Maryland approves voting-system contract worth up to $109.4 million for 2028

Maryland’s Board of Public Works approved a statewide voting-system contract on July 22 with Election Systems and Software LLC, clearing the way for a new system intended to support the 2028 presidential election.

The five-year base term is valued at $84,909,900.53. Two optional two-year renewals could raise the contract’s potential maximum value to $109,381,984.13, but those renewal periods are not money committed immediately.

The project will affect election administration in every Maryland county and Baltimore City. It covers the acquisition, deployment and support of a new voting system, but deployment has not been completed.

What Maryland approved

The board approved Item 49-IT, contract D38B5600001, after discussion. The procurement agenda identifies Election Systems and Software LLC of Omaha, Nebraska, as the awardee selected through a competitive sealed-proposal process.

The procurement agenda lists a contract term beginning August 6, 2026, and ending August 31, 2031, with two optional two-year renewal periods. The first renewal is valued at $12,099,255.80 and the second at $12,372,827.80. The board’s meeting summary lists the item as approved after discussion and describes the base amount as not to exceed $84,909,901.

The procurement record says the system is intended for statewide implementation in time to support the 2028 presidential election cycle. The approved funding plan is 50% general funds and 50% special funds identified as county funds.

Why the state is replacing its current system

The State Board of Elections said Maryland’s current voting system has been in service for more than 10 years. Some components have reached the end of their manufacturing life, and the vendor has sunset hardware used in Maryland.

The agency said those conditions limit its ability to obtain additional equipment and that the supporting infrastructure is also aging. State officials have cited increasingly difficult access to replacement parts and vendor support as reasons to replace the system.

The new contract is intended to provide updated equipment and related infrastructure, along with vendor support for statewide election operations. The procurement documents describe a future acquisition and deployment project, not a completed installation.

What officials said about certification

State Administrator Jared DeMarinis told the Board of Public Works that the system being procured for the 2028 election had received federal and Maryland certification. He said Maryland conducted three days of testing at three locations as part of the state certification process.

Maryland’s voting-system testing guidance says a system used in the state must complete both federal and state certification. State certification addresses requirements including ballot secrecy, security, accurate vote counting, voter and candidate rights, and the creation of a paper record for audits and recounts.

The State Board of Elections also says Maryland uses a paper-based election system, tests voting units before use and before each election, and conducts post-election audits. The agency says risk-limiting audits will be performed beginning in 2026.

DeMarinis also told the board that payments would occur after the contractor meets deliverables. That payment structure does not change the approved contract ceiling or guarantee that every optional renewal will be exercised.

Why critics objected

Election-security advocates who spoke at the meeting did not focus their objections on whether Maryland should replace its aging system. Their concerns centered on a later upgrade contemplated in the procurement.

Susan Greenhalgh of Free Speech for People, speaking with support from Common Cause Maryland and Save Our Votes Maryland, said the procurement covered the system intended for 2028 as well as a later version associated with updated federal voting-system standards known as VVSG 2.0.

Greenhalgh argued that the later version had not yet been demonstrated, tested or certified for Maryland. She also questioned whether the contract clearly separated the cost and obligations for the initial system from the future upgrade.

Those statements were objections raised during the board meeting, not a finding that the system planned for 2028 lacks certification. DeMarinis said any future version would have to meet applicable federal and Maryland certification requirements before it could be used.

What happens next

The approval resolves the state’s procurement decision, but implementation work remains. Maryland officials and the vendor must execute the contract, acquire and deploy equipment, complete required testing and document readiness before the 2028 presidential election.

The potential VVSG 2.0 upgrade is a separate oversight issue. The unofficial meeting transcript records questions about whether that later system will be delivered and certified by 2030. DeMarinis said failure to meet that obligation would constitute a contractual failure and could lead to further state action.

Residents should watch for deployment schedules, public demonstrations, certification records, testing results and readiness reports. Those records will show whether the state completes the replacement on schedule and how officials handle any later upgrade.

For voters, the immediate change is not a new voting rule or a stated change to Maryland’s paper-ballot, audit or contingency framework. It is a statewide technology replacement project whose accountability will depend on contract performance, testing, certification, deployment and continued public oversight before the 2028 election.

Sources

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