Effective 2026-09-17
Operator and nonpartisan purpose
BallotBar is a nonpartisan voter-education and civic public-service initiative of InVision Church Los Angeles, Inc. BallotBar is not a separately incorporated nonprofit. The service does not endorse or oppose a candidate or political party.
No voter account required
You may use normal voter tools without an account, phone number, email address, or voter profile. Creating a new ballot backup requires a self-reported full legal name, voter-registration address and date of birth. These details stay inside the encrypted record and are not sent to BallotBar. You remain responsible for securing your device, encrypted files, and passphrases. Administrative systems remain restricted even though voter tools are accountless.
Record-specific voter attestation
Immediately before finalizing each new personal ballot record, you must review and affirm the statement displayed for the record type. Photo-only language addresses the images you captured; Private Ballot Copy language addresses the selections you recorded; a combined record covers both. Your self-reported full legal name, birth date and registration address, the exact statement, acceptance, covered content, local record identity, relevant ballot and source details, device-supplied finalization time and timezone, and integrity information remain inside your encrypted record. Editing covered content requires a new acceptance for the new revision.
Your attestation is your own statement. Entering identifying details does not verify your identity or voter registration, and older unnamed and name-only backups remain readable. BallotBar does not receive it, identify you, administer an oath, witness the voting event, verify the content, or verify the device clock. It is not an official ballot, voting receipt, affidavit, or election-office record and does not by itself establish that a ballot was submitted, received, accepted, counted, or tabulated. A voter-reported voting date, if you choose to add one, is distinct from device-reported creation and finalization times.
Private ballot records
You personally create and review your private ballot record. A Federal & Statewide Ballot Backup includes verified statewide contests and your U.S. House race. It excludes state legislative and local contests and is not your complete official ballot. Where available, a verified full Private Ballot Copy remains supported. Every digital record carries the disclosure: NOT AN OFFICIAL BALLOT — CANNOT BE CAST. Older supported records without an attestation remain readable and are identified as historical records for which no voter attestation was captured.
Official systems control
You remain responsible for registering, marking, signing, sealing, and returning a ballot according to official instructions. Election authorities—not BallotBar—determine eligibility, receipt, acceptance, rejection, cure, and tabulation. BallotBar links to official sources but cannot independently confirm how a vote was counted.
Photography restrictions
Use the camera only when BallotBar says photo backup is available for your state and voting setting, and follow the condition shown. Never photograph another voter or ballot, disrupt voting, or ignore an election official. If controlling law or official guidance does not clearly support photography in your setting, BallotBar will not offer the camera. The Private Ballot Copy path remains separate from permission to photograph.
Coverage
Photo rules, digital backup coverage, and official tracking are separate. A Federal & Statewide Ballot Backup is available only when its included contests and the U.S. House race for your selected state and congressional district are verified. A full Private Ballot Copy requires a verified complete ballot for that location. Missing contests and candidates are never filled with guesses. Publication dates and local variation can prevent a record from being available. Where photography is permitted, a photograph of your actual ballot preserves its complete contents.
Local data responsibility
BallotBar cannot recover a lost local key, deleted record, cleared browser, forgotten passphrase, or local file you remove. Save and verify encrypted exports and protect passphrases separately. A browser download or share sheet does not prove the file was saved; reopen the chosen .bbbackup to verify it. Your operating-system or cloud storage provider controls the destination you select.
Optional email updates
Communications consent is separate from these Terms and from every ballot task. If you affirmatively opt in, you authorize the categories stated beside the unchecked checkbox. Confirmation, sender identification, suppression, and unsubscribe controls apply. Skipping, failing, or ending an email subscription does not affect voter tools, records, support, or donations.
Support submissions
Private case documentation remains local unless you deliberately put selected information into a message and send it. Human support is available at support@ballotbar.com. Information you choose to email is received by support and is no longer only local. Never submit a ballot image, complete backup, recorded selections, signature, voter identifier, full address, or passphrase.
If you submit the website support form, BallotBar receives and stores the issue category, summary, optional source link, and optional reply email you provide. These submissions are separate from your encrypted ballot and case files. An on-screen reference confirms receipt; an email acknowledgement is sent only when email delivery is available.
Optional donations
BallotBar is free to use. Donations are optional and never affect backup, tracking, case documentation, support, priority, or functionality. The donation link opens InVision Church Los Angeles, Inc.’s external giving provider, which handles payment credentials and receipts. BallotBar does not store card or bank details. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law; individual tax treatment depends on the donor’s circumstances.
Preserved prior accounts
This accountless version does not delete, migrate, or subscribe people from the separately preserved account-enabled BallotBar service. Existing account records and provider services remain separate for recovery and applicable user requests.
No emergency substitute
For imminent deadlines, rejection notices, intimidation, access problems, or other urgent concerns, contact the responsible election office and qualified voter-assistance resources immediately.