved;
• dmplement accurate systems for monitoring equipment on hand i.e. quantities, locations, movements, and monitoring the acquisition process, to aid reviews of election readiness and provide an audit trail for equipment management;
• ensure that acquisition methods are cost-effective. Since most election equipment will be used infrequently, the possibilities of hire or lease for durable equipment, or use of disposable equipment, may be considered;
• ensure that all uses of equipment are considered in the planning of required equipment quantities and delivery timing. Equipment is required not only on voting day, but for earlier activities such as election officials training, public information, voter education, as well as post election functions such as dealing with election challenges and maintenance programmes.
Further information on specific classes of election equipment can be found at:
Communications Systems
Ballot Boxes and Seals
Voting Compartments
Temporary Structures
Furniture
Amenities
Quality Control
Before entering into a contract to supply election equipment there is a need for electoral management bodies to ensure that implementation of an acceptable production quality control plan is a necessary condition in contracts for supply of equipment.
Evaluation and approval by the electoral management body of suppliers' quality control plans is necessary for ensuring that equipment supplied meets requirements. In some cases the electoral management body may want to implement its own additional quality control measures on production of essential equipment.
In general, more effective controls can be maintained over equipment quality under the following conditions:
• clear and accurate specifications for equipment requirements have been provided by the Electoral Management Body to suppliers;
• equipment is ordered only from reputable suppliers, preferably accredited under the International Standards Organisation (ISO) series of quality benchmarks;
• equipment is produced locally, enabling on-site production inspections by electoral management body staff, and shorter time delays in identifying quality deficiencies;
• a rigorous pre-delivery testing regime is instituted for all equipment to ensure that it meets specifications.
A consideration for electoral management bodies is that supply from other countries can make it difficult for the them have any oversight of quality issues until the equipment is delivered, which may be too late to remedy deficiencies properly.
Disposable Equipment
Recent development of disposable voting station equipment such as ballot boxes, voting compartments, or booths, and furniture made of corrugated cardboard or plastic sheeting;-provide lightweight, easily transportable and cost-effective alternatives to traditional durable equipment while meeting election security and transparency requirements.
In many environments disposable equipment represents a more practical alternative to holding large stocks of durable equipment for infrequent use.
Where lightweight cardboard equipment is used, assembly methods should form part of election official training, and assembly instructions should be provided with the equipment.
A further side benefit may accrue from using disposable cardboard equipment in general, namely, where schools are used as voting stations, the disposable cardboard ballot boxes, voting compartments, and barriers can be left at the school for use by teachers and civic educators in continuing voter education for students.
Assurance of Performance
Methods of assurance that all election equipment will perform to the expected standard on voting day are necessary. Performance assurance methods require the preparation of detailed specifications, thorough testing, and implementation of continuing maintenance programmes.
Equipment storage
Equipment comprises a substantial portion of any election budget and consideration needs to be given to proper and effective storage between elections, especially if it is non durable
Costs of storage vs Costs of replacing equipment: This is especially relevant to disposable equipment or equipment that depreciates due to the rapid advancement in usable technology.
Safety: It is necessary to store equipment in a safe lock up area
Inventory: It is good practice to prepare a detailed inventory of the items being stored, the number of items, and the condition they are in at the time of storage and the estimated value. If items are being stored at different venues keep a list of where each item is stored.
Size of venue: The venue should have sufficient space to store the equipment without damage .
Temperature: Ensure that equipment that may be damaged in temperatures that are either too damp in or moist is stored in a suitable environment.
Maintenance
As a general rule, if the resources and storage facilities are not available for proper maintenance of durable equipment, it would be a waste of money to acquire it.
Regular maintenance checks (at the least at six-monthly intervals) of all durable equipment in storage prevents equipment failure during voting operations. Particular attention should be paid to regular testing of electronic and communications equipment.
Where special equipment is used to maintain voter eligibility controls-such as ultra-violet or other special lamps or fingerprint readers--particular care also needs to be taken with their maintenance.
It is highly preferable to develop formal maintenance and testing schedules for all durable equipment and ensure that reports on results are brought to the attention of senior electoral management body officials.
Sensible precautions for maintaining equipment in good condition need to be remembered, such as removing batteries from battery-operated equipment before it is placed in storage.
Testing of all equipment prior to it being shipped to voting stations will guard against the provision of useless items. It is also prudent to require that voting station managers thoroughly test all equipment in the voting station following installation, both to ensure that the equipment is in good working condition and that they know how to operate it.
