About the provisional ballot suite - Virginia …€¦ · Web viewProvisional voting is mandated by HAVA and required by election code in Virginia. HAVA’s requirements allow people

Before-and-AfterVirginia Provisional Ballot Suite

Before-and-After

ContentsAbout the provisional ballot suite...................................3Before...........................................................................4Envelopes 4Notices 6Provisional Ballot Log 8

After...........................................................................10Envelopes 11Notices 15Log 18

Virginia Provisional Ballot Suite | 2Center for Civic Design | February 28, 2018

Before-and-After

About the provisional ballot suiteProvisional voting is mandated by HAVA and required by election code in Virginia. HAVA’s requirements allow people to vote who arrive at a polling place but are not on the voter roll, or have requested an absentee ballot but don’t have it (among other situations). The local electoral board reviews the qualifications of the voter to determine whether to count the votes cast provisionally.

Likewise, Virginia requires voters to present proper identification to vote. If people arrive at a polling place without proper identification, they can vote provisionally and supply their ID later to the General Registrar or the local electoral board.

As the federal and state requirements are slightly different, this generates 2 envelopes, 2 notices to people who vote a provisional ballot, and a log to track provisional ballots issued and counted.

The pieces must work together in the polling place, so it made sense to review and revise them together.

The envelopes hold the ballot private, collect information about the voter, and show instructions for the poll worker to properly process the ballot.

The notices give the voter instructions on how to ensure that their votes are counted. The log is a tool for poll workers to inventory and track the custody of provisional ballots.

It also documents whether each provisional ballot was counted and why or why not.


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BeforeThe materials in use currently are not well integrated with one another. They look and read like contracts. They’re difficult to understand for voters and poll workers, and may contribute to confusion at the polls about when and how to administer a provisional ballot.

They lack uniformity in their design and titles are not helpful in matching envelopes to notices.

EnvelopesThe line lengths and small type make it difficult to read and follow instructions. Content for the voter is intermixed with content for the poll worker. Information such as gender is not necessary for transacting the adjudication.

Figure 1 HAVA provisional ballot envelope. The bottom pane is printed on the flap side of the envelope.


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Figure 2 ID-only provisional ballot envelope. The bottom pane is printed on the flap side of a business-size envelope.


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Notices The notices are dense and complicated, making it hard for poll workers to find what they need in the moment. The writing is beyond the reach of most adult readers, especially when they are in a fraught, confusing situation. It includes passive voice, which makes it difficult for the reader to determine who is taking action (or needs to take action). It is not easy for voters to find and follow instructions for their next steps.

Figure 3 HAVA provisional voting notice, which includes lengthy descriptions of several reasons for issuing a provisional ballot.


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Figure 4 Notice for missing voter ID, which leaves some of the most important information for last, in a box that may be ignored.


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Provisional Ballot LogThe July 2014 version of the Provisional Ballot Log was difficult to use, and the data entered was often incorrect or incomplete. The long line length and wordiness of the instructions made it difficult to read and understand them – and to follow them in the right places at the right times.

This log has multiple users: the poll worker on Election Day, the team doing canvass, and the electoral board. It failed all of those audiences in several ways. As mentioned, it’s difficult for poll workers to get the data entry correct. For canvassers, the audit trail wasn’t always easy to follow. For the electoral board, the right information wasn’t present when they needed it most.

Challenges with current form

Not enough room for all information Missing information Overall confusion Does not match the envelopes Certain voter information needs to be easily redacted but this is difficult in the existing

format


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Figure 5 Provisional Ballot Log, with copious instructions that are difficult to follow.


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AfterIn approaching the revision, we first wanted to resolve issues on the envelopes. Among them:

It was difficult to tell who should be providing which information – the voter or the poll worker.

Some information collected from the voter was unnecessary to adjudicating the eligibility of the voter.

The instructions to poll workers were not clear.

We also wanted to apply best practices for communicating clearly and for writing procedures. We have a Field Guide To Ensuring Voter Intent that specifically addresses procedures for poll workers. It’s based on work done at NIST. The pared down guidelines from Vol. 04 are:

1. Address one group of readers at a time.

2. Focus on poll workers’ tasks.

3. Describe tasks, not equipment.

4. Write directly to readers.

5. Put steps in the order in which they must be completed.

6. Put warnings before – not after consequences.

7. Put information in a step in the order needed.

8. Use graphics to illustrate actions.

9. Design pages (and forms) for use in the polling place.

10. Test procedures with poll workers.

In addition, we applied best practices from Field Guides Vol. 01, 02, and 10. Key guidelines include these:

Use lowercase letters. Avoid centered type. Pick one sans serif font. Support process and navigation. Use clear, simple language. Show what’s most important. Put instructions where they’re

needed. Include information that will prevent

errors. Write short sentences. Use short, simple everyday words. Write in active voice.

Write in the positive. When giving instructions that are

more than one step, make each step an item in a numbered list.

Keep paragraphs short. Be clear about what users can do

with the form. Make sure users understand the

fields on the form. Make it possible to answer every

question on the form. Make the layout neat and tidy. Make the space for the answer fit the

format.


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Make legal text easier to read. Make signature fields stand out. Put instructions and error messages

where they will be noticed.

Tell users what to do with the form when they’re done.

Watch people filling in the for

Envelopes By Virginia law, the provisional ballot envelopes must be green.

The revised envelopes have been reconfigured to put information from the voter on one side and information for the poll worker on the other. We simplified the instructions and made them active voice, following best practice for writing procedures. We also removed extra wording and clarified the different reasons for issuing provisional ballots.

We moved the voter data entry to the front of the envelope, oriented vertically. We also incorporated best practice forms design, a clean sans serif typeface, and a visual scheme that makes it easy to tell what is important and what isn’t.

The envelopes include elements that have proved to be helpful in getting users to do the right thing at the right time. Most notable are the signature boxes that include large Xes in them.

Figure 6 HAVA provisional ballot envelope, revised, front, for the voter to fill out.


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The back of the envelope is for poll workers and the electoral board. It is oriented horizontally. Changes include simplified instructions for poll workers, and checkboxes for reasons to issue a provisional ballot that are keyed to both the notice and to the provisional ballot log.

Figure 7 HAVA provisional ballot envelope, revised, back, for election officers and electoral board to use.


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The front of the ID-only envelope is similar to the HAVA envelope, but includes an instruction at the top that distinguishes it from the HAVA envelope (in addition to the color).

Figure 8 ID-only envelope, revised, front, for the voter to fill out.


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The back of the envelope, again, is for poll workers and the electoral board, and includes instructions specifically for processing provisional ballots for voters who have arrived at the polling place without proper identification.

Figure 9 ID-only envelope, revised, back, for election workers and electoral board.


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Notices We rewrote the notices to include legal requirements, while at the same time orienting the content to the reader, who is the voter. The notices explain what happened and why, along with what to do.

There are small, but clear, pointers for poll workers in the title of the notice and a gray box that is just for them.

We also tried to include visual cues to remind poll workers which notice should be used for which purpose. The notice with the horizontal box has reasons for the HAVA notice; the notice with the vertical box has information about voter ID for the Virginia voter ID notice.

These documents are templates that GRs must tailor for their locality and each election. The highlighted fields show what needs their specific information.


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Figure 10 HAVA Provisional Voter Notice, revised.


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Figure 11 Virginia Voter-ID only Voter Notice, revised.


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Log To improve the usability, efficiency, and effectiveness of the provisional ballot log, we took this approach:

Separate information that needs to be redacted. Reduce questions by election officers. Create space that fits expected information. Fit information collected on provisional ballot envelopes.

In addition, we

Wrote the reasons/codes in plain language. Matched up the wording with the envelopes and notices. Added lines for voter names. Separated tasks by time of day. Put instructions near where they are needed. Maximized the space for logging information. Emphasized where the form was to be stored when completed. Moved totaling to the top of the form for easy reference later in the process. Moves notes to a place where the personal information can be covered (or redacted).

Although we have tested this form in localities, it will continue to need some refinement as we learn more about how it is used in the field.

In addition, we consider this a template that GRs can tailor to the locality and the type of election.


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Figure 12 Provisional Ballot Log, revised.


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5443 Tates Bank RoadCambridge, MD 21613

[email protected]


Documents

About the provisional ballot suite - Virginia …€¦ · Web viewProvisional voting is mandated by HAVA and required by election code in Virginia. HAVA’s requirements allow people