Natural and man-made disasters have the potential to throw elections into chaos, destroying infrastructure, displacing voters and potentially rendering the impacted system more vulnerable to security threats. Recent catastrophic hurricanes, wildfires, floods, volcanic eruptions, terrorist attacks and other disasters have unfortunately made election stabilization and recovery in the aftermath of such events a timely topic for election officials across the country.
When a disaster strikes close to Election Day, election administrators must ensure that elections are still conducted without any margin for error, and often, without any budgetary or scheduling adjustments. The following are interviews and resources from election officials who have succeeded in doing so.
Meeting - April 10, 2019
Memphis, Tennessee
The 2019 meeting of the Disaster Preparedness and Recovery Working Group gathered U.S. Election Assistance Commissioners (EAC) Commissioners and members of a working group for an information sharing exercise that informed outreach to federal agencies and laid the foundation for EAC products designed to assist election officials facing disasters.
Presentations and Videos:
Presentation: Disaster Preparedness and Recovery Working Group Presentation for U.S. Election Assistance Commission
Video 1: Disaster Management and Recovery - Bay County, Florida
Video 2: Recovery and Innovation in the Aftermath of Disaster - Bay County, Florida
Mark Andersen, Bay County Supervisor of Elections - Bay County, Florida
Presentation: Conducting Elections in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
R. Kyle Ardoin, Secretary of State, Louisiana
Presentation: Empowering Democracy through Technology
Video 1: Disaster Management and Recovery - Puerto Rico
Video 2: Recovery and Innovation in the Aftermath of Disaster - Puerto Rico
Roberto E. Benítez, CIO Puerto Rico State Elections Commission
Presentation: Disaster Preparedness and Recovery Working Group Presentation for U.S. Election Assistance Commission
Candace Grubbs, Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters in Butte County - Butte County, California
Presentation: Disaster Preparedness and Recovery Working Group Presentation for U.S. Election Assistance Commission
Margaret Jurgensen, Montgomery County Election Director - Montgomery County, Maryland
Presentation: Florida’s Perspective Presentation for U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s Disaster Preparedness & Recovery Working Group
Maria Matthews Esq., Director, Florida Division of Elections - Florida
Example Continuity Plans:
Business Continuity Plan for the Orange County, California Registrar of Voters