Electoral Management Design Database

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), United States, General Elections, 5 November 2024: Needs Assessment Mission Report, accessed 12 November 2024

"States are responsible for managing elections, with duties devolved to roughly 6,460 jurisdictions across the country and no federal body mandated to administer elections directly. In 41 states the Secretary of State serves as the chief election official and is charged with management and oversight of elections and voters rolls, with the remaining states and the District of Columbia assigning these tasks to state election boards or divisions. Contrary to international standards, chief election officials of states and counties (or county equivalents) are often elected as party candidates, at times in elections they themselves administer."