CHAPTER 7. Preservation of Electronic Data [17600. - 17603.]

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC 7.

in effect

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 17600. Section 17600.

For purposes of this chapter, the following terms have the following meanings: (a) “Ballot image” means an electronically captured or generated image of a ballot that is created on a voting device or machine, which contains a list of contests on the ballot, may contain the voter selections for those contests, and complies with the ballot layout requirements. (b) “Certified voting technology” means any certified voting technologies certified by the Secretary of State, including voting systems, ballot on demand printing systems, electronic poll book systems, or adjudication systems, and the hardware, firmware, software, proprietary intellectual property they contain, any components, and any products they generate, including ballots, ballot images, reports, logs, cast vote records, or electronic data. (c) “Chain of custody” means a process used to track the movement and control of certified voting technology, as defined in subdivision (b), through its lifecycle by documenting each person and organization who handles certified voting technology, the date and time it was collected or transferred, and the purpose of the transfer. A break in the chain of custody refers to a period during which control of the certified voting technology is uncertain and during which actions taken on the certified voting technology are unaccounted for or unconfirmed. (d) “Electronic data” includes voting technology software, operating systems, databases, firmware, drivers, and logs. (e) “End of lifecycle” means the secure clearing or wiping of the certified voting technology so that no software, firmware, or data remains on the equipment and the equipment becomes a nonfunctioning piece of hardware. (f) “HASH” means a mathematical algorithm used to create a digital fingerprint of a software program, which is used to validate software as identical to the original. (g) “Lifecycle” of certified voting technology means the entire lifecycle of the certified voting technology from the time of certification and trusted build creation through the end of lifecycle of the certified voting technology.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 17601. Section 17601.

(a) The following provisions shall apply to those elections where candidates for one or more of the following offices are voted upon: President, Vice President, United States Senator, and United States Representative. (b) The following data shall be kept by the elections official, on electronic media, stored and unaltered, for 22 months from the date of the election: (1) All voting system electronic data. (2) All ballot on demand system electronic data, if applicable. (3) All adjudication electronic data. (4) All remote accessible vote by mail system electronic data, if applicable. (5) All electronic poll book electronic data, if applicable. (6) HASH values taken from the voting technology devices, if applicable. (7) All ballot images. (c) If a contest is not commenced within the 22-month period, or if a criminal prosecution involving fraudulent use, using the ballot tally system to mark or falsify ballots, or manipulation of the ballot tally system, is not commenced within the 22-month period, either of which may involve the vote count of the precinct from which voted ballots were received, the elections official shall have the backups destroyed.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 17602. Section 17602.

(a) The following provisions shall apply to all state or local elections not provided for in subdivision (a) of Section 17601. An election is not deemed a state or local election if votes for candidates for federal office may be cast on the same ballot as votes for candidates for state or local office. (b) The following data shall be kept by the elections official, on electronic media, stored and unaltered, for six months from the date of the election: (1) All voting system electronic data. (2) All ballot on demand system electronic data, if applicable. (3) All adjudication electronic data. (4) All remote accessible vote by mail system electronic data, if applicable. (5) All electronic poll book electronic data, if applicable. (6) HASH values taken from the voting technology devices, if applicable. (7) All ballot images, if applicable. (c) If a contest is not commenced within the six-month period, or if a criminal prosecution involving fraudulent use, using the ballot tally system to mark or falsify ballots, or manipulation of the ballot tally system is not commenced within the six-month period, either of which may involve the vote count of the precinct from which voted ballots were received, the elections official shall have the backups destroyed.

Cal. Elections Code - ELEC § 17603. Section 17603.

(a) Certified voting technology equipment and components that are at the end of lifecycle may be securely disposed of or destroyed with the written approval of the manufacturer and the Secretary of State. (b) With respect to any part or component of certified voting technology for which the chain of custody has been compromised or the security or information has been breached or attempted to be breached, all of the following shall occur: (1) The chief elections official of the city, county, or special district and the Secretary of State shall be notified within 24 hours of discovery. (2) The equipment shall be removed from service immediately and replaced if possible. (3) The integrity and reliability of the certified voting technology system, components, and accompanying electronic data shall be evaluated to determine whether they can be restored to their original state and reinstated.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026