Board of Elections details costs, staffing and legal issues as Council questions ANC vacancy administration

The District of Columbia Board of Elections told the Council—s Committee on Executive Administration and Labor that administering contested Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) midterm vacancy elections, running special elections and meeting ballot-processing needs would require additional funding, staff time and legislative changes.

The board—s executive director, Ms. Evans, said the agency currently has $29,080 in its Help America Vote Act (HAVA) fund balance and recently received $272,727 from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. "The EAC will require the District Of Columbia to match these funds at 20% or $54,545 within 2 years," she said.

Why it matters: Council members pressed the board to describe what would be required if the Board of Elections were asked to conduct ANC contested midterm vacancy elections rather than leaving them with advisory neighborhood commissions and the Office of Advisory Neighborhood Commissions (OANC). The answers affect budget decisions, whether legislation is needed to shift responsibilities, and near-term planning for a Ward 8 special election.

Board procedures and legal limits

Ms. Evans told the committee the D.C. Code and charter distinguish ordinary elections (which the board administers) from methods for filling vacancies, and that the current law places responsibility for contested ANC midterm vacancy elections on the ANCs and the OANC. "Shifting the conduct of ANC midterm vacancy elections to the board, therefore, will require a legislative change," she said. She emphasized the board is not opposed to taking on the elections if the Council changes the law and provides adequate funding.

Operational scope and cost drivers

The board outlined the processes it must complete to run even a small, neighborhood-level contested contest and said many standard election procedures would apply. Ms. Evans listed steps that must be completed before voting: programming poll pads to the correct eligible population; ballot proofing and a ballot lottery to set candidate order; logic and accuracy testing of any voting equipment; vendor engagement for mail houses and on-site support; accessibility assessments and ADA services; election worker training; and signature verification and cure processes for mail ballots.

"If we make same day registration available and mail ballots, the costs increase significantly because we will have to involve our vendors with these processes," Ms. Evans said. She said mailed ballots that were timely postmarked can be received and counted up to 10 days after election day under current District rules, and that the board conducts a post-election audit to confirm results.

Special and ward-level election estimates

For the Ward 8 special election, Ms. Evans said the board estimated a cost of about $400,000. She said Ward 8 has roughly 55,000 registered voters and the citywide registered voter total is "just over half a million." On mail-ballot mailing costs she offered a per-mailing estimate of roughly $1.50 to $2.00 per mailed ballot as a rough guide, with the note that many elements (number of vote centers, number of mail ballots, and timing) change total costs.

Staffing, facilities and equipment

The board described three operating locations: headquarters at 1015 Half Street (Suites 750, 650 and 700), and a warehouse/operations center at 3535 V Street. Suite 700 at 1015 Half Street currently houses mail-ballot processing equipment; the warehouse stores voting equipment and is used for logic-and-accuracy testing. Ms. Evans said the board received Suite 700 in October 2024 but the space arrived without furniture and other tenant improvements, and the board has pursued tenant-improvement funds or surplus furniture alternatives.

On staffing at the warehouse, the board said there are six permanent staff and four part-time or temporary staff assigned there during non-election times, with significantly more personnel added seasonally for testing, packing and moving equipment. Ms. Evans said the warehouse had ventilation and lighting shortcomings and that the board has asked the Department of General Services (DGS) for cost estimates for improvements.

Initiatives and pending litigation

Terry Shroud, the board—s general counsel, described the litigation status for a ballot measure the board found to be a proper subject. "The challenge filed by Deirdre Brown was rejected for lack of jurisdiction," Shroud said, and the board currently has a matter pending in D.C. Superior Court concerning whether the measure met all requirements. Shroud said the D.C. Court of Appeals has already addressed a separate question about whether the measure constituted "a law appropriating funds" and concluded it was not by its terms; the Superior Court will consider other legal issues and a status hearing was scheduled for August in the board—s briefing schedule.

Double-voting and data checks

On cross-jurisdictional voting, Ms. Evans said the board uses ERIC (the Electronic Registration Information Center) to identify possible duplicate participation and then investigates individual cases. She said the board—s follow-up sometimes shows similar names (for example, a junior and a senior) and that the process can be time-consuming. She told the committee the instance list was "very short," roughly six or seven names in recent review, and that when double voting is confirmed the jurisdiction where the person voted the second time takes primary responsibility for addressing it.

Committee requests and next steps

Committee members asked the board to provide a by-the-numbers estimate within days for the cost of a ward-level special election and an at-large special election in 2026 so the Council can consider trading and budget adjustments. The committee also requested an itemized list of enhancement needs and aging equipment costs; Ms. Evans said she would provide the requested breakdown.

The committee recorded additional operational concerns: the board confirmed it needs legislative authority and funding to assume contested ANC midterm vacancy elections, explained how same-day registration and mail ballots would affect costs, and flagged facilities upgrades and tenant improvements needed to make Suite 700 and the warehouse fully usable.

Closing

The committee left the hearing open for additional record submissions through the date announced by Council staff and asked the board to return cost estimates, facility-improvement figures and an itemized equipment list to support budget discussions.