A Primer on State Election Boards and Commissions

April 29, 2021Al VanderklippVoter Information

As a result of the decentralized nature of elections in the United States, election administration structures vary greatly state-by-state. In ten states the state-level leadership is the responsibility of an election board or commission (simplified as “board” hereafter). In 32 states an individual has this responsibility, most often an elected secretary of state. The eight remaining states divide election authority between an individual election official and a state board. These three categories are presented below:

States with election leadership from a board:	States with election leadership from an elected or appointed individual (usually the secretary of state):	States which split leadership duties between both an election board and individual official:
DE, HI, IL, MD, NY, NC, SC, OK, VA, WI	AL, AK, AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, ID, IA, KS, LA, MA, ME, MI, MN, MS, MO, MT, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, OH, OR, PA, TX, UT, VT, WA, WY	AR, GA, IN, KY, RI, SD, TN, WV
Total: 10	Total: 32	Total: 8

Each state is required by federal law to have a Chief Election Official, or CEO. In states where a board leads election administration, the CEO is appointed by the board (or in the case of Delaware and New York, appointed to the board by the Governor). In states with an elected or appointed individual (usually the secretary of state) that person also has the role of Chief Election Official. In aggregate, 33 state CEOs are directly elected, 10 are appointed by (or to) state election boards or commissions, 4 are individuals appointed by governors, and 3 are individuals appointed by state legislatures.

The structure of boards varies by state. Some are split evenly between parties, forcing either compromise or deadlock, while others are designed to be controlled by a single party, giving one side control of the process. Only Hawaii has an evenly split board which must agree on a ninth member to serve as the tie-breaking chair.

Boards structured for partisan balance (even number of members)	Boards that one party can control (odd number of members)	Bipartisan boards with a nonpartisan chair or tiebreaker
IL, IN, NY, WI	AR, DE, GA, KY, MD, NC, OK, RI, SC, SD, TN, VA, WV	HI
Total: 4	Total: 13	Total: 1

Information on who is appointed to these boards and how is rooted in state statutes. In order to demystify the process, ERN has collected information from each state, which you can find below:

Arkansas: The Arkansas State Board of Election Commissioners

Chief Election Official: Elected Secretary of State
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 7 (1 Democrat, 6 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Legislative Branch, Parties

Detail: Secretary of State serves as Chairperson. Two members are appointed by the Governor, and one member each is appointed by the chair of the state Democratic party, the chair of the state Republican party, the President Pro Tempore of the Arkansas Senate, and the Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives.

Delaware: The Delaware State Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: Gov-Appointed Commission Chairperson
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 11 (5 Democrats, 5 Republicans + D-Appointed Chair)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Parties

Detail: Commissioner is appointed by the Governor, serves as an ex-officio member of the board except to vote as a tie-breaker. 2 members from Sussex County; 2 members from Kent County; 2 members from New Castle County; 2 members from the City of Wilmington; 2 at-large members; no fewer than 5 from each political party.

Georgia: The Georgia State Elections Board

Chief Election Official: Elected Secretary of State
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 6 (1 Democrat, 3 Republicans, 1 non-voting Secretary of State, 1 unaffiliated chair appointed by legislature)
Who Controls Appointment: Legislative Branch, Parties

Detail: Effective 2021: Chairperson is nonpartisan, selected by majority vote by joint resolution of state legislature. GA House elects one member, GA Senate elects one member, GA Republican Party appoints one member, GA Democratic Party appoints one member. Secretary of State serves as ex-officio, nonvoting member.

Hawaii: The Hawaii Elections Commission

Chief Election Official: Board-Selected Chair
Board Structure: Partisan Balance w/ Tie-breaking Nonpartisan Chair
Number of Members: 9 (4 Democrats, 4 Republicans, 1 Board-Selected Chair)
Who Controls Appointment: Legislative Branch

Detail: One outside member selected by a two-thirds vote of the Elections Commission serves as a Chairperson. Two members are each appointed by the President of the Senate, the Senate Minority Leader, the Speaker of the House, and the House Minority Leader.

Illinois: Illinois State Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: Non-Board Member Executive Director
Board Structure: Partisan Balance
Number of Members: 8 (4 Democrats, 4 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch

Detail: “The State Board of Elections shall consist of 8 members, 4 of whom shall be residents of Cook County and 4 of whom shall be residents of the State outside of Cook County. Of the 4 members from each area of required residence, 2 shall be affiliated with the same political party as the Governor, and 2 shall be affiliated with the political party whose nominee for Governor in the most recent general election received the second highest number of votes. Members shall be persons who have extensive knowledge of the election laws of this State.” The members of the SBE, who are appointed by the Governor of Illinois, in turn appoint an executive director who is responsible for the day-to-day management of the agency.

Indiana: Indiana Election Commission

Chief Election Official: Elected Secretary of State
Board Structure: Partisan Balance
Number of Members: 4 (2 Democrats, 2 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Parties

Detail: “State Democratic Party chair nominates 2; State Republican Party Chair nominates 2; confirmed by the governor. Governor selects chair, who must be of the same party as the Secretary of State.”

Kentucky: Commonwealth of Kentucky State Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: Elected Secretary of State
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 9 (4 Democrats, 4 Republicans + Republican Secretary of State)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Parties, Local Election Officials

Detail: SOS as Chairperson, eight members (four from each party) appointed by the Governor from lists supplied by the two political parties in the Commonwealth and the Kentucky County Clerks Association

Maryland: Maryland State Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: State Election Director
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 5 (3 Democrats, 2 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Legislative Branch, Parties

Detail: 3 members of the majority and two members of the minority party in the state. The members are appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate of Maryland.

New York: New York State Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: Board Co-Chairs
Board Structure: Partisan Balance
Number of Members: 4 (2 Democrats, 2 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Parties

Detail: The Co-Chairs, acting as CEO, are member(s) of the State Board. The Board has four commissioners, all appointed by the Governor of New York. For the first two seats, the chairs of the two major political parties each submits a list of two or more recommended candidates, from which the governor appoints one commissioner. For the remaining two seats, each major political party’s state legislative leadership submits a recommended candidate, which the governor appoints as commissioner; but if the governor declines or rejects appointing that candidate to a vacancy, the legislative leadership can either appoint the recommended candidate directly, or recommend another person to the governor instead.

North Carolina: North Carolina State Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: Board
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 5 (3 Democrats, 2 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Parties

Detail: The Governor appoints the members from a list of nominees submitted to the Governor by the State party chair of each of the two political parties having the highest number of registered affiliates. Not more than three members of the State Board shall be members of the same political party.

Oklahoma: Oklahoma State Election Board

Chief Election Official: Board Secretary
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 4 (1 Democrat, 2 Republicans, Board Secretary) + 2 “Alternate Members” who serve if a board member is unable.
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Legislative Branch, Parties

Detail: The Board is composed of three members, two alternate members (who may attend if a regular member is absent), and one Secretary, who also serves as Secretary of the Senate. The members and alternate members are appointed to four-year terms by the Governor from lists provided by the political parties with the largest and second largest number of registered voters. The appointments require the advice and consent of the State Senate.

Rhode Island: Rhode Island Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: Elected Secretary of State
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 7 (Partisan makeup not public)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Legislative Branch

Detail: 7 members selected by the governor with advice and consent of the Senate. Staggered terms for appointees: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 14 years.

South Carolina: South Carolina State Election Commission

Chief Election Official: Board
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 5 (2 Democrats, 3 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch

Detail: Five members, at least one of whom is a member of the majority political party and at least one member who is a member of the largest minority political party represented in the General Assembly, are appointed by the Governor for four-year terms.

South Dakota: South Dakota State Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: Elected Secretary of State
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 7 (2 Democrats, 5 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Legislative Branch

Detail: SOS as chairperson, 4 appointed by House/Senate majority/minority leaders, 2 county auditors selected by Speaker of the House

Tennessee: Tennessee Election Commission

Chief Election Official: Legislatively-Appointed Secretary of State
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 7 (3 Democrats, 4 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Legislative Branch

Detail: The State Election Commission is composed of seven members: four from the political party holding a majority of seats in the Tennessee General Assembly and three from the minority party. These individuals are elected for a term of four years. This is the only commission in Tennessee state government which is elected wholly by the Tennessee General Assembly.

Virginia: Virginia State Board of Elections

Chief Election Official: Board-Selected Commissioner
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 5 (2 Democrats, 3 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Legislative Branch

Detail: The SBE is a five-member body that manages the electoral process and investigates and adjudicates disputes and campaign law violations. These 5 select a commissioner. Under the Code of Virginia, “Three Board members shall be of the political party which cast the highest number of votes for Governor at that election.” Gubernatorial appointment, legislative confirmation.

West Virginia: West Virginia Election Commission

Chief Election Official: Elected Secretary of State
Board Structure: Partisan Control
Number of Members: 5 (2 Democrats, 2 Republicans + Republican Secretary of State)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Legislative Branch

Detail: The commission is a bipartisan body composed of two Democrats and two Republicans appointed by the Governor for six-year terms, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Secretary of State is an ex officio member. The commission elects its own chair for a term of two years. The members serve without compensation but receive actual traveling expenses.

Wisconsin: Wisconsin Elections Commission

Chief Election Official: Board-Appointed Commissioner
Board Structure: Partisan Balance
Number of Members: 6 (3 Democrats, 3 Republicans)
Who Controls Appointment: Executive Branch, Legislative Branch

Detail: “The Commission is made up of six members, two of which are appointed by the Governor, and one each by the President of the Senate, the Senate Minority Leader, the Speaker of the Assembly, and the Assembly Minority Leader.” They are led by an administrator appointed by the commission and confirmed by the Senate.

A note on the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board

Wisconsin’s Government Accountability Board (GAB), in existence from 2007 to 2016, was a short-lived but significant attempt to establish impartial, state-level election administration.

The GAB replaced a prior board composed of representatives from the two parties, with a body made up of six former judges. GAB members were selected by the Governor, from lists of judges approved by a panel of Court of Appeals Judges, and confirmed by two thirds majority by the Senate. GAB members served six-year, staggered terms. All decisions of the board required approval from at least four of the six GAB members.

GAB members were prohibited from engaging in certain political activities, such as being a candidate for office or a member of a party; individuals who had engaged in political activities in the past were not prohibited from serving on the board.

Daniel Tokaji, election scholar and Dean of the University of Wisconsin Law School, observed that the manner of selection of the GAB was “designed to ensure that they will not favor either major party. This makes the GAB unique among state election administration bodies in the United States … no other state has a chief election administration authority with the same degree of insulation from partisan politics.” Tokaji’s study of the performance of the GAB during its first five years concluded that it “serves as a worthy model for other states considering alternatives to partisan election administration at the state level.”

Unfortunately, the GAB became embroiled in political controversy regarding its investigation (under the Board’s responsibility for the enforcement of campaign finance rules) of Governor Scott Walker for alleged campaign violations during a highly polarizing 2012 recall election. The GAB was accused of partisanship and of criminally leaking investigation documents, and in 2016 was replaced by the Republican-controlled legislature with a new, much less independent election board.

This series of events created an extraordinary level of partisan division in Wisconsin, particularly considering the broad bipartisan support for the GAB initially. Wisconsin Common Cause head Jay Heck called the dismantling of the GAB “one of the darkest days in the state’s history” and “based on completely discredited charges, false premises, character assassination and outright falsehoods.” To Republican legislators, the GAB’s aggressive investigations of Republican nonprofits constituted partisan spying, and demonstrated the futility of attempting nonpartisan administration.

It is unfortunate that this controversy surrounding the GAB’s investigative arm has effectively negated the advancement for the cause of impartial election administration achieved by the GAB’s election arm. Judging by Tokaji’s assessment, the GAB performed well at election administration, demonstrating “meticulous, careful, balanced, and judicious” decision-making as it effectively navigated several divisive issues in a balanced and nonpartisan manner.