Resources

Use our resource library to explore the latest research in the field of election science.

116 Resources

Philip B. Stark, Amanda K. Glazer, Jacob V. SpertusUniversity of California, Berkeley2021
Audits & Validating Elections Academic Papers

This paper shows how reporting data at the ballot-card level can reduce risk limiting audits sample sizes and improve audit efficiency.

Andrew Peterson, Jason Karlawish, Emily Largent2021
Usability & Accessibility Academic Papers

In this article, authors argue that supported decision making is ideal for people with dynamic cognitive and functional impairments that place them at the margins of autonomy. This research supports the idea that people with cognitive
disabilities can make important decisions such as voting while relying on trusted assistors in executing those decisions.

Jennifer MorrellDemocracy Fund2021
Audits & Validating Elections Reports

This report discusses ballot-accounting audits as a complementary check to tabulation audits, emphasizing reconciliation and chain of custody.

Patty Ferguson-Bohnee, James Thomas Tucker2020
Usability & Accessibility Issue Briefs

Authors describe the difficulties that vote-by-mail presents for Native American voters. Specifically, “members of the 574 federally recognized tribes” face barriers to political participation to a greater degree than any other racial or ethnic group. The authors also define measures that can be taken to level the field, all while respecting social distancing.

Enrico CantoniUniversity of Bologna2020
Usability & Accessibility Academic Papers

Cantoni examines the effect of voting costs - specifically distance to a polling location - on ballots cast. He finds that small increases in distance to a polling location reduce ballots cast. He also finds that during non-presidential elections, these effects are three times larger in high-minority areas than in low-minority areas.

Thessalia Merivaki, Daniel A. Smith2020
Usability & Accessibility Academic Papers

In this paper, Merivaki and Smith seek to examine who is more likely to cast a provisional ballot and why some provisional ballots are rejected. They suggest that beyond individual-level factors, there are administrative reasons why some prospective voters are more likely to be required to cast provisional ballots, and why some provisional ballots are rejected.

Andrew W. Appel, Richard A. DeMillo, Philip B. Stark2020
Audits & Validating Elections Academic Papers

In this paper, authors argue that risk limiting audits can verify tabulation of paper records but cannot by themselves ensure ballot marking device printouts reflect voter intent if voters do not verify them.

Lisa Schur, Douglas KruseRutgers University2020
Usability & Accessibility Reports

This report summarizes projections of how many people with disabilities would be eligible to vote in the November 2020 elections, using data from the Census Bureau’s 2014-2018 American Community Survey combined with Census Bureau population projections for 2020-2021. The report breaks down key demographic characteristics of eligible voters with disabilities.

Lynn Baumeister, Alex Haraseyko, Whitney QuesenberyCenter for Civic Design2020
Usability & Accessibility Reports

This report details the design and usability testing of an accessible ranked-choice voting ballot interface built to work for voters who are blind or very low vision, have limited or no use of their hands, or have cognitive or attention disabilities. Testing with participants with various disabilities found that no single design can be fully optimized for all modes, but a workable default is achievable.

Courtney L. Juelich, Joseph A. CollThe University of Iowa2020
Usability & Accessibility Academic Papers

This paper examines the factors underlying low turnout rates among youth voters. Using the 2004 - 2016 Current Population Survey, authors find that restrictive environments disproportionately hurt young voters by decreasing the probability they turn out by 16 percentage points, compared with older voters.

Jennifer MorrellDemocracy Fund2020
Audits & Validating Elections Reports

In this report, Morrell guides jurisdictions through planning and conducting risk limiting audits pilots, including stakeholder preparation, logistics, and post-pilot evaluation.

Enrijeta Shino, Daniel A. SmithUniversity of North Florida2020
Usability & Accessibility Academic Papers

In this paper, authors analyze the targeted adoption of early in-person voting on public colleges and university campuses. Using data from the 2018 general election in Florida, authors find uneven effects of the policy reform on overall turnout, but consistent evidence that the adoption of on-campus early voting impacts the timing and volume of voter turnout among this group.