Board of Elections warns council of $3.4 million shortfall and urges voter-registration system replacement

The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections reported preliminary post-election figures and presented two interrelated budget issues for the 2026—2027 biennium: (1) a set of technical adjustments needed to restore seasonal staffing and poll-worker payroll that the director says were omitted from the executive—s recommended budget; and (2) replacement of the county—s 20-year-old voter registration system to meet recent state certification expectations.

Director Anthony Perlati said the Nov. 4, 2025 general election turnout was about 26 percent and that early in-person voting increased (about 8,000 early voters at the new vote center) while vote-by-mail activity declined compared with four years earlier. Using the unofficial totals, he said the board anticipates six automatic recount triggers and that certification will occur on Nov. 25.

Perlati said the administration—s recommended budget lists 96 FTEs for the board while the board maintains 102 positions (including four board members). He told council the recommended personnel amounts did not include poll-worker payroll (paid outside of payroll in an accounts-payable lump-sum process) and did not correctly fund the higher seasonal staffing required for a November general election. Perlati submitted technical budget-adjustment forms to OBM and asked council to approve additions of approximately $3,397,510 for 2026 and $3,394,265 for 2027 to maintain current service levels; he said roughly half that amount over a two-election cycle is payroll for poll workers, with the remainder for seasonal salaries and other election operations.

Separately, Perlati warned the county—s voter registration and election-management system (DIMS) is 20 years old and vendor support is being phased out as the vendor pushes a new product. New state requirements (House Bill 74 and certification by the Secretary of State and the Board of Voting Machine Examiners) mean the vendor—s legacy platform is grandfathered temporarily but cannot be relied upon indefinitely. Based on peer county experience, Perlati estimated a likely replacement cost on the order of $1,000,000 for data conversion and implementation and about $500,000 per year in ongoing maintenance and licensing; he said the likely procurement and migration would need to begin in 2026 to be live prior to candidate filing for the 2027 primary.

Perlati said his staff has submitted technical adjustment forms to OBM and asked council to include the adjustments and to plan for a replacement system procurement. OBM staff told council they will present technical adjustments to the committee in a future session; council members asked administration and BOE staff to coordinate on timing and to bring concrete procurement figures when available.