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Statistical Techniques

Elections and Technology —Elections and Technology. Elections and Technology Index. Elections and Technology Quiz. The introduction of information and communications technologies (ICT) into the electoral process is generating both interest and concern among voters, as well as practitioners across the globe. Today, most electoral management bodies (EMBs) around the world use new technologies with the aim of improving the electoral process. These technologies range from the use of basic office automation tools such as word processing and spreadsheets to more sophisticated data processing tools, such as data base management systems, optical scanning and geographic information systems. Some of these tools have been available for some time and their strengths and weaknesses are well known.

Every year, however, new technologies and tools that are not as well known are introduced to the market. As this is being written, for instance, there are several voting systems in use that automate the recording and/or counting of votes cast. Other systems verify voter eligibility and voter authentication.

Some countries are also experimenting with Internet voting as a way to facilitate voting and to increase voter participation in elections. All of these efforts aim to ensure the credibility of the democratic process and the reliability of elections results.

While these technologies open up new frontiers and offer new possibilities for the electoral process, especially for voting operations, there may be unforeseen risks involved, such as an increase in vote selling or difficulty in auditing election results. Careful consideration also needs to be given to the risks of inappropriate or untimely introduction of technology, especially if it has the potential to compromise transparency, local ownership or sustainability of the electoral process. However, the aim of the Elections and Technology topic area is to introduce technologies that have an impact on a variety of activities related to the administration of elections. Overview of Elections and Technology. Why . Technology is used, for example, to compile voter lists, to draw electoral boundaries, to manage and train staff, to print ballots, to conduct voter education campaigns, to record cast votes, to count and consolidate vote results and to publish election results. The appropriate application of technology to elections can increase administrative efficiency, reduce long- term costs and enhance political transparency.

Technologies used for elections can include familiar and older ones like printing presses, ball point pens, manual typewriters, electronic calculators and radios, or newer technologies like computers, optical scanners, digital mapping and the Internet. The logistics of modern large- scale elections can be a considerable challenge for countries without access to technology. The complexity level of technology used for the administration of elections around the world varies enormously. The rate of technological change is so high that election management bodies (EMBs) must regularly re- evaluate their use of technology to determine whether they should adopt new or updated technology to improve their performance.

This Elections and Technology (ET) topic area aims to assist EMBs in this task by: describing technologies that are currently being used for electoral processespresenting guidelines for the evaluation, choice and implementation of new technologiesproviding examples of so- called best practices in the use of technology as well as examples where technology has not lived up to expectationsexamining some of the emerging technologies and trends to identify those that may apply to elections in the near future. The ET topic area is different from the other topic areas included in the Administration and Cost of Elections (ACE) Project.

While the other topic areas cover specific aspects of the election process, the ET topic area covers technology appropriate to those topic areas. The use of technology in elections is not an end in itself, but assists in the various aspects of electoral administration. For example, electronic database management systems can be used in several components of the election process, such as voter lists, material inventories, personnel management, payroll, election results dissemination and statistics. To relate the use of technology to specific election processes, the ET topic area contains links to relevant topic areas on the ACE Project website and to the Internet. The meaning of . This broad definition can cover any manufactured item, so a more limited definition is adopted to consider items directly relevant to election administration.“New technology” can mean new in one place and old in another, in addition to being an evolving concept.

The Gutenberg printing press, wristwatches, manual typewriters and ball point pens were once considered new technology when they were developed, but in the 2. But there are other technologies used in elections that do not directly involve computers, but rather new materials, such as cardboard, fibreglass and plastic used in polling equipment. Within this topic area “technology” may refer to existing or so- called old technology, as well as emerging or developing technology. It may include computer hardware and software, other electronic equipment, mechanical devices and some materials. References might also be made to non- electronic innovations and techniques with specific electoral applications. The main focus is on practical issues such as the type of technologies that are currently in use around the world and guidelines for the implementation and maintenance of technologies.

Implementing technology for election administration. On the process of implementing specific technologies for elections administration, there are a few considerations to take into account, some common to any implementation of technologies others more specific to the electoral process: Elections can be a high risk activity . Unlike other applications of technology, where systems can be introduced gradually with extended testing and implementation schedules, many election systems are used for the first time on Election Day and, therefore, must work correctly or the entire election may be jeopardized.

An electoral management body needs to consider the upgrade of existing technology versus the introduction of new technology. Thorough evaluations are necessary to avoid incurring high costs for relatively minor improvements. Depending on the application, it may be more appropriate to continue using the existing system. This leads to the consideration of the cost- effectiveness of implementing a new technology. Mcafee Error Product Rejected The Update Request on this page.

Evaluation studies of costs and savings associated with introducing technology need to take into consideration, not only the initial costs involved in purchasing equipment and materials, but also the cost of setting up the new system, additional expertise and the need for ongoing maintenance and management. Adopting technologies that can become quickly obsolete or unusable may prove expensive and unsustainable in the long- term. Some technologies are changing at such rapid rates that it is almost impossible to avoid short- term obsolescence. In this case, it is important to study existent technology standards and trends in order to adopt protective measures that can decrease both the impact of future versions or systems and technical incompatibilities. Personal computer processing power is a good example of how . In addition, other alternatives such as leasing equipment rather than purchasing, might be considered to optimize the use of resources.

To determine the appropriateness of implementing new systems with new technologies, other factors such as the local physical environment and infrastructure need to be considered. A country with an intermittent power supply, for example, may not be an appropriate location for implementing a wide area network of personal computers that require a reliable power source.