CSV Elements & Enumerations (Single Page)

Elements

ballot_measure_contest

The BallotMeasureContest provides information about a ballot measure before the voters, including summary statements on each side. Extends single-csv-contest-base.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
con_statement	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a statement in opposition to the referendum. It does not necessarily appear on the ballot.
effect_of_abstain	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies what effect abstaining (i.e. not voting) on this proposition will have (i.e. whether abstaining is considered a vote against it).
full_text	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the full text of the referendum as it appears on the ballot.
info_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies a URI that links to additional information about the referendum.
passage_threshold	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the threshold of votes that the referendum needs in order to pass. The default is a simple majority (i.e. 50% plus one vote). Other common thresholds are “three-fifths” and “two-thirds”. If there are `competing initiatives`_, information about their effect on the passage of the BallotMeasureContest would go here.
pro_statement	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a statement in favor of the referendum. It does not necessarily appear on the ballot.
summary_text	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a short summary of the referendum that is on the ballot, below the title, but above the text.
type	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the particular type of ballot measure. Must be one of the valid ballot_measure_type options.
other_type	xs:string	Optional	Single	Allows for cataloging a new ballot_measure_type option, when Type is specified as “other.”

id,abbreviation,ballot_selection_ids,ballot_sub_title,ballot_title,elecoral_district_id,electorate_specification,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,has_rotation,name,sequence_order,vote_variation,other_vote_variation,con_statement,effect_of_abstain,full_text,info_uri,passage_threshold,pro_statement,summary_text,type,other_type
bmc0001,HB2,bs001 bs002 bs003,Raising levy for School Bond,School Bond Issue,ed001,all registered voters,,54,false,School Bond,42,majority,,This is no good.,No effect,A measure to do raise funds for etc etc,www.ballotmeasure.com,two-thirds,Everything will be great.,It’s a referendum about school funding,referendum,

contest_base

A base model for all Contest types: ballot_measure_contest, candidate_contest, party_contest, and retention_contest (NB: the latter because it extends ballot_measure_contest).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
abbreviation	xs:string	Optional	Single	An abbreviation for the contest.
ballot_selection_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	References a set of BallotSelections, which could be of any selection type that extends single-csv-ballot-selection-base.
ballot_sub_title	xs:string	Optional	Single	Subtitle of the contest as it appears on the ballot.
ballot_title	xs:string	Optional	Single	Title of the contest as it appears on the ballot.
electoral_district_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	References an electoral_district element that represents the geographical scope of the contest.
electorate_specification	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies any changes to the eligible electorate for this contest past the usual, “all registered voters” electorate. This subtag will most often be used for primaries and local elections. In primaries, voters may have to be registered as a specific party to vote, or there may be special rules for which ballot a voter can pull. In some local elections, non-citizens can vote.
external_identifiers	xs:string	Optional	Single	Other identifiers for a contest that links to another source of information.
has_rotation	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates whether the selections in the contest are rotated.
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Name of the contest, not necessarily how it appears on the ballot (NB: BallotTitle should be used for this purpose).
sequence_order	xs:integer	Optional	Single	Order in which the contests are listed on the ballot. This is the default ordering, and can be overrides by data in a ballot_style element.
vote_variation	vote_variation	Optional	Single	Vote variation associated with the contest (e.g. n-of-m, majority, et al).
other_vote_variation	other_vote_variation	Optional	Single	If “other” is selected as the VoteVariation, the name of the variation can be specified here.

ballot_measure_selection

Represents the possible selection (e.g. yes/no, recall/do not recall, et al) for a ballot_measure_contest that would appear on the ballot. BallotMeasureSelection extends single-csv-ballot-selection-base.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
selection	xs:string	Required	Single	Selection text for a ballot_measure_contest

id,sequence_order,selection
bms001,1,Proposition A
bms002,2,Proposition B

ballot_selection_base

A base model for all ballot selection types: ballot_measure_selection, candidate_selection, and party_selection.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
sequence_order	xs:integer	Optional	Single	The order in which a selection can be listed on the ballot or in results. This is the default ordering, and can be overridden by OrderedBallotSlectionIds in ordered_contest.

ballot_selection_base

A base model for all ballot selection types: ballot_measure_selection, candidate_selection, and party_selection.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
sequence_order	xs:integer	Optional	Single	The order in which a selection can be listed on the ballot or in results. This is the default ordering, and can be overridden by OrderedBallotSlectionIds in ordered_contest.

ballot_style

A container for the contests/measures on the ballot.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
image_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies a URI that returns an image of the sample ballot.
ordered_contests_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	Reference to a set of ordered_contest
party_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	Reference to a set of :ref:`single-csv-party`s.

id,image_uri,ordered_contest_ids,party_ids
bs00010,http://i.giphy.com/26BoCh3PgT8ai45ji.gif,oc2025,par02
bs00011,http://i.giphy.com/3oEjHYDWEICgEpAOjK.gif,oc3000 oc2025,par01

candidate

The Candidate object represents a candidate in a contest. If a candidate is running in multiple contests, each contest must have its own Candidate object. Candidate objects may not be reused between Contests.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
ballot_name	xs:string	Required	Single	The candidate’s name as it will be displayed on the official ballot (e.g. “Ken T. Cuccinelli II”).
external_identifiers	external_identifiers	Optional	Single	Another identifier for a candidate that links to another source of information (e.g. a campaign committee ID that links to a campaign finance system).
file_date	xs:date	Optional	Single	Date when the candidate filed for the contest.
is_incumbent	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates whether the candidate is the incumbent for the office associated with the contest.
is_top_ticket	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates whether the candidate is the top of a ticket that includes multiple candidates.
party_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Reference to a party element with additional information about the candidate’s affiliated party. This is the party affiliation that is intended to be presented as part of ballot information.
person_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Reference to a person element with additional information about the candidate.
post_election_status	candidate_post_election_status	Optional	Single	Final status of the candidate (e.g. winner, withdrawn, etc…).
pre_election_status	candidate_pre_election_status	Optional	Single	Registration status of the candidate (e.g. filed, qualified, etc…).

id,ballot_name,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,file_date,is_incumbent,is_top_ticket,party_id,person_id,post_election_status,pre_election_status
can001,Jude Fawley,,,,2016-12-01,true,false,par01,per50001,,filed
can002,Arabella Donn,,,,2016-12-01,false,false,par02,per50002,,qualified
can003,John Coltrane,,,,2016-09-23,false,false,par02,per50003,,qualified
can004,Miles Davis,,,,2016-05-26,false,false,par01,per50004,,qualified

candidate_contest

CandidateContest extends single-csv-contest-base and represents a contest among candidates.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
number_elected	xs:integer	Optional	Single	Number of candidates that are elected in the contest (i.e. “N” of N-of-M).
office_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	References a set of office elements, if available, which give additional information about the offices. Note: the order of the office IDs must be in the same order as the candidates listed in BallotSelectionIds. E.g., if the various BallotSelectionIds reference candidate_selection elements which reference the candidate for President first and Vice-President second, the OfficeIds should reference the office of President first and the office of Vice-President second.
primary_party_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	References party elements, if the contest is related to a particular party.
votes_allowed	xs:integer	Optional	Single	Maximum number of votes/write-ins per voter in this contest.

id,abbreviation,ballot_selection_ids,ballot_sub_title,ballot_title,electoral_district_id,electorate_specification,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,has_rotation,name,sequence_order,vote_variation,other_vote_variation,number_elected,office_ids,primary_party_ids,votes_allowed
cancon001,SE-1,bs001 bs002,,Governor of Virginia,ed001,all registered voters,fips,,49,true,Governor,1,,,1,off001,par01,1
cancon002,SE-2,bs003 bs004,,Lieutenant Governor of Virginia,ed001,all registered voters,fips,,49,true,Lt Governor,2,,,1,off002,par01,1

contest_base

A base model for all Contest types: ballot_measure_contest, candidate_contest, party_contest, and retention_contest (NB: the latter because it extends ballot_measure_contest).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
abbreviation	xs:string	Optional	Single	An abbreviation for the contest.
ballot_selection_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	References a set of BallotSelections, which could be of any selection type that extends single-csv-ballot-selection-base.
ballot_sub_title	xs:string	Optional	Single	Subtitle of the contest as it appears on the ballot.
ballot_title	xs:string	Optional	Single	Title of the contest as it appears on the ballot.
electoral_district_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	References an electoral_district element that represents the geographical scope of the contest.
electorate_specification	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies any changes to the eligible electorate for this contest past the usual, “all registered voters” electorate. This subtag will most often be used for primaries and local elections. In primaries, voters may have to be registered as a specific party to vote, or there may be special rules for which ballot a voter can pull. In some local elections, non-citizens can vote.
external_identifiers	xs:string	Optional	Single	Other identifiers for a contest that links to another source of information.
has_rotation	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates whether the selections in the contest are rotated.
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Name of the contest, not necessarily how it appears on the ballot (NB: BallotTitle should be used for this purpose).
sequence_order	xs:integer	Optional	Single	Order in which the contests are listed on the ballot. This is the default ordering, and can be overrides by data in a ballot_style element.
vote_variation	vote_variation	Optional	Single	Vote variation associated with the contest (e.g. n-of-m, majority, et al).
other_vote_variation	other_vote_variation	Optional	Single	If “other” is selected as the VoteVariation, the name of the variation can be specified here.

candidate_selection

CandidateSelection extends single-csv-ballot-selection-base and represents a ballot selection for a candidate contest.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
candidate_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	References a set of candidate elements. The number of candidates that can be references is unbounded in cases where the ballot selection is for a ticket (e.g. “President/Vice President”, “Governor/Lt Governor”).
endorsement_party_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	References a set of party elements, which signifies one or more endorsing parties for the candidate(s).
is_write_in	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Signifies if the particular ballot selection allows for write-in candidates. If true, one or more write-in candidates are allowed for this contest.

id,sequence_order,candidate_ids,endorsement_party_ids,is_write_in
cs001,3,can004,par01,false
cs002,2,can001 can002,par03 par02,false
cs003,1,can003,par02 par03,true

ballot_selection_base

A base model for all ballot selection types: ballot_measure_selection, candidate_selection, and party_selection.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
sequence_order	xs:integer	Optional	Single	The order in which a selection can be listed on the ballot or in results. This is the default ordering, and can be overridden by OrderedBallotSlectionIds in ordered_contest.

checksum

The Checksum object contains information about a cryptographic checksum, including the raw checksum value and the cryptographic hash algorithm used to compute it.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
algorithm	checksum_algorithm	Required	Single	The cryptographic hash algorithm used to compute the checksum value.
value	xs:string	Required	Single	The raw cryptographic checksum value encoded as a non-delimited, lowercase hexadecimal string.

id,algorithm,value
ch1,sha-256,65b634c5037f8a344616020d8060d233daa37b0f032a71d0d15ad7a5d3afa68e

contact_information

For defining contact information about objects such as persons, boards of authorities, organizations, etc. ContactInformation is always a sub-element of another object (e.g. election_administration, office, person, source). ContactInformation has an optional attribute label, which allows the feed to refer back to the original label for the information (e.g. if the contact information came from a CSV, label may refer to a row ID).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
address_line	xs:string	Optional	Repeats	The “location” portion of a mailing address. See usage note.
directions	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies further instructions for locating this entity.
email	xs:string	Optional	Repeats	An email address for the contact.
fax	xs:string	Optional	Repeats	A fax line for the contact.
hours	xs:string	Optional	Single	Contains the hours (in local time) that the location is open (NB: this element is deprecated in favor of the more structured :ref:`single-csv-hours-open` element. It is strongly encouraged that data providers move toward contributing hours in this format).
hours_open_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	References an single-csv-hours-open element, which lists the hours of operation for a location.
lat_long	single-csv-lat-lng	Optional	Single	Specifies the latitude and longitude of this entity.
name	xs:string	Optional	Single	The name of the location or contact. See usage note.
phone	xs:string	Optional	Repeats	A phone number for the contact.
uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Repeats	An informational URI for the contact or location.
parent_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Repeats	A reference to a record in source, department, voter_service, candidate, person, or office.

id,address_line_1,address_line_2,address_line_3,directions,email,fax,hours,hours_open_id,latitude,longitude,latlng_source,name,phone,uri,parent_id
ci0827,The White House,1600 Pennsylvania Ave,,,josh@example.com,,Early to very late,,,,,Josh Lyman,555-111-2222,http://lemonlyman.example.com,off001
ci0828,The White House,1600 Pennsylvania Ave,,,josh@example.com,,Early to very late,,,,,Josh Lyman,555-111-2222,http://lemonlyman.example.com,vs01

contest_base

A base model for all Contest types: ballot_measure_contest, candidate_contest, party_contest, and retention_contest (NB: the latter because it extends ballot_measure_contest).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
abbreviation	xs:string	Optional	Single	An abbreviation for the contest.
ballot_selection_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	References a set of BallotSelections, which could be of any selection type that extends single-csv-ballot-selection-base.
ballot_sub_title	xs:string	Optional	Single	Subtitle of the contest as it appears on the ballot.
ballot_title	xs:string	Optional	Single	Title of the contest as it appears on the ballot.
electoral_district_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	References an electoral_district element that represents the geographical scope of the contest.
electorate_specification	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies any changes to the eligible electorate for this contest past the usual, “all registered voters” electorate. This subtag will most often be used for primaries and local elections. In primaries, voters may have to be registered as a specific party to vote, or there may be special rules for which ballot a voter can pull. In some local elections, non-citizens can vote.
external_identifiers	xs:string	Optional	Single	Other identifiers for a contest that links to another source of information.
has_rotation	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates whether the selections in the contest are rotated.
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Name of the contest, not necessarily how it appears on the ballot (NB: BallotTitle should be used for this purpose).
sequence_order	xs:integer	Optional	Single	Order in which the contests are listed on the ballot. This is the default ordering, and can be overrides by data in a ballot_style element.
vote_variation	vote_variation	Optional	Single	Vote variation associated with the contest (e.g. n-of-m, majority, et al).
other_vote_variation	other_vote_variation	Optional	Single	If “other” is selected as the VoteVariation, the name of the variation can be specified here.

department

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
election_official_person_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	The individual to contact at the election administration office. The specified person should be the election official.
voter_service	voter_service	Optional	Repeats	The types of services and appropriate contact individual available to voters.
election_administration_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	The election administration that the department is a part of.

id,election_official_person_id,election_administration_id
dep01,per50002,ea123
dep02,per50002,ea345
dep03,per50002,ea625
dep04,per50002,ea625

election

The Election object represents an Election Day, which usually consists of many individual contests and/or referenda. A feed must contain exactly one Election object. All relationships in the feed (e.g., street segment to precinct to polling location) are assumed to relate only to the Election specified by this object. It is permissible, and recommended, to combine unrelated contests (e.g., a special election and a general election) that occur on the same day into one feed with one Election object.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
date	xs:date	Required	Single	Specifies when the election is being held. The Date is considered to be in the timezone local to the state holding the election.
election_type	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the highest controlling authority for election (e.g., federal, state, county, city, town, etc.)
state_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	Specifies a link to the State element where the election is being held.
is_statewide	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates whether the election is statewide.	If the field is not present or invalid, the implementation is required to default to “yes”.
name	xs:string	Optional	Single	The name for the election (NB: while optional, this element is highly recommended).
registration_info	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies information about registration for this election either as text or a URI.
absentee_ballot_info	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies information about requesting absentee ballots either as text or a URI
results_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Contains a URI where results for the election may be found
polling_hours	xs:string	Optional	Single	Contains the hours (in local time) that Election Day polling locations are open. If polling hours differ in specific polling locations, alternative hours may be specified in the polling_location object (NB: this element is deprecated in favor of the more structured :ref:`single-csv-hours-open` element. It is strongly encouraged that data providers move toward contributing hours in this format).
hours_open_ids	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	References the single-csv-hours-open element, which lists the hours of operation for polling locations.
has_election_day_registration	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Specifies if a voter can register on the same day of the election (i.e., the last day of the election). Valid items are “yes” and “no”.
registration_deadline	xs:date	Optional	Single	Specifies the last day to register for the election with the possible exception of Election Day registration.
absentee_request_deadline	xs:date	Optional	Single	Specifies the last day to request an absentee ballot.

id,date,name,election_type,state_id,is_statewide,registration_info,absentee_ballot_info,results_uri,polling_hours,has_election_day_registration,registration_deadline,absentee_request_deadline,hours_open_id
e001,10-08-2016,Best Hot Dog,State,st51,true,www.registrationinfo.com,You can vote absentee,http://hotdogcontest.gov/results,Noon to 3p.m.,true,10/08/2016,,ho002

election_administration

The Election Administration represents an institution for serving a locality’s (or state’s) election functions.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
absentee_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies the web address for information on absentee voting.
am_i_registered_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies the web address for information on whether an individual is registered.
ballot_tracking_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies the web address for tracking information for a ballot cast by mail
ballot_tracking_provisional_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies the web address for tracking information for a provisional ballot. To support EAC guidelines for “Processing Provisional Ballots” (https://www.eac.gov/research-and-data/provisional-voting/)
election_notice	election_notice	Optional	Single	A place for election administrators to post last minute and emergency notifications pertaining to the election.
elections_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies web address the administration’s website.
registration_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies web address for information on registering to vote.
rules_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies a URI for the election rules and laws (if any) for the jurisdiction of the administration.
what_is_on_my_ballot_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies web address for information on what is on an individual’s ballot.
where_do_i_vote_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	The Specifies web address for information on where an individual votes based on their address.

id,absentee_uri,am_i_registered_uri,ballot_tracking_uri,ballot_tracking_provisional_uri,election_notice_text,election_notice_uri,elections_uri,registration_uri,rules_uri,what_is_on_my_ballot_uri,where_do_i_vote_uri
ea123,https://example.com/absentee,https://example.com/am-i-registered,https://www.vote.virginia.gov/,https://www.vote.virginia.gov/,This is an emergency notification for this election.,https://www.yadayada.gov,https://example.com/elections,https://example.com/registration,https://example.com/rules,https://example.com/what-is-on-my-ballot,https://example.com/where-do-i-vote
ea345,https://example.com/absentee2,https://example.com/am-i-registered2,https://example.com/elections2,https://example.com/registration2,,,https://example.com/rules2,https://example.com/what-is-on-my-ballot2,https://example.com/where-do-i-vote2
ea625,https://example.com/absentee3,https://example.com/am-i-registered3,https://example.com/elections3,https://example.com/registration3,This is an emergency notification for this election.,,https://example.com/rules3,https://example.com/what-is-on-my-ballot3,https://example.com/where-do-i-vote3

election_notice

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
election_notice_text	xs:string	Required	Single	The last minute or emergency notification text should be placed here.
election_notice_uri	xs:string	Optional	Single	Optional URL for additional information related to the last minute or emergency notification.

electoral_district

The ElectoralDistrict object represents the geographic area in which contests are held. Examples of ElectoralDistrict include: “the state of Maryland”, “Virginia’s 5th Congressional District”, or “Union School District”. The geographic area that comprises a ElectoralDistrict is defined by which precincts link to the ElectoralDistrict.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
external_identifiers	external_identifiers	Optional	Single	Other identifiers that link to external datasets (e.g. OCD-IDs)
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Specifies the electoral area’s name.
number	xs:integer	Optional	Single	Specifies the district number of the district (e.g. 34, in the case of the 34th State Senate District). If a number is not applicable, instead of leaving the field blank, leave this field out of the object; empty strings are not valid for xs:integer fields.
type	district_type	Required	Single	Specifies the type of electoral area.
other_type	xs:string	Optional	Single	Allows for cataloging a new district_type option when Type is specified as “other”.

id,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,name,number,type,other_type
ed001,ocd-id,,ocd-division/country:us/state:ny/borough:brooklyn,Brooklyn,1,borough,
ed002,other,community-board,4,CB 4,2,other,community-board

external_file

The ExternalFile object holds a reference to a file external to the feed itself. External files are packaged along with the VIP feed into a single, archived file.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
file_uri	xs:anyURI	Required	Single	The URI of the external file.
checksum_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	The cryptographic checksum of the referenced external file.

id,file_uri,checksum_id
ef1,precinct_shapes.zip,ch1

external_geospatial_feature

The ExternalGeospatialFeature object contains a reference to a geospatial feature (one or more shapes) contained in a separate file external to the VIP feed.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
external_file_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	Links to the external_file containing the geospatial shape(s) that define the feature’s boundary.
file_format	geospatial_format	Required	Single	The format of the geospatial file.
feature_identifier	feature_identifier	Required	Repeats	Identifiers indicating which specific shape(s) to use from the geospatial file. These refer to identifiers within the referenced external file. This is a repeated field in the XML specification, but a scalar field in the CSV specification. If more than one identifier is required with the CSV specifiation, multiple values can be provided by delimited by space.

id,external_file_id,file_format,shape_identifiers
egf1,ef1,shp,0 7 9

external_identifier

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
type	identifier_type	Required	Single	Specifies the type of identifier. Must be one of the valid types as defined by identifier_type.
other_type	xs:string	Optional	Single	Allows for cataloging an ExternalIdentifier type that falls outside the options listed in identifier_type. Type should be set to “other” when using this field.
value	xs:string	Required	Single	Specifies the identifier.

external_identifiers

The ExternalIdentifiers element allows VIP data to connect with external datasets (e.g. candidates with campaign finance datasets, electoral geographies with OCD-IDs that allow for greater connectivity with additional datasets, etc…). Examples for ExternalIdentifiers can be found on the objects that support them:

• candidate

• Any element that extends single-csv-contest-base

• electoral_district

• locality

• office

• party

• precinct

• state

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
external_identifier	external_identifier	Required	Repeats	Defines the identifier and the type of identifier it is (see `ExternalIdentifier`_ for complete information).	At least one valid `ExternalIdentifier`_ must be present for ExternalIdentifiers to be valid. If no valid `ExternalIdentifier`_ is present, the implementation is required to ignore the ExternalIdentifiers element.

feature_identifier

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
index	xs:int	Optional	Single	The index value for the shapefile feature.

html_color_string

A restricted string pattern for a six-character hex code representing an HTML color string. The pattern is:

[0-9a-f]{6}

lat_long

The latitude and longitude of a polling location in `WGS 84`_ format. Both latitude and longitude values are measured in decimal degrees.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
latitude	xs:double	Required	Single	The latitude of the polling location.
longitude	xs:double	Required	Single	The longitude of the polling location.
latlng_source	xs:string	Optional	Single	The system used to perform the lookup from location name to lat/lng. For example, this could be the name of a geocoding service.

locality

The Locality object represents the jurisdiction below the state (e.g. county).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
election_administration_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Links to the locality’s election_administration object.
external_identifiers	external_identifiers	Optional	Single	Another identifier for a locality that links to another dataset (e.g. `OCD-ID`_)
is_mail_only	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Determines if the locality runs mail-only elections. If this is true, then all precincts a part of the locality will also run mail-only elections. Drop boxes may be used in addition to this flag using a polling location record configured as a Drop Box.	If the field is missing or invalid, the implementation is required to assume IsMailOnly is false.
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Specifies the name of a locality.
polling_location_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	Specifies a link to a set of the locality’s :ref:`polling locations <single-csv-polling-location>`s. If early vote centers or ballot drop locations are locality-wide, they should be specified here.
state_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	References the locality’s state.
type	district_type	Optional	Single	Defines the kind of locality (e.g. county, town, et al.), which is one of the various DistrictType enumerations.
other_type	xs:string	Optional	Single	Allows for defining a type of locality that falls outside the options listed in DistrictType.

id,election_administration_id,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,is_mail_only,name,polling_location_ids,state_id,type,other_type
loc001,ea123,ocd-id,,ocd-division/country:us/state:co/county:denver,true,Locality #1,poll001 poll002,st51,city,
loc002,ea345,,,,,Locality #2,,st51,other,unique type

office

Office represents the office associated with a contest or district (e.g. Alderman, Mayor, School Board, et al).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
description	xs:string	Optional	Single	A brief description of the office and its purpose.
electoral_district_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	Links to the electoral_district element associated with the office.
external_identifiers	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Other identifiers that link this office to other related datasets (e.g. campaign finance systems, OCD IDs, et al.).
filing_deadline	xs:date	Optional	Single	Specifies the date and time when a candidate must have filed for the contest for the office.
is_partisan	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates whether the office is partisan.
name	xs:string	Required	Single	The name of the office.
office_holder_person_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	Links to the person element(s) that hold additional information about the current office holder(s).
term	term	Optional	Single	Defines the term the office can be held.

id,electoral_district_id,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,filing_deadline,is_partisan,name,office_holder_person_ids,term_type,term_start_date,term_end_date
off001,ed001,,,,,true,Deputy Chief of Staff,per50003,full-term,2002-01-21,
off002,ed001,,,,,true,Deputy Deputy Chief of Staff,per50001,unexpired-term,2002-01-21,
off003,ed001,,,,,false,General Secretary of Secretaries,per50004,full-term,2002-01-21,

ordered_contest

OrderedContest encapsulates links to the information that comprises a contest and potential ballot selections. OrderedContest elements can be collected within a ballot_style to accurate depict exactly what will show up on a particular ballot in the proper order.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
contest_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	Links to elements that extend single-csv-contest-base.
ordered_ballot_selection_ids	IDREFS	Optional	Single	Links to elements that extend single-csv-ballot-selection-base.	If the field is invalid or not present, the implementation is required to ignore it. If an OrderedBallotSelectionIds element is not present, the presumed order of the selection will be the order of single-csv-ballot-selection-base-extended elements referenced by the underlying single-csv-contest-base-extended elements.

id,contest_id,ordered_ballot_selection_ids
oc2025,con001,bs001 bs002 bs003
oc3000,con002,bs001

party

This element describes a political party and the metadata associated with them. These can also include “dummy” parties to indicate a type of contest (e.g., a Voter Nominated candidate_contest can use the PrimaryPartyIds field and a dummy Party object to indicate that the contest is a “Top-Two” primary).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
abbreviation	xs:string	Optional	Single	An abbreviation for the party name.
color	html_color_string	Optional	Single	The preferred display color for the party, for use in maps and other displays.
external_identifiers	external_identifiers	Optional	Single	Other identifiers that link this party to other related data sets (e.g. a campaign finance system, etc).
is_write_in	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Signals if this political party is one that is officially recognized by a local, state, or federal organization, or is a “write-in” in jurisdictions which allow candidates to free-form enter their political affiliation. If this field is not present then it is assumed to be false.
leader_person_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	A reference of person elements which are leaders of the Party.
logo_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Web address of a logo to use in displays.
name	xs:string	Required	Single	The name of the party.

id,abbreviation,color,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,is_write_in,leader_person_ids,logo_uri,name
par01,REP,ff0000,,,,true,,http://example.com/elephant.png,Republican
par02,DEM,0000ff,,,,false,per01,http://example.com/donkey.png,Democrat
par03,GRN,efefef,,,,,,http://example.com/tree.png,Green
par04,WFP,ee99aa,,,,,,http://example.com/worker.png,Working Families Party

party_contest

An extension of single-csv-contest-base which describes a contest in which the possible ballot selections are of type party_selection. These could include contests in which straight-party selections are allowed, or party-list contests (although these are more common outside of the United States).

id,abbreviation,ballot_selection_ids,ballot_sub_title,ballot_title,electoral_district_id,electorate_specification,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,has_rotation,name,sequence_order,vote_variation,other_vote_variation
pcon001,PC1071,bs001 bs002,,Party Election,ed001,all registered voters,,,,false,Straight Party Vote,3,,

contest_base

A base model for all Contest types: ballot_measure_contest, candidate_contest, party_contest, and retention_contest (NB: the latter because it extends ballot_measure_contest).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
abbreviation	xs:string	Optional	Single	An abbreviation for the contest.
ballot_selection_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	References a set of BallotSelections, which could be of any selection type that extends single-csv-ballot-selection-base.
ballot_sub_title	xs:string	Optional	Single	Subtitle of the contest as it appears on the ballot.
ballot_title	xs:string	Optional	Single	Title of the contest as it appears on the ballot.
electoral_district_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	References an electoral_district element that represents the geographical scope of the contest.
electorate_specification	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies any changes to the eligible electorate for this contest past the usual, “all registered voters” electorate. This subtag will most often be used for primaries and local elections. In primaries, voters may have to be registered as a specific party to vote, or there may be special rules for which ballot a voter can pull. In some local elections, non-citizens can vote.
external_identifiers	xs:string	Optional	Single	Other identifiers for a contest that links to another source of information.
has_rotation	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates whether the selections in the contest are rotated.
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Name of the contest, not necessarily how it appears on the ballot (NB: BallotTitle should be used for this purpose).
sequence_order	xs:integer	Optional	Single	Order in which the contests are listed on the ballot. This is the default ordering, and can be overrides by data in a ballot_style element.
vote_variation	vote_variation	Optional	Single	Vote variation associated with the contest (e.g. n-of-m, majority, et al).
other_vote_variation	other_vote_variation	Optional	Single	If “other” is selected as the VoteVariation, the name of the variation can be specified here.

party_selection

This element extends single-csv-ballot-selection-base to support contests in which the selections can be groups of one or more parties.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
party_ids	xs:IDREFS	Required	Single	One or more party IDs which collectively represent a ballot selection.	If one or more parties referenced are invalid or not present, the implementation is required to ignore the PartySelection containing it.

id,sequence_order,party_ids
ps001,1,par01 par04
ps002,2,par02
ps003,3,par03

ballot_selection_base

A base model for all ballot selection types: ballot_measure_selection, candidate_selection, and party_selection.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
sequence_order	xs:integer	Optional	Single	The order in which a selection can be listed on the ballot or in results. This is the default ordering, and can be overridden by OrderedBallotSlectionIds in ordered_contest.

person

Person defines information about a person. The person may be a candidate, election administrator, or elected official. These elements reference Person:

• candidate

• election_administration

• office

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
date_of_birth	xs:date	Optional	Single	Represents the individual’s date of birth.
external_identifiers	external_identifiers	Optional	Single	Identifiers for this person.
first_name	xs:string	Optional	Single	Represents an individual’s first name.
full_name	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a person’s full name (NB: this information is single-csv-internationalized-text because it sometimes appears on ballots in multiple languages).
gender	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a person’s gender.
last_name	xs:string	Optional	Single	Represents an individual’s last name.
middle_name	xs:string	Optional	Repeats	Represents any number of names between an individual’s first and last names (e.g. John Ronald Reuel Tolkien).
nickname	xs:string	Optional	Single	Represents an individual’s nickname.
party_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Refers to the associated party. This information is intended to be used by feed consumers to help them disambiguate the person’s identity, but not to be presented as part of any ballot information. For that see candidate PartyId.
prefix	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a prefix associated with a person (e.g. Dr.).
profession	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a person’s profession (NB: this information is single-csv-internationalized-text because it sometimes appears on ballots in multiple languages).
suffix	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a suffix associated with a person (e.g. Jr.).
title	xs:string	Optional	Single	A title associated with a person (NB: this information is single-csv-internationalized-text because it sometimes appears on ballots in multiple languages).

id,date_of_birth,first_name,gender,last_name,middle_name,nickname,party_id,prefix,profession,suffix,title
per50001,1961-08-04,Barack,male,Obama,Hussein,,par02,,President,II,Mr. President
per50002,1985-11-21,Carly,female,Jepsen,Rae,,par01,,Recording Artist,,
per50003,1926-09-23,John,male,Coltrane,William,Trane,par02,,Recording Artist,Saint,
per50004,1926-05-26,Miles,male,Davis,Dewey,,par01,,Recording Artist,III,

polling_location

The PollingLocation object represents a site where voters cast or drop off ballots.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
address_line	xs:string	Optional	Repeats	Represents the various parts of an address to a polling location.	One of AddressStructured and AddressLine should be present for a given Polling Location. If none is present, the implementation is required to ignore the PollingLocation element containing it.
directions	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies further instructions for locating the polling location.
hours	xs:string	Optional	Single	Contains the hours (in local time) that the polling location is open (NB: this element is deprecated in favor of the more structured single-csv-hours-open element. It is strongly encouraged that data providers move toward contributing hours in this format).
hours_open_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Links to an single-csv-hours-open element, which is a schedule of dates and hours during which the polling location is available.
is_drop_box	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates if this polling location is a drop box.
is_early_voting	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Indicates if this polling location is an early vote site.
name	xs:string	Optional	Single	Name of the polling location.
photo_uri	xs:string	Optional	Single	Contains a link to an image of the polling location.

id,name,address_line,structured_line_1,structured_city,structured_state,structured_zip,directions,hours,photo_uri,hours_open_id,is_drop_box,is_early_voting,latitude,longitude,latlng_source
poll001,ALBERMARLE HIGH SCHOOL,,2775 Hydraulic Rd,Charlottesville,VA,22901,Use back door,7am-8pm,www.picture.com,ho001,false,true,38.0754627,78.5014875,Google Maps
poll002,Public Library,Main St Denver CO,,,,,,next to the checkout counter,7am-8pm,www.picture.com,,false,true,38.0754627,78.5014875,Google Maps

lat_long

The latitude and longitude of a polling location in `WGS 84`_ format. Both latitude and longitude values are measured in decimal degrees.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
latitude	xs:double	Required	Single	The latitude of the polling location.
longitude	xs:double	Required	Single	The longitude of the polling location.
latlng_source	xs:string	Optional	Single	The system used to perform the lookup from location name to lat/lng. For example, this could be the name of a geocoding service.

simple_address_type

A SimpleAddressType represents a structured address.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
structured_line_1	xs:string	Required	Single	The address line for a structured address. Should include the street number, street name, and any prefix and suffix.
structured_line_2	xs:string	Optional	Single	Additional field for an address
structured_line_3	xs:string	Optional	Single	Additional field for an address
structured_city	xs:string	Required	Single	The City value of a structured address.
structured_state	xs:string	Required	Single	The State value of a structured address.
structured_zip	xs:string	Optional	Single	The ZIP code of a structured address.

precinct

The Precinct object represents a precinct, which is contained within a Locality. While the id attribute does not have to be static across feeds for one election, the combination of Source.VipId, Locality.Name, Precinct.Ward, Precinct.Name, and Precinct.Number should remain constant across feeds for one election (NB: not all of the fields just mentioned are required – omitting those non-required fields is fine).

Voters can be assigned to a precinct in two ways. A voter location modeled by StreetSegment is assigned to a precinct by StreetSegment.PrecinctId. Alternatively, a precinct’s spatial boundary can be modeled with Precinct.SpatialBoundary. Any registered voter address contained within the spatial boundary of the precinct is assigned to that precinct.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
ballot_style_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Links to the ballot_style, which a person who lives in this precinct will vote.
electoral_district_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	Links to the :ref:`single-csv-electoral-district`s (e.g., congressional district, state house district, school board district) to which the entire precinct/precinct split belongs. Highly Recommended if candidate information is to be provided.
external_identifiers	external_identifiers	Optional	Single	Other identifier for the precinct that relates to another dataset (e.g. `OCD-ID`_).
is_mail_only	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Determines if the precinct runs mail-only elections.	If the field is missing or invalid, the implementation is required to assume IsMailOnly is false.
locality_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	Links to the locality that comprises the precinct.
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Specifies the precinct’s name (or number if no name exists).
number	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the precinct’s number (e.g., 32 or 32A – alpha characters are legal). Should be used if the Name field is populated by a name and not a number.
polling_location_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	Specifies a link to the precinct’s polling_location object(s).
precinct_split_name	xs:string	Optional	Single	If this field is empty, then this Precinct object represents a full precinct. If this field is present, then this Precinct object represents one portion of a split precinct. Each Precinct object that represents one portion of a split precinct must have the same Name value, but different PrecinctSplitName values. See the sample_feed.xml file for examples.
spatial_boundary_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Defines the spatial boundary of the precinct. All voter addresses contained within this boundary are assigned to the precinct. If a voter address also maps to a StreetSegment, then the precinct assignment from the StreetSegment will be preferred over the assignment from the spatial boundary.
ward	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the ward the precinct is contained within.

id,ballot_style_id,electoral_district_ids,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,is_mail_only,locality_id,name,number,polling_location_ids,precinct_split_name,spatial_boundary_id,ward
pre90111,bs00010,ed001,ocd-id,,ocd-division/country:us,false,loc001,203 - GEORGETOWN,0203,poll001 poll002,split13,sb1,,5
pre90112,bs00011,ed002,fips,,42,false,loc001,203 - GEORGETOWN,0203,poll003,split26,,6
pre90113,bs00010,ed003,,,,false,loc002,203 - GEORGETOWN,0203,poll004,split54,sb1,7

retention_contest

RetentionContest extends ballot_measure_contest and represents a contest where a candidate is retained in a position (e.g. a judge).

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
candidate_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	Links to the candidate being retained.
office_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Links to the information about the office.

schedule

A sub-portion of the schedule. This describes a range of days, along with one or more set of open and close times for those days, as well as the options describing whether or not appointments are necessary or possible.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
is_only_by_appointment	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	If true, the place is only open during the specified time window with an appointment.
is_or_by_appointment	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	If true, the place is open during the hours specified time window and may also be open with an appointment.
is_subject_to_change	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	If true, the place should be open during the specified time window, but may be subject to change. People should contact prior to arrival to confirm hours are still accurate.
start_date	xs:date	Optional	Single	The date at which this collection of start and end times and options begin.
end_date	xs:date	Optional	Single	The date at which this collection of start and end times and options end.
hours_open_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	A reference to the associated hours_open element.

id,start_time,end_time,is_only_by_appointment,is_or_by_appointment,is_subject_to_change,start_date,end_date,hours_open_id
sch001,07:00:00-06:00,22:00:00-06:00,,true,,2016-10-10,2016-10-12,ho001
sch002,09:00:00-06:00,20:00:00-06:00,true,,,2016-10-13,2016-10-15,ho001
sch003,08:00:00-06:00,14:00:00-06:00,,,true,2016-10-10,2016-10-15,ho002

simple_address_type

A SimpleAddressType represents a structured address.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
structured_line_1	xs:string	Required	Single	The address line for a structured address. Should include the street number, street name, and any prefix and suffix.
structured_line_2	xs:string	Optional	Single	Additional field for an address
structured_line_3	xs:string	Optional	Single	Additional field for an address
structured_city	xs:string	Required	Single	The City value of a structured address.
structured_state	xs:string	Required	Single	The State value of a structured address.
structured_zip	xs:string	Optional	Single	The ZIP code of a structured address.

source

The Source object represents the organization that is publishing the information. This object is the only required object in the feed file, and only one source object is allowed to be present.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Specifies the name of the organization that is providing the information.
vip_id	xs:string	Required	Single	Specifies the ID of the organization. VIP uses FIPS_ codes for this ID.
date_time	xs:dateTime	Required	Single	Specifies the date and time of the feed production. The date/time is considered to be in the timezone local to the organization.
description	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies both the nature of the organization providing the data and what data is in the feed.
organization_uri	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies a URI to the home page of the organization publishing the data.
feed_contact_information_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Reference to the person who will respond to inquiries about the information contained within the file.
terms_of_use_uri	xs:anyURI	Optional	Single	Specifies the website where the Terms of Use for the information in this file can be found.
version	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the version of the data

id,date_time,description,name,organization_uri,terms_of_use_uri,vip_id,version
source01,2016-06-02T10:24:08,SBE is the official source for Virginia data,"State Board of Elections, Commonwealth of Virginia",http://www.sbe.virginia.gov/,http://example.com/terms,51,5.1

spatial_boundary

The SpatialBoundary object defines a boundary in space. This boundary is usually defined by one or more discrete, closed polygonal shapes.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
external_geospatial_feature_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	The spatial boundary defined by a geospatial feature that is external to the VIP feed.

id,external_geospatial_feature_id
sb1,egf1

state

The State object includes state-wide election information. The ID attribute is recommended to be the state’s FIPS code, along with the prefix “st”.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
election_administration_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	Links to the state’s election administration object.
external_identifiers	external_identifiers	Optional	Single	Other identifier for the state that relates to another dataset (e.g. `OCD-ID`_).
name	xs:string	Required	Single	Specifiers the name of a state, such as Alabama.
polling_location_ids	xs:IDREFS	Optional	Single	Specifies a link to the state’s polling locations. If early vote centers or ballot drop locations are state-wide (e.g., anyone in the state can use them), they can be specified here, but you are encouraged to only use the precinct element.

id,election_administration_id,external_identifier_type,external_identifier_othertype,external_identifier_value,name,polling_location_ids
st51,ea123,ocd-id,,ocd-division/country:us/state:va,Virginia,

street_segment

A Street Segment objection represents a portion of a street and the links to the precinct that this geography (i.e., segment) is contained within. The start address house number must be less than the end address house number unless the segment consists of only one address, in which case these values are equal.

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
address_direction	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the (inter-)cardinal direction of the entire address. An example is “NE” for the address “100 E Capitol St NE.”
city	xs:string	Required	Single	The city specifies the city or town of the address.
includes_all_addresses	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Specifies if the segment covers every address on this street. If this is true, then the values of StartHouseNumber and EndHouseNumber should be ignored. The value of OddEvenBoth must be both.
includes_all_streets	xs:boolean	Optional	Single	Specifies if the segment covers every street in this city. If this is true, then the values of OddEvenBoth, StartHouseNumber, EndHouseNumber, StreetName, and Zip should be ignored.
odd_even_both	oeb_enum	Required	Single	Specifies whether the odd side of the street (in terms of house numbers), the even side, or both are in included in the street segment.	If the field is not present or invalid, the implementation is required to ignore the StreetSegment containing it.
precinct_id	xs:IDREF	Required	Single	References the precinct that contains the entire street segment. If a precinct has a spatial_boundary which also contains the entire street segment, then the precinct assignment from the segment will be preferred over the assignment defined by the spatial boundary.
start_house_number	xs:integer	Optional	Single	The house number at which the street segment starts. This value is necessary for the street segment to make any sense. Unless IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true, this value must be less than or equal to EndHouseNumber. If IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true, this value is ignored.	Unless IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true, if the field is not present or invalid, the implementation is required to ignore the StreetSegment element containing it. If the StartHouseNumber is greater than the EndHouseNumber, the implementation should ignore the element containing them.
end_house_number	xs:integer	Optional	Single	The house number at which the street segment ends. This value is necessary for the street segment to make any sense. Unless IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true, it must be greater than or equal to StartHouseNumber. If IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true, this value is ignored.	Unless IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true, if the field is not present or invalid, the implementation is required to ignore the StreetSegment element containing it. If the EndHouseNumber is less than the StartHouseNumber, the implementation should ignore the element containing it.
house_number_prefix	xs:string	Optional	Single	Part of a street address. It may contain letters or slashes (e.g., ‘B’ in ‘B22 Main St’). If this value is present then StartHouseNumber must be equal to EndHouseNumber. This field cannot be used if IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true.
house_number_suffix	xs:string	Optional	Single	Part of a street address. It may contain letters or slashes (e.g., 1/2 in ‘22 1/2 Main St’). If this value is present then StartHouseNumber must be equal to EndHouseNumber. This field cannot be used if IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true.
state	xs:string	Required	Single	Specifies the two-letter state abbreviation of the address.
street_direction	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the (inter-)cardinal direction of the street address (e.g., the “E” in “100 E Capitol St NE”).
street_name	xs:string	Optional	Single	Represents the name of the street for the address. A special wildcard, “*”, denotes every street in the given city/town. It optionally may contain street direction, street suffix or address direction (e.g., both “Capitol” and “E Capitol St NE” are acceptable for the address “100 E Capitol St NE”), however this is not preferred. Preferred is street name alone (e.g. “Capitol”).
street_suffix	xs:string	Optional	Single	Represents the abbreviated, non-directional suffix to the street name. An example is “St” for the address “100 E Capitol St NE.”
unit_number	xs:string	Optional	Repeats	The apartment/unit number for a street segment. If this value is present then StartHouseNumber must be equal to EndHouseNumber. This field cannot be used if IncludesAllAddresses or IncludesAllStreets are true.
zip	xs:string	Optional	Single	Specifies the zip code of the address. It may be 5 or 9 digits, and it may include a hyphen (‘-‘). It is required as it helps with geocoding, which is crucial for distributors.

id,address_direction,city,includes_all_addresses,includes_all_streets,odd_even_both,precinct_id,start_house_number,end_house_number,house_number_prefix,house_number_suffix,state,street_direction,street_name,street_suffix,unit_number,zip
ss000001,N,Washington,false,false,odd,pre90113,101,199,,,DC,NW,Delaware,St,,20001
ss000002,S,Washington,true,false,both,pre90112,,,,,DC,SE,Wisconsin,Ave,,20002
ss000003,N,Washington,false,false,even,pre90113,100,100,A,1/2,DC,NW,Delaware,St,,20001

term

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
term_type	office_term_type	Required	Single	Specifies the type of office term (see office_term_type for valid values).
term_start_date	xs:date	Optional	Single	Specifies the start date for the current term of the office.
term_end_date	xs:date	Optional	Single	Specifies the end date for the current term of the office.

time_with_zone

A string pattern restricting the value to a time with an included offset from UTC. The pattern is

(([01][0-9]|2[0-3]):[0-5][0-9]:[0-5][0-9]|(24:00:00))(Z|[+-]((0[0-9]|1[0-3]):[0-5][0-9]|14:00))

<HoursOpen id="hours0001">
  <Schedule>
    <Hours>
      <StartTime>06:00:00-05:00</StartTime>
      <EndTime>12:00:00-05:00</EndTime>
    </Hours>
    <Hours>
      <StartTime>13:00:00-05:00</StartTime>
      <EndTime>19:00:00-05:00</EndTime>
    </Hours>
    <StartDate>2013-11-05</StartDate>
    <EndDate>2013-11-05</EndDate>
  </Schedule>
</HoursOpen>

voter_service

Tag	Data Type	Required?	Repeats?	Description	Error Handling
description	xs:string	Optional	Single	Long description of the services available.
election_official_person_id	xs:IDREF	Optional	Single	The authority for a particular voter service.
type	voter_service_type	Optional	Single	The type of voter service.
other_type	xs:string	Optional	Single	If Type is “other”, OtherType allows for cataloging another type of voter service.

id,description,election_official_person_id,type,other_type,department_id
vs01,A service we provide,per50002,other,overseas-voting,dep01
vs00,Elections notifications,per50002,other,voter-registration,dep02
vs02,Pencil sharpening,per50002,other,office-help,dep03
vs03,Guided hike to polling place,per50002,other,polling-places,dep03
vs04,Bike messenger ballot delivery,per50002,other,absentee-ballots,dep03

Enumerations

ballot_measure_type

A list of the various types of ballot measures. States may have different legal definitions of each type; Wikipedia_ has more details about each type. These values are to help states with multiple types of non-candidate-based contests distinguish between each type; as such, the definitions in this table are simple guidelines. Ultimately it is up to the state or local election official to choose the value which best describes the ballot measure(s) in their jurisdiction.

Tag	Description
ballot-measure	A catch-all for generic types of non-candidate-based contests.
initiative	These are usually citizen-driven measures to be placed on the ballot. These could include both statutory changes and constitutional amendments.
referendum	These could include measures to repeal existing acts of legislation, legislative referrals, and legislatively-referred state constitutional amendments.
other	Anything that does not fall into the above categories.

candidate_post_election_status

Tag	Description
advanced-to-runoff	For contests in which the top N candidates advance to the next round.
projected-winner	A candidate is expected to win, but official results are not yet complete.
winner	The candidate has officially won.
withdrawn	The candidate has withdrawn from the contest.

candidate_pre_election_status

Tag	Description
filed	The candidate has filed for office but not yet been qualified.
qualified	The candidate has qualified for the contest.
withdrawn	The candidate has withdrawn from the contest (but may still be on the ballot).
write-in

checksum_algorithm

Tag	Description
sha-256	256-bit cryptographic hash algorithm of the SHA-2 family
sha-512	512-bit cryptographic hash algorithm of the SHA-2 family

district_type

Enumeration describing the set of possible jurisdiction and district types. Please use the enumeration value which most accurately reflects the type of district or jurisdiction in your state or county. For example, “town” and “township” may mean different things – or not be defined at all – in your state, so please use the definition which best matches your local meaning.

Tag	Description
borough	A borough
city	A city.
city-council	A specific seat/jurisdiction for a city, town, or village council.
congressional	A United States congressional district.
county	A county.
county-council	A county council district, either in its entirety or for a specific seat.
judicial	A judicial district.
municipality	A civil division which is not a town, city, village, or county.
national	The United States.
school	A school district.
special	A `special-purpose district`_ that exist separate from general-purpose districts.
state	A state, district, commonwealth, or U.S. territory.
state-house	The lower house of a state legislature.
state-senate	The upper house of a state legislature.
town	A town_.
township	A township, which may be different than a town. See the `Wikipedia article`_.
utility	A non-water public or municipal utility district.
village	A village district.
ward	A ward.
water	A water district.
other	Any district not described above. Use the OtherType field to describe it.

geospatial_format

Geospatial file formats that are supported by the VIP specification.

Tag	Description
shp	ESRI Shapefile (reference)

identifier_type

Tag	Description
fips	Federal Information Processing Standards codes for states_, counties_, and cities_.
local-level	An identifier generated or used by local governments or organizations.
national-level	An identifier generated or used by national organizations.
ocd-id	An `Open Civic Data Division Identifier`_.
state-level	An identifier generated or used by state governments or organizations.
other	Any identifier which doesn’t fall into any of the above categories.

oeb_enum

Tag	Description
both	Both even and odd addresses within the range.
even	Only even-numbered addresses within the range.
odd	Only odd-numbered addresses within the range.

office_term_type

Tag	Description
full-term	This election is for an office for which the existing term has been completed.
unexpired-term	This election is for an office for which the original term is not yet complete.

vote_variation

Note that the descriptions below describe what the enumeration names stand for in the context of the VIP spec, rather than provide general definitions of the election terms that the names correspond to. For example, even though there are majority voting methods that are not “1-of-m” (e.g. ranked choice voting), we constrain “majority” to 1-of-m. We do this to eliminate any source of ambiguity when a single enumeration value needs to be assigned to a contest.

Tag	Description
1-of-m	A method where each voter can select up to one option.
approval	`Approval voting`_, where each voter can select as many options as desired.
borda	`Borda count`_, where each voter can rank the options, and the rankings are assigned point values.
cumulative	`Cumulative voting`_, where each voter can distribute their vote to up to N options.
majority	A 1-of-m method where the winner needs more than 50% of the vote to be elected.
n-of-m	A method where each voter can select up to N options.
plurality	A 1-of-m method where the option with the most votes is elected, regardless of whether the option has more than 50% of the vote.
proportional	A `proportional representation`_ method (other than STV), which is any system that elects winners in proportion to the total vote.
range	`Range voting`_, where each voter can select a score for each option.
rcv	`Ranked choice voting`_ (RCV), where each voter can rank the options, and the ballots are counted in rounds. Also known as instant-runoff voting (IRV) and the single transferable vote (STV).
super-majority	A 1-of-m method where the winner needs more than some predetermined fraction of the vote to be elected, where the fraction is more than 50% (e.g. three-fifths or two-thirds).
other	Used when the vote variation type is not included in this enumeration.

voter_service_type

Tag	Description
absentee-ballots	This department handles the dispatch, tracking, and return of absentee ballots.
overseas-voting	The department for overseas, military, and other outside-the-U.S. voters.
polling-places	This deparment handles the selection and management of polling places.
voter-registration	The deparment that manages voter registration.
other	Any other service not covered by the above descriptions.