Traditional voting procedures during an open town meeting can be problematic and painfully time-consuming. With advances in technology, many towns are making the switch to electronic voting systems for their annual meetings. Here is a recap of traditional town meeting voting methods and their respective issues:
Standing Votes:
Standing votes require an extended period of time for tabulation. They are not private and are subject to errors during the longer counting period. In some cases, voters may refuse to participate in town meetings because they feel pressured or fear reprisal from neighbors, customers, co-workers, or others in attendance. Some voters are physically challenged and cannot stand, or get tired and sit before being counted. Standing counts can produce other inaccuracies as people move about, arrive, or depart during a vote.
Raising Hands:
Voting by raising hands, or the use of voting cards, has problems similar to standing counts. Votes are not private and are subject to counting and tabulation errors. For example, people can raise both of their hands while voting. Some voters get tired and raise or lower their hands in ways that can confuse tellers.
Voice Votes:
Voting via acclamation, or stating “yes” or “no” at the same time, is inaccurate because some people speak more loudly or softly than others. Voices may also trail off before they reach the front of the room; this gives those in closer rows a greater chance of influencing the perceived outcome. These factors make it almost impossible for a moderator to assess all votes equally and accurately on close questions. Voice votes are also not private.
Paper Ballots:
Paper ballots are a powerful tool since they provide the privacy so many voters desire. However, they are the most time consuming method. Votes must be written, collected, tallied, and verified. There are opportunities for lost ballots and tabulation errors which can significantly delay the deliberative process.
The Solution: Electronic Voting
Fast- Electronic voting with wireless handsets is fast. State of the art response systems gather data from the audience every 3 seconds. The entire audience typically responds in about 30 seconds and results are tabulated immediately. There is no time wasted with standing counts, or collecting and tabulating paper ballots.
Private- Electronic voting systems maintain voter privacy. There is no need for standing, speaking, or raising hands. Not only does this make voting easier for those with physical challenges, but it prevents anxiety and fear of reprisal when votes are disclosed. Electronic voting ensures that responses are more genuine and align with the true sentiments of the participants. This helps to create higher response and attendance rates by eliminating fears associated with disclosing votes on controversial matters.
Secure- Electronic voting with an audience response system is secure. Each vote is transmitted via encrypted wireless transmission and confirmed back to each voter on the handset display. (e.g. YES Received, NO Received). Radio signals are encrypted using special algorithms. Every transmission uses Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS) protocols that make it very hard to hack or interfere with the system.