Announcing the Launch of the Election Resource Hub
The new Election Resource Hub will house leading research in the field of election administration for researchers, policymakers, and administrators.
Today, the MIT Election Data + Science Lab (MEDSL) launched the Election Resource Hub, a go-to repository for leading research in the field of election administration. The Hub will connect researchers, policymakers, and election officials directly to evidence-based policy and practice recommendations that have proven effective, either through rigorous academic study or real-world implementation.
About the Election Resource Hub
In recent years, increasing public scrutiny of the ways elections are run has highlighted the need for expanded access to unbiased, empirical research on election administration. While empirical research in this field is relatively young, it is growing. Studies conducted by scholars and practitioners over the last decade have advanced what we know about the conduct of elections and how administrative decisions impact voters’ engagement with the electoral process. However, this knowledge often exists in silos, making it difficult for any one person to identify relevant research and build a comprehensive understanding of key areas of election administration.
The Election Resource Hub seeks to address this gap, and will serve as a go-to resource for election officials, researchers, and practitioners seeking to access non-partisan research and resources on election administration. The Hub builds on the 2023 MEDSL project Mapping Election Administration and Election Science, which assessed the current state of knowledge and practice within the field. The Mapping project outlined seven key topic areas that are central to the convenience, security, and accuracy of U.S. elections. The Resource Hub is launching with a focus on these same topic areas, with plans to expand that focus as the landscape of election administration continues to evolve.
Ultimately, the Hub will provide resources related to the following focus areas:
- Building Voter Trust
- Voting in Person
- Voting by Mail
- Voter Registration Accuracy and Security
- Poll Worker and Election Official Recruitment, Training, and Retention
- Usability and Accessibility
- Audits and Validating Election Results
What is Provided on the Resource Hub?
The Resource Hub features an “election guide” for each of the seven key areas identified above; it also hosts a library of resources on each topic area. Election guides are developed in collaboration with subject matter experts and provide an overview of the topic, summarize relevant scientific literature, answer common questions on the topic, and provide examples of how practitioners have implemented research findings. MEDSL will review and update guides as new research is released to ensure their content continues to reflect current scholarship.
The Hub’s resource library features a unique blend of academic papers and research reports as well as links to non-profit organizations and their tools relevant to the topic at-hand. This repository is intended to make it easier to access a diverse array of approaches to election administration issues and the data that support them. The library features current research and resources that have been developed in the last few years; however, it also includes foundational resources that remain relevant to the field, allowing users to explore a comprehensive view of each topic. As with the election guides, the repository will be updated as new research emerges.
As we developed the Hub and curated its extensive resource library, MEDSL developed a set of guidelines to ensure the Hub only includes resources and publications that are accurate, relevant, nonpartisan, and empirically grounded. These criteria underpin the Hub’s editorial guidelines and will continue to be the basis on which we evaluate all materials for inclusion on the Hub. The full editorial guidelines, which are publicly available on the Hub website here, provide a detailed explanation of each of the four criteria and the conditions under which a resource is considered to meet them. Resources and election guides are not shared on the Election Resource Hub unless they meet all four criteria.
Election Guides Released in July
In the coming months, MEDSL will continue updating the Election Resource Hub to include election guides on all seven key topic areas. Currently, the Hub provides two complete election guides, as well as summaries and links to hundreds of vetted resources on all seven key topic areas. The guides available focus on strategies and recommendations for building voter trust in elections and optimizing the in-person voting experience. More information on these two guides is provided below.
Topic-in-Focus: Building Voter Trust
According to research by the University of California San Diego’s Center for Transparent and Trusted Elections (CTTE), Americans are less confident in U.S. elections than in previous years, regardless of party affiliation. In light of this trend, MEDSL worked with Dr. Thessalia Merivaki, who will be the director of the Foley Institute at Washington State and the Thomas S. Foley Distinguished Professor in Government starting August 2026, and then with CTTE to develop the election guide Building Voter Trust in Elections: Actionable Insights to Build Public Trust in Election Administration. In plain language, it discusses the current scientific literature on how something like trust can be measured and the factors that impact voter trust. The guide provides answers to common questions about the topic, such as whether specific laws or administrative practices actually have an impact on voter trust. Readers will also find recommendations on the practices that have been shown to successfully build voter trust, including roadmaps for explaining administrative processes to the public.
Topic-in-Focus: Voting in Person
In-person voting is the most common voting method in the United States, and improving this experience is a perennial priority for administrators and researchers. The Voting in Person election guide highlights key research and findings related to in-person voting and discusses how certain aspects of the in-person voting process, such as long lines, impact voters’ access and their voting experience. It also provides data-driven recommendations for administrators aimed at helping address common polling place challenges. This guide was developed by Dr. Gretchen Macht, founder of the Engineering for Democracy Institute at the University of Rhode Island and one of the nation’s leading researchers when it comes to improving the organization and allocation of resources to polling places.
What’s Next for the Election Resource Hub?
In the coming months, MEDSL will continue working with our partners in this project to update the Election Resource Hub with guides on the five remaining topic areas: voting by mail; voter registration accuracy and security; poll worker and election official recruitment, training, and retention; usability and accessibility; and audits and validating election results. As new research develops or issue areas arise, we will update or add new resources and publications to ensure the Hub continues to reflect the current state of research and practice. If you have a particular interest in one or more of the issue areas covered by the Hub, we encourage you to subscribe to the site’s mailing list to receive email updates when we add or update relevant resources. If you wish to submit a resource for future consideration, please contact our team at mitelectionlab@mit.edu.
