Board authorizes Macomb County pilot of ES&S regional-results feature after security briefing
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Summary
The State Board approved a limited pilot for ES&S regional-results transmission in Macomb County for the Nov. 2025 election after vendor and staff described testing, encryption and a dual-stick process to preserve the official media.
LANSING, Mich. — The Michigan State Board of Canvassers on Sept. 19 approved a pilot allowing Macomb County to use ES&Sregional-results functionality to transmit unofficial tallies more quickly to the county during the November 2025 election, after staff and a vendor representative described testing and security safeguards.
Staff told the board the regional-results feature lets local jurisdictions transmit unofficial results via a secure tunnel to the county so counties can begin the canvas process sooner. Staff said the feature had been part of a previously EAC-certified ES&S package, was retested with ES&S, and was tested on Sept. 11 at the Macomb County Clerk's Office with no issues observed.
Board members asked detailed questions about encryption and the network architecture. Lauri Braid, Michigan regional sales manager for ES&S, said the transmission uses a secure tunnel over Verizon that enters a firewall and is ‘‘a whole separate system’’ from the official election-management system. "This is a whole separate system. This, where they're sending their results to, will never touch the official, EMS system," Braid said.
Staff and ES&S also described a dual-stick process: a backup stick used to send unofficial results to the county's regional-results system and a separate official election stick that is physically transported to the county and read into the county's hardened EMS. County staff will compare transmitted unofficial results against the official media after delivery to ensure consistency.
Shabran Casey, a staff presenter, emphasized the transmitted feed is for unofficial results only and that the official county canvas will continue to be based on the media delivered by local clerks.
An unidentified board member moved to approve use of the ES&S regional-results functionality (EVS 60/60) for secure unofficial-results transmission in Macomb County for the November 2025 election; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.
The board's action authorizes the pilot in Macomb County for the upcoming election; staff said if the pilot goes well other ES&S counties could seek approval later. The transcript does not record roll-call vote tallies or a detailed operational timeline beyond the November election target.