Reading election dashboards carefully
Historical comparisons depend on definitions and denominators.
- Event / announcement date
- 2026-03-13
The EAC’s March 13 guide showed how its 2024 EAVS interactive can compare local election administration. Its registration and mail-voting examples concern a past election. [1]
The underlying report explains why a percentage needs a denominator. Citizen voting-age population estimates count adult citizens, including some who cannot vote under state law. Active registration counts also depend on keeping lists current. The EAC recommends active registrations divided by citizen voting-age population for local registration comparisons, while acknowledging limitations. A rate should therefore be read with its definition rather than treated as a direct count of eligible individuals. [2]
For a more useful comparison, the guide suggests matching jurisdictions by registration or turnout ranges and policies such as electronic poll-book use. Its policy filter is explicitly “as of 2024.” Those controls can help identify relevant peers; they cannot establish that one voting method caused an outcome. [1]
The source
- EAC: 2024 EAVS data interactive guide ↗
Source date 2026-03-13 · reviewed October 29, 2026 · publication - EAC: 2024 EAVS comprehensive report ↗
Source date 2025-06-30 · reviewed October 29, 2026 · Release date confirmed by EAC announcement.
About this item: Retrospective report. No first-hand reporting or independent testing is claimed. Corrections policy.
