EAdIElection Administration Index
How professionally and independently is election administration codified?
Dimensions
Accountability
50.0% · 1/2| Datapoint | Score | Rationale & evidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| COI.1Conflict-of-interest disclosureAre commissioners and senior election staff required by statute to disclose financial interests (vendor relationships, party positions, candidate connections) publicly? | 0/10.0% | No candidate sections returned by FTS. | no FTS match 2026-05-13 |
| COI.2Judicial review of administrative decisionsIs the right to seek judicial review of election-authority decisions codified, with standing, timeline, and venue defined? | 1/1100.0% | 10 ILCS 5/9-22 codifies that judicial review of State Board hearings/orders proceeds under the Illinois Administrative Review Law, directly in the Appellate Court (not Circuit), with a 7-day filing deadline. Strong statutory grounding for judicial review of Board decisions. “judicial review, which shall be governed by the provisions of the Administrative Review Law” | § view source 2026-05-13 |
Commission
60.0% · 3/5| Datapoint | Score | Rationale & evidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| COMM.1Statutory grounding of commissionIs the election commission's existence and core mandate set in the constitution (rather than statute alone, regulation, or executive order)? | 1/250.0% | 10 ILCS 5/1A-13 references and regulates State Board of Elections employees; the canonical grounding section is 10 ILCS 5/1A-1 ('A State Board of Elections is hereby established'), but only § 1A-13 was FTS-surfaced for this query. The Constitution Article III § 5 also establishes the State Board. “No employee of the State Board of Elections including its executive director and assistant executive director shall engage in any partisan political activity” | § view source 2026-05-13 |
| COMM.2Multi-branch appointmentAre commission members appointed by multiple branches (legislature, judiciary, executive) such that no single branch unilaterally controls composition? | 1/1100.0% | 10 ILCS 5/1A-3 codifies executive-and-legislative-branch appointment: Governor appoints 4 members from each political-party slate; Senate confirms all appointments (§ 1A-4); state executive officers (AG, SoS, Comptroller, Treasurer) submit nominee lists for opposition-party seats. “The Governor shall appoint 2 members of the same political party with which he is affiliated” | § view source 2026-05-13 |
| COMM.3Term protectionAre commissioner terms defined in statute with fixed length, staggered cycles, and statutory grounds for removal? | 1/1100.0% | 10 ILCS 5/1A-3.1 codifies staggered terms for State Board members (initial terms ending in different years; subsequent terms 4 years). “one member affiliated with each political party from each area of required residence shall serve a term commencing July 1, 1978 and ending June 30, 1979, and the other initial members shall serve terms commencing July 1, 1978 and ending June 30, 1981” | § view source 2026-05-13 |
| COMM.4Political-balance requirementIs the commission's composition required by statute to be politically balanced (party-balanced, supermajority-confirmation, or independent appointment by judiciary)? | 0/10.0% | No candidate sections returned by FTS. | no FTS match 2026-05-13 |
Funding
0.0% · 0/4| Datapoint | Score | Rationale & evidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| FUND.1Independent funding lineIs the election authority's budget a separate statutory line item (not subject to mid-cycle reallocation by the executive branch alone)? | 0/10.0% | No candidate sections returned by FTS. | no FTS match 2026-05-13 |
| FUND.2Multi-year funding cycleAre election infrastructure budgets set on a multi-year cycle (avoiding annual political renegotiation of election-administration money)? | 0/10.0% | No candidate sections returned by FTS. | no FTS match 2026-05-13 |
| FUND.3Foreign funding prohibitionIs foreign-source funding of the election authority (and election administration vendors, where applicable) prohibited by statute? | 0/20.0% | No candidate sections returned by FTS. | no FTS match 2026-05-13 |
Staff Training
50.0% · 2/3| Datapoint | Score | Rationale & evidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| STAFF.1Career professional staffIs the election authority's career staff (professional employees, not political appointees) protected by civil-service or analogous merit-based statute? | 1/1100.0% | 10 ILCS 5/1A-13 codifies the nonpartisan-employment requirement for Board staff (including executive director). Violation deems the position vacated; reinstatement subject to State Civil Service Commission review. Strong career-professional protection. “No employee of the State Board of Elections including its executive director and assistant executive director shall engage in any partisan political activity” | § view source 2026-05-13 |
| STAFF.2Mandatory trainingIs training for election officials and poll workers required by statute, with content and frequency defined? | 0.5/150.0% | 10 ILCS 5/24A-11 references 'specially trained technicians required for the operation of the automatic tabulating equipment' at central counting locations. Implies training requirement but doesn't codify a structured mandatory training program for general staff. “Except for any specially trained technicians required for the operation of the automatic tabulating equipment” | § view source 2026-05-13 |
| STAFF.3Whistleblower protectionAre election-related whistleblower protections (for staff reporting irregularities) codified in statute? | 0/10.0% | No candidate sections returned by FTS. | no FTS match 2026-05-13 |
Vendor Oversight
33.3% · 1/3| Datapoint | Score | Rationale & evidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| CERT.1Certification process codifiedIs the voting-equipment certification process (criteria, evaluators, timeline, public-comment period) codified in statute or regulation? | 1/1100.0% | 10 ILCS 5/24C-16 codifies the DRE certification process: State Board approves systems that meet functional requirements (§ 24C-11), federal voting-system standards (FEC/EAC), independent-testing-authority results, and Board rules. § 24A-16 codifies analogous approval for optical-scan equipment. “The State Board of Elections shall approve all Direct Recording Electronic Voting Systems that fulfill the functional requirements provided by Section 24C-11 of this Code, the mandatory requirements of the federal voting system standards” | § view source 2026-05-13 |
| CERT.2Recertification triggersAre recertification triggers (after material updates, after defects discovered, on a fixed schedule) codified? | 0/10.0% | No candidate sections returned by FTS. | no FTS match 2026-05-13 |
| CERT.3Decertification grounds & procedureAre the grounds for revoking certification, and the procedure for doing so, defined in statute? | 0/10.0% | No candidate sections returned by FTS. | no FTS match 2026-05-13 |