---
id: "bug-1096"
status: "fixed"
status_updated: "2026-09-24"
status_note: ""
component: "lib"
severity: "unknown"
timestamp: "2026-06-24"
last_seen: "2026-09-19T09:00:00Z"
occurrences: 2
files: ["src/lib/raft/raft.c"]
tags: ["raft", "vote-reply", "stale-term", "election-safety", "split-brain", "conformance", "needs-library-fix", "stale-report", "bug-851-family", "stale-response"]
related: ["bug-1095", "bug-851"]
legacy: true
---

# bug-1096: raft_on_vote_reply counts a stale-term vote-reply (term < currentTerm) toward the current election…

## Description
raft_on_vote_reply counts a stale-term vote-reply (term < currentTerm) toward the current election instead of dropping it

## Environment
_Not recorded (migrated from buglog.json)._

## Reproduction
_Not recorded (migrated from buglog.json)._

## Root cause
No DropStaleResponse: a reply with term < s->term fell through to replies_received++/votes_granted++, corrupting quorum accounting (raft.tla DropStaleResponse discards mterm < currentTerm).

## Fix
FIXED (verified 2026-07-02): src/lib/raft/raft.c:832 has `if (reply_term != s->term)` guard before tallying, with an on_trace("vote_reply_stale_drop", ...) at raft.c:455 — exactly the fix this bug's own second entry described. Landed under raft-sim-conformance / raft-commit-safety (both implemented, 18/18 + 23/23 tasks).

## Verification
_Not recorded (migrated from buglog.json)._

## References
- Related: bug-1095, bug-851