Default Specs

These specs are the baseline, but every state has exceptions. State specs supersede these default specs.

Basics

Tagging means to record whether a signer is registered to vote and if any required info is missing from their signature.

Which lines to tag:

What to tag:

Easy to remember:

Hard Match

If the petition does not have a birthdate column or the signer did not write a birthdate:

When a birthdate is provided:

Numerals must be exact

To be considered an address match, the house number must be exact. If the street name is a number (e.g. 17th Ave), it also must be exact. Otherwise, the street name can be abbreviated or misspelled.

Only the core of the address matters

You only need a house number and street name to match by address. Fraction, direction, street type, city, and zip do not need to match, although city or zip need to at least be written (1234A 1/2 N Main St = 1234 Main).

An apartment does not need to be written. However, if it is written and there is an apartment in the database, they must match, although letter and number can be reverse order (e.g. 21B = B21).

"If it can be, it is."

When considering a hard match, you have leeway in interpreting bad handwriting, misspellings, and obvious nicknames. If you're not sure if a digit is a 1 or a 7, but the database shows a voter matching with a 7, assume it's a 7. If the person wrote John and the database shows Jon, assume the elections clerk who created the voter record made a mistake and that it's the same person. However, if the voter obviously misspelled their own name, tag it as a non match. A case of this would be a voter wrote Smih instead of Smith.

What does obvious mean?

If you are asking whether something is obvious, it's not obvious. If you have to search the internet to see if a name is a nickname, it's not an obvious enough nickname.

What is similar for a birthdate?

A similar birthdate means only one element of the date differs. If the year differs, it must be less than a decade off, be missing, or be the current year.

For example 4/5/70 is similar to 4/17/70 and to 4/5/60 and to 4/5, but is not similar to 3/17/70 nor to 4/5/50.

Transposed month and day is considered exact, not merely similar. This means a date can be both transposed and off by one part and still be similar. 5/4/70 is identical to 4/5/70 and similar to 4/5/60.

Non Match

Any signature that does not match a voter record or is deficient (explained below) is a non match.

Soft Match

If the state specs do not allow soft matching, there is only hard match and non match. Otherwise, there are two scenarios that qualify as a soft match.

Scenario 1: Similar Address

The house number or a numeric street name is off by only one digit or two transposed digits, or the only thing different is the apartment number.

Scenario 2: Unique Name

There is only one voter in the database with the exact same name as the signer.

If it can be, it is is not true for soft matching based on unique name. You have no leeway in interpreting bad handwriting or misspellings. The name must be perfectly legible. You cannot use a nickname or middle name to match a first name in the database. However, hyphenated last names still only need one of the two to soft match.

When two or more voters have the exact same first and last name and the signer wrote a middle initial or middle name:

For soft matching on unique name:

Deficiencies

Deficient means the signature wasn't filled out right. Except perhaps missing city, deficiencies are passively noticeable and shouldn't slow you down looking for them. If a signature is deficient, enter a minus symbol and whatever codes apply, followed by a zero.

Do not get trigger happy with deficiencies. Typically only a few percent of signatures are deficient. Terrible handwriting is not deficient unless it's completely unintelligible like this.

The codes

-s:

Anything other than an X is an acceptable legal signatures. Squiggles and initials are fine.

-n:

-a:

-c:

-t:

Every state lists whether transcribing is allowed at the top of its specs page. Only use -t if transcribing is not allowed.

Use when the same person obviously wrote the information for a person above or below their own signature. If uncertain it's the same handwriting, do not use. Add to both lines unless you can easily tell which signer filled out the info for the other. If transcribing is more than one person filling out the petition for one other person, flag the scan as potential fraud instead of tagging the signatures. The client may override the flag if they think the signatures are legit.

-f:

Ditto Marks

Dittos are not allowed unless state specs say otherwise. Treat dittos or the signer writing same as above the same as if the field is blank.

Write-Overs and Trace-Overs

A write-over is when a signer

  1. writes two different things over each other,
  2. and it is not clear which thing they meant to write.

Write-overs only apply to the numeric part of an address or a date.

In a state where soft matching is not allowed, an address write-over is -a0.

In a state where soft matching is allowed, a write-over on the address is not deficient, but the most the tag can be is a soft match, not a hard match.

Treat a written over date the same as a missing date.

A zero with a slash through it is a handwriting style, not a write-over.

A trace-over is similar but not necessarily two different things written over each other and only a problem if done on the legal signature. It is often a poor attempt to better sign instead of lining out the bad attempt and re-signing in a blank area next to it. A traced over signature is tagged -s0 in every state. This includes any signature where at least half of one of the names is written over, but not if one little part is traced over. This is a rare occurrence and should not require close analysis. People put all kinds zigs and zags through their handwriting, and it is no problem. Only tag -s0 if obviously a trace-over.

Not a write-over:

Not a write-over:

This is a write-over:

Signing Dates

Only some petitions ask for a signing date on each line. Enter the month and 2-digit day and no year unless the year is not the current year. For example 704 for 7/4/2024, or 123023 for 12/30/2023.

Some people enter military style dates. If the petition was circulated in February and the signing date is 5/2, assume they mean 2/5.

If the date is ambiguous, lean toward it being the same as the dates above. If there are no dates above, lean toward it being on or before the circulator declaration date in the dialog.

If the year is missing and year is not required for that job, enter the year that makes sense.

Even if the date is obviously a mistake by the signer, enter as is. The purpose of this work is to catch mistakes.

Sandwiching

If sandwiching is allowed for the job you selected, then if a line is missing a signing date and any line above and below are both the same date, you can assume the missing date between is also the same.


There are two methods to enter signing dates. Although the Streamlined method is better for most users, many are accustomed to the Prompt method. The default is the Prompt method only because it was developed first. You can switch between Streamlined and Prompt method with ctrl-alt-s on PC or cmd-option-s on Mac.

Prompt Method

For each voter you tag, you will be prompted to enter the signing date. Only enter a date if written on that line or if sandwiched and sandwiching is allowed. If entering a date that is not written on that line but sandwiched, click the Sandwiched button to save the date. The Enter key saves the date as having been written on that line. These are easy errors to accumulate, which is why the Streamlined method now exists.

If the date is blank or if year is required and the year is omitted, then click on No Date unless you can sandwich the date or required year.

Right-click and save this important spreadsheet of examples. There are tabs at the bottom for each rule combo.

You can tab through the buttons and press Space Bar to avoid having to use a mouse. [How to enable tabbing through buttons on Mac]

Streamlined Method (recommended for most users)

Instead of being prompted to enter the date each time you tag a voter and having to remember a grid of scenarios, you enter only the written dates after tagging all the lines just before saving the file. With the Streamlined method, you don't need to think about whether something is sandwiched. Fill out the date only for every line where a date was written and make sure any lines where the voter did not write a date you leave blank. If year is required, leave the date blank on any line missing a year. Use the Enter key to autofill the date from the date above. Use Tab to go to the next line without autofilling the date. Sigtrack will determine if a missing date is sandwiched or not.

Press ctrl-s to streamline enter dates after tagging, and press ctrl-s again to save the file when done entering dates.

Suspicious Signatures

If you notice a bunch of signers misspelling their names on a single page, flag the scan as f for potential fraud. If the handwriting looks identical on a couple lines and transcribing is not allowed in that state, tag them as -t0. If a bunch of lines are in the same handwriting, whether transcribing is allowed or not, don't tag anything and flag the scan as f. Only if there is a client comment that the signatures are not fraud should you proceed tagging them.

What do I do in this odd situation?

The signer wrote things in the wrong place: As long as all the required information is written somewhere, it is not deficient.

The signer took up two lines: Tag the line where they started the [typically cursive] legal signature and skip the other lines.

The voter signed twice: Tag each line as normal.

The signer wrote the current date instead of a birthdate: Treat as if the birthdate is omitted.

The first name on the petition exactly matches the middle name in the database: Okay for a hard match, but not for a soft match.

The first name on the petition is a nickname for the middle name in the database: Okay for a hard match only if birthdate and address both written and match exactly. Otherwise, it's a non match.

Double initials match the first and middle name in the database: Sufficient for a hard match only (J H Smith = John Henry Smith). Good for a soft match only if the database only shows the initials. Otherwise, it's a non match.

The voter has two last names, but only signed with one: Good enough for a hard or soft match.

The person abbreviated their name: An abbreviated first name is okay to hard or soft match (Wm = William) and is not deficient. An abbreviated last name is deficient and never a match.

The person used dittos instead of writing it out: By default, dittos are the same as if the person did not write the info. They don't count.

There is a cursive signature in printed name spot and no printed name anywhere: Tag -n0 for missing printed name.

There is a printed name in legal signature spot and no printed name in the printed name spot: If there is no cursive signature anywhere, tag -s0 for missing signature. If there is a cursive signature somewhere, it's fine.

The name in the legal signature differs from printed name: If the legal signature is readable and matches the database, but the printed name is a different person, tag -n0 unless printed name is not required in that state. If the printed name matches the database, but the legal signature is clearly someone else, tag -s0.

What is obviously a last name is listed as the middle name in the database: Assume it's a clerical error, and use it to hard match.

Two voter records have the same name and address:

Example Tags

Assuming no birthdate on petition and no soft matching: