Examples are disclosed for using or designing Chien search circuitry to locate errors for error correction code (ECC) encoded data. In some examples, an error locator polynomial (ELP) may be received that indicates a number of possible error locations for ECC encoded data. Chien search circuitry may be designed such that error locations are found based on the received ELP within one or more passes through the search circuitry. The design of the Chien search circuitry to accommodate both an average expected number of error locations for received ELPs and a worst case number of error locations for received ELPs. Other examples are described and claimed.