https://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/the-what-why-and-how-of-election-audits-magazine2021.aspx
"An Overview of Election Audits
“Forensic audits” have gotten a lot of attention this year, but in the elections world, that’s a new term that doesn’t yet have a widespread definition.
But there is more than one kind of election audit. Postelection tabulation audits are the most prevalent (see the following section) and just about the only audits called for by statute. But audits can be performed on nearly every part of an election system, says Morrell, including voter registration databases, voter district and precinct assignments, security procedures (both physical and cyber), voting equipment, ballot reconciliation and chain of custody, and more. Audits can be further defined based on what aspect of the election is being evaluated and the criteria for that evaluation.
Some of these audits may be new to you; a few were to us:
Legal audits assess whether an election was in legal compliance with all applicable laws and whether all laws were implemented as intended. This might also be considered a system audit.
Access audits look at whether an election complied state and federal laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as best practices to ensure the enfranchisement of all qualified voters. A related audit is a ballot design audit, which evaluates the usability of ballots for all voters, including those with physical or cognitive disabilities and those with little civic or electoral literacy. (See Whitney Quesenbery’s 2018 presentation on auditing ballot design here.)
Process audits evaluate whether a particular operation, such as the procedure for checking in voters at a polling place, conformed to predetermined standards, including whether the process was efficient and instructions for the process were effective.
Product (or equipment) audits examine whether software or other equipment conforms to requirements and performance standards. More specifically, a configuration audit ensures that voting equipment meets the state or federal certified configuration standards.
Find more definitions and details in the U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s Glossary of Terms, Morrell’s essay in Election Auditing: Key Issues and Perspectives published by the MIT Election Data + Science Lab and CalTech/MIT Voting Technology Project and NCSL’s “What is an Election Audit?” webinar."
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