FLORIDA DEPARTMENT

•
oi STATE
RICK SCOTT KEN DETZNER
Governor Secretary of State

MEMORANDUM

To: Supervisors of Ele~tl~>ns

~\
From: Maria Matthews, Es~\~Director , Division of Elections

Date: September 29, 2015 ·' \\

1\ ·
Subject: Best Practices for Voting Systems Upgrades or New Installations
A numbei of counties are undergoing upgrades in voting system equipment or switching to entirely
new voting systems . In order to ensure the integrity of the installation , the Division of Elections '
Bureau of Voting Systems Certification offers the following guidelines and best practices to
Supervisors of Elections when upgrading voting system equipment:

1. Be knowledgeable of the content of media used on any voting system component and
scan the media beforehand for malware.
• Media, including CD , DVD, USB thumb drives , external hard drives, CF cards , SO cards ,
etc ., should be scanned on a known , clean computer.
• Staff should use the most recent version of a commercial malware scanning software , with
the most recent signature updates.
• The computer being used to scan the media should not be connected to the Internet while
the scanning is being performed .
• Do not install, or allow the installation of, any software or firmware that has not been
approved by, and/or was not received from the Bureau of Voting Systems Certification
(BVSC) .
• A responsible person from the Supervisor of Elections' staff should witness all vendor or
third-party activities . This staff person should be trained to understand the activities being
performed. During all software and firmware installation , ensure that the installer is
following the procedures as written in the vendor documentation received on the
installation disks from BVSC .

2. Conduct a physical inventory of each piece of equipment to ensure that it is the proper
version and that it is complete.
• Perform a complete physical audit of each individual machine , including make , model ,
serial number, and firmware and software versions.
• Record this data for each piece of equipment .
• Check the data against the voting system's Certificate and the vendor's documentation .

Division of Elections
R.A. Gray Building, Suite 316 • 500 South Bronough Street • Tallahassee , Florida 32399 """"' 'if
850.245.6200 • 850.245.6217 (Fax) election.dos.state.fl.us FLORIDA · ~
.....__, Promoting Florida's History and Culture VivaFlorida.org ELECTIONS ~~
VIVA H~RIOA .
Supervisors of Elections
September 29, 2015
Page 2 of 3

• Document any discrepancies, and double-check to ensure that they are resolved before
accepting the system.

3. Conduct functional testing on each piece of equipment to ensure that it is working

properly.
• Test all functions the equipment will perform at any time throughout the election cycle.
• Functional testing should include every selection on every menu, and all options, on at
least a subset of all of the equipment, even if these selections are not normally used.
• Commonly used functions should be tested on each piece of equipment.

4. Perform end-to-end systems testing to ensure that the various parts ofthe system work
together and can communicate properly.
• Before final acceptance, all equipment should undergo "end-to-end testing." This should
be similar to a full 100% Logic & Accuracy test and should include at least the following
items:
o Creating an election, creating ballots, and burning media for tabulators and ADA
accessible equipment (Early Voting, Election Day, and Absentee.) If installing a new
system and the jurisdictions (districts, precincts, etc.) have not been created, a
representative sampling of jurisdictions may be used for this testing if creating all the
county's jurisdictions would take an inordinate amount of time.
o Marking a test desk and running the marked ballots through the tabulators.
o Gathering the results using every method that you normally use. These methods could
include direct upload from the election media, transmission via landline modem,
transmission via wireless modem, and transmission via LAN (for Central Count
tabulators).
o Comparing the results to the expected results and explaining any discrepancies.
o Creating and uploading results in XML format to the Division of Elections (both Election
Night Reporting and 30-Day Precinct Reporting).
o Displaying the results to the public, using the same equipment and procedures used
on Election Night.
o Backing up and restoring an election.

5. Make sure that adequate supplies are available for training and testing, e.g., tabulator
paper, ballot stock, elections media.
• Ensure enough supplies exist for everyone being trained and for multiple run-throughs of
each training session.

6. Ensure training encompasses the end-to-end operation of the system, as well as the
details of operation for each individual type of equipment.
• Training should be done using the county's new equipment, not just slideshows and/or
handouts.
• Training should cover problem troubleshooting and resolution, not just normal operation.
• If possible, include poll workers (especially precinct clerks) in the training for the
equipment they will be using.
• If the training is, or can be, divided into sections, ask poll workers to attend training on the
operations of the equipment they will be using.
Supervisors of Elections
September 29, 2015
Page 3 of 3

7. If the voting system vendor uses a subcontractor or other third party to install the
equipment and/or perform training, the voting system vendor is still responsible for
them.
• The vendor's representative should be knowledgeable about the system and responsive
to questions or complaints you have about the conduct or activities of anyone working
under their support or supervision, regardless of whether they are direct employees or
subcontractor personnel.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the Division's Bureau of Voting Systems
Certification at 850.245.6220.