diff --git a/changelog/15042.txt b/changelog/15042.txt
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..77c5a8582
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelog/15042.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+```release-note:improvement
+storage/raft: Use larger timeouts at startup to reduce likelihood of inducing elections.
+```
diff --git a/go.mod b/go.mod
index 0e52e381d..f1915bfc4 100644
--- a/go.mod
+++ b/go.mod
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ require (
 	github.com/hashicorp/golang-lru v0.5.4
 	github.com/hashicorp/hcl v1.0.1-vault-3
 	github.com/hashicorp/nomad/api v0.0.0-20211006193434-215bf04bc650
-	github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.3.3
+	github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.3.9
 	github.com/hashicorp/raft-autopilot v0.1.3
 	github.com/hashicorp/raft-boltdb/v2 v2.0.0-20210421194847-a7e34179d62c
 	github.com/hashicorp/raft-snapshot v1.0.4
diff --git a/go.sum b/go.sum
index d02475d7d..4588d1f69 100644
--- a/go.sum
+++ b/go.sum
@@ -938,8 +938,8 @@ github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.0.1/go.mod h1:DVSAWItjLjTOkVbSpWQ0j0kUADIvDaCtBxIcb
 github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.1.0/go.mod h1:4Ak7FSPnuvmb0GV6vgIAJ4vYT4bek9bb6Q+7HVbyzqM=
 github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.1.2-0.20191002163536-9c6bd3e3eb17/go.mod h1:vPAJM8Asw6u8LxC3eJCUZmRP/E4QmUGE1R7g7k8sG/8=
 github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.2.0/go.mod h1:vPAJM8Asw6u8LxC3eJCUZmRP/E4QmUGE1R7g7k8sG/8=
-github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.3.3 h1:Xr6DSHC5cIM8kzxu+IgoT/+MeNeUNeWin3ie6nlSrMg=
-github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.3.3/go.mod h1:4Ak7FSPnuvmb0GV6vgIAJ4vYT4bek9bb6Q+7HVbyzqM=
+github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.3.9 h1:9yuo1aR0bFTr1cw7pj3S2Bk6MhJCsnr2NAxvIBrP2x4=
+github.com/hashicorp/raft v1.3.9/go.mod h1:4Ak7FSPnuvmb0GV6vgIAJ4vYT4bek9bb6Q+7HVbyzqM=
 github.com/hashicorp/raft-autopilot v0.1.3 h1:Y+5jWKTFABJhCrpVwGpGjti2LzwQSzivoqd2wM6JWGw=
 github.com/hashicorp/raft-autopilot v0.1.3/go.mod h1:Af4jZBwaNOI+tXfIqIdbcAnh/UyyqIMj/pOISIfhArw=
 github.com/hashicorp/raft-boltdb v0.0.0-20171010151810-6e5ba93211ea h1:xykPFhrBAS2J0VBzVa5e80b5ZtYuNQtgXjN40qBZlD4=
diff --git a/helper/testhelpers/testhelpers.go b/helper/testhelpers/testhelpers.go
index 5eb848265..c1b1397c3 100644
--- a/helper/testhelpers/testhelpers.go
+++ b/helper/testhelpers/testhelpers.go
@@ -212,7 +212,7 @@ func deriveStableActiveCore(t testing.T, cluster *vault.TestCluster) *vault.Test
 	activeCore := DeriveActiveCore(t, cluster)
 	minDuration := time.NewTimer(3 * time.Second)
 
-	for i := 0; i < 30; i++ {
+	for i := 0; i < 60; i++ {
 		leaderResp, err := activeCore.Client.Sys().Leader()
 		if err != nil {
 			t.Fatal(err)
@@ -238,7 +238,7 @@ func deriveStableActiveCore(t testing.T, cluster *vault.TestCluster) *vault.Test
 
 func DeriveActiveCore(t testing.T, cluster *vault.TestCluster) *vault.TestClusterCore {
 	t.Helper()
-	for i := 0; i < 20; i++ {
+	for i := 0; i < 60; i++ {
 		for _, core := range cluster.Cores {
 			leaderResp, err := core.Client.Sys().Leader()
 			if err != nil {
@@ -329,7 +329,7 @@ func WaitForNCoresSealed(t testing.T, cluster *vault.TestCluster, n int) {
 
 func WaitForActiveNode(t testing.T, cluster *vault.TestCluster) *vault.TestClusterCore {
 	t.Helper()
-	for i := 0; i < 30; i++ {
+	for i := 0; i < 60; i++ {
 		for _, core := range cluster.Cores {
 			if standby, _ := core.Core.Standby(); !standby {
 				return core
@@ -564,7 +564,7 @@ func WaitForRaftApply(t testing.T, core *vault.TestClusterCore, index uint64) {
 
 // AwaitLeader waits for one of the cluster's nodes to become leader.
 func AwaitLeader(t testing.T, cluster *vault.TestCluster) (int, error) {
-	timeout := time.Now().Add(30 * time.Second)
+	timeout := time.Now().Add(60 * time.Second)
 	for {
 		if time.Now().After(timeout) {
 			break
diff --git a/physical/raft/fsm.go b/physical/raft/fsm.go
index ab8d75a6f..1f322610b 100644
--- a/physical/raft/fsm.go
+++ b/physical/raft/fsm.go
@@ -784,7 +784,15 @@ func (f *FSM) Restore(r io.ReadCloser) error {
 
 	snapshotInstaller, ok := r.(*boltSnapshotInstaller)
 	if !ok {
-		return errors.New("expected snapshot installer object")
+		wrapper, ok := r.(raft.ReadCloserWrapper)
+		if !ok {
+			return fmt.Errorf("expected ReadCloserWrapper object, got: %T", r)
+		}
+		snapshotInstallerRaw := wrapper.WrappedReadCloser()
+		snapshotInstaller, ok = snapshotInstallerRaw.(*boltSnapshotInstaller)
+		if !ok {
+			return fmt.Errorf("expected snapshot installer object, got: %T", snapshotInstallerRaw)
+		}
 	}
 
 	f.l.Lock()
diff --git a/physical/raft/raft.go b/physical/raft/raft.go
index 3a302f689..b53d7b02a 100644
--- a/physical/raft/raft.go
+++ b/physical/raft/raft.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"fmt"
 	"io"
 	"io/ioutil"
+	"math/rand"
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"strconv"
@@ -676,6 +677,7 @@ func (b *RaftBackend) applyConfigSettings(config *raft.Config) error {
 	// scheduler.
 	config.BatchApplyCh = true
 
+	b.logger.Trace("applying raft config", "inputs", b.conf)
 	return nil
 }
 
@@ -758,6 +760,7 @@ func (b *RaftBackend) SetupCluster(ctx context.Context, opts SetupOpts) error {
 		return false
 	}
 
+	var initialTimeoutMultiplier time.Duration
 	switch {
 	case opts.TLSKeyring == nil && listenerIsNil(opts.ClusterListener):
 		// If we don't have a provided network we use an in-memory one.
@@ -769,6 +772,19 @@ func (b *RaftBackend) SetupCluster(ctx context.Context, opts SetupOpts) error {
 	case listenerIsNil(opts.ClusterListener):
 		return errors.New("no cluster listener provided")
 	default:
+		initialTimeoutMultiplier = 3
+		if !opts.StartAsLeader {
+			electionTimeout, heartbeatTimeout := raftConfig.ElectionTimeout, raftConfig.HeartbeatTimeout
+			// Use bigger values for first election
+			raftConfig.ElectionTimeout *= initialTimeoutMultiplier
+			raftConfig.HeartbeatTimeout *= initialTimeoutMultiplier
+			b.logger.Trace("using larger timeouts for raft at startup",
+				"initial_election_timeout", raftConfig.ElectionTimeout,
+				"initial_heartbeat_timeout", raftConfig.HeartbeatTimeout,
+				"normal_election_timeout", electionTimeout,
+				"normal_heartbeat_timeout", heartbeatTimeout)
+		}
+
 		// Set the local address and localID in the streaming layer and the raft config.
 		streamLayer, err := NewRaftLayer(b.logger.Named("stream"), opts.TLSKeyring, opts.ClusterListener)
 		if err != nil {
@@ -902,6 +918,63 @@ func (b *RaftBackend) SetupCluster(ctx context.Context, opts SetupOpts) error {
 	// Close the init channel to signal setup has been completed
 	close(b.raftInitCh)
 
+	reloadConfig := func() {
+		newCfg := raft.ReloadableConfig{
+			TrailingLogs:      raftConfig.TrailingLogs,
+			SnapshotInterval:  raftConfig.SnapshotInterval,
+			SnapshotThreshold: raftConfig.SnapshotThreshold,
+			HeartbeatTimeout:  raftConfig.HeartbeatTimeout / initialTimeoutMultiplier,
+			ElectionTimeout:   raftConfig.ElectionTimeout / initialTimeoutMultiplier,
+		}
+		err := raftObj.ReloadConfig(newCfg)
+		if err != nil {
+			b.logger.Error("failed to reload raft config to set lower timeouts", "error", err)
+		} else {
+			b.logger.Trace("reloaded raft config to set lower timeouts", "config", fmt.Sprintf("%#v", newCfg))
+		}
+	}
+	confFuture := raftObj.GetConfiguration()
+	numServers := 0
+	if err := confFuture.Error(); err != nil {
+		// This should probably never happen, but just in case we'll log the error.
+		// We'll default in this case to the multi-node behaviour.
+		b.logger.Error("failed to read raft configuration", "error", err)
+	} else {
+		clusterConf := confFuture.Configuration()
+		numServers = len(clusterConf.Servers)
+	}
+	if initialTimeoutMultiplier != 0 {
+		if numServers == 1 {
+			reloadConfig()
+		} else {
+			go func() {
+				ticker := time.NewTicker(50 * time.Millisecond)
+				// Emulate the random timeout used in Raft lib, to ensure that
+				// if all nodes are brought up simultaneously, they don't all
+				// call for an election at once.
+				extra := time.Duration(rand.Int63()) % raftConfig.HeartbeatTimeout
+				timeout := time.NewTimer(raftConfig.HeartbeatTimeout + extra)
+				for {
+					select {
+					case <-ticker.C:
+						switch raftObj.State() {
+						case raft.Candidate, raft.Leader:
+							b.logger.Trace("triggering raft config reload due to being candidate or leader")
+							reloadConfig()
+							return
+						case raft.Shutdown:
+							return
+						}
+					case <-timeout.C:
+						b.logger.Trace("triggering raft config reload due to initial timeout")
+						reloadConfig()
+						return
+					}
+				}
+			}()
+		}
+	}
+
 	b.logger.Trace("finished setting up raft cluster")
 	return nil
 }
diff --git a/vault/external_tests/raft/raft_autopilot_test.go b/vault/external_tests/raft/raft_autopilot_test.go
index 8e7f930b7..87daa0224 100644
--- a/vault/external_tests/raft/raft_autopilot_test.go
+++ b/vault/external_tests/raft/raft_autopilot_test.go
@@ -42,6 +42,9 @@ func TestRaft_Autopilot_Stabilization_And_State(t *testing.T) {
 		DisableFollowerJoins: true,
 		InmemCluster:         true,
 		EnableAutopilot:      true,
+		PhysicalFactoryConfig: map[string]interface{}{
+			"performance_multiplier": "5",
+		},
 	})
 	defer cluster.Cleanup()
 
@@ -55,6 +58,23 @@ func TestRaft_Autopilot_Stabilization_And_State(t *testing.T) {
 	require.Equal(t, "alive", state.Servers["core-0"].NodeStatus)
 	require.Equal(t, "leader", state.Servers["core-0"].Status)
 
+	writeConfig := func(config map[string]interface{}, expectError bool) {
+		resp, err := client.Logical().Write("sys/storage/raft/autopilot/configuration", config)
+		if expectError {
+			require.Error(t, err)
+			return
+		}
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		require.Nil(t, resp)
+	}
+
+	writableConfig := map[string]interface{}{
+		"last_contact_threshold":    "5s",
+		"max_trailing_logs":         100,
+		"server_stabilization_time": "10s",
+	}
+	writeConfig(writableConfig, false)
+
 	config, err := client.Sys().RaftAutopilotConfiguration()
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 
@@ -126,6 +146,25 @@ func TestRaft_Autopilot_Stabilization_And_State(t *testing.T) {
 	state, err = client.Sys().RaftAutopilotState()
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 	require.Equal(t, []string{"core-0", "core-1", "core-2"}, state.Voters)
+
+	// Now make sure that after we seal and unseal a node, the current leader
+	// remains leader, and that the cluster becomes healthy again.
+	leader := state.Leader
+	testhelpers.EnsureCoreSealed(t, cluster.Cores[1])
+	time.Sleep(10 * time.Second)
+	testhelpers.EnsureCoreUnsealed(t, cluster, cluster.Cores[1])
+
+	deadline := time.Now().Add(2 * time.Minute)
+	for time.Now().Before(deadline) {
+		state, err = client.Sys().RaftAutopilotState()
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		if state.Healthy && state.Leader == leader {
+			break
+		}
+		time.Sleep(time.Second)
+	}
+	require.Equal(t, true, state.Healthy)
+	require.Equal(t, leader, state.Leader)
 }
 
 func TestRaft_Autopilot_Configuration(t *testing.T) {
diff --git a/vault/external_tests/sealmigration/seal_migration_test.go b/vault/external_tests/sealmigration/seal_migration_test.go
index 97d1929b6..8edec949e 100644
--- a/vault/external_tests/sealmigration/seal_migration_test.go
+++ b/vault/external_tests/sealmigration/seal_migration_test.go
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ import (
 type testFunc func(t *testing.T, logger hclog.Logger, storage teststorage.ReusableStorage, basePort int)
 
 func testVariousBackends(t *testing.T, tf testFunc, basePort int, includeRaft bool) {
-	logger := logging.NewVaultLogger(hclog.Debug).Named(t.Name())
+	logger := logging.NewVaultLogger(hclog.Trace).Named(t.Name())
 
 	t.Run("inmem", func(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Parallel()