Is ballot length such a big deal?
The expected increase in paper ballot length due to the inclusion of independent candidates, as well as the relative position of each candidate on the physical ballot, will definitely influence political campaigning and voter behaviour.
Apart from the ballot design needing to mitigate counterfeits, the longer physical voting ballots will increase ballot production costs and may intimidate voters. A recent study of voting in the Philippines (where some ballots were 7-feet long) exposed an unintended consequence of these absurd ballot lengths. Voters experienced cognitive overload which increased voter tension particularly amongst the elderly, illiterate or special needs voters.
Does candidate position matter?
Recent research suggests that this ballot choice fatigue, or "roll-off", impacts participation because voters are less likely to choose a candidate positioned further down the ballot. According to findings, choice fatigue roll-off reduces voter turnout by 6-8%.
"Research showed that ordering the candidate or party name alphabetically resulted in unintentional candidate bias. Some electoral boards mitigate this bias through straw polls, party membership size and party performance in previous elections."
Is it time to move to digital voting?
To mitigate the primary effect strategy in paper-based voting, experts have suggested ballot rotation which randomizes candidate positioning. However, this rotation is a major printing production challenge that increases costs considerably.
This sets the stage for a radical new approach: E-voting. E-voting is the electronic means of capturing a vote and/or the electronic means of counting or tabulating votes. A nation is most fragile between the time voting starts and the results are announced. E-voting offers speed and eliminates this period.
E-voting recovers after the US debacle
In the aftermath of the 2020 American Presidential elections, e-voting suffered serious international reputational damage. However, court findings that the machines were not rigged have counterintuitively enhanced the reputation and reliability of e-voting systems.
Is it time to cross the digital bridge?
E-voting is capable of randomizing candidates, with easy searchable navigation of large candidate lists and tailored navigation to help voters with disabilities. Young voters are also more likely to engage meaningfully with a digital voting process than a paper one.
The key challenges, however, are the high capital costs, grid unreliability, and the need to change the voting ecosystem. Whether we like it or not, we live in an instant, digital world. We want instant results. Any delay in results generates suspicion of electoral interference.
