What we’ve learned about designing for new voting methods

July 28, 2026

These new ways of voting bring promise of a stronger democracy, but also require new and sometimes unfamiliar ballot designs.

Information gaps can become lost votes

August 30, 2013

3 out of 16 people in our research wanted to vote, but were not able to because of gaps in information about elections.

Center for Civic Design Research Report - Updates from the front line of civic design research

Answering voters’ questions on websites

August 6, 2013

When links, labels, and headings on websites match how voters talk and think, they find what they’re looking for, and they are less likely to call asking questions.

Election vocabulary voters don’t get — and what to do about it

August 5, 2013

Our research and that of others who study people with low literacy and reading disabilities tell us that simplicity rules.

Helping voters who have extraordinary abilities

May 14, 2013

A talk about the research watching ordinary people with extraordinary abilities who work around their limitations in their daily lives interact with the Anywhere Ballot.

Voters in minority counties less likely to find answers on local election websites

March 21, 2013

Research insight: Mostly-minority counties’ election websites consistently had fewer key words that would help voters find answers

Rapid, responsive, radical: The Anywhere Ballot is born

February 23, 2013

The genesis of the Anywhere Ballot project: What if anyone could vote on any device?

Ballots are made by laws and systems — and miracle workers

October 9, 2012

A ballot seems like a straightforward thing to design. Then comes something unpredictable.

If it’s not usable, it’s not secure

August 9, 2012

Preliminary insights from exploratory research about how voters use ballots that include alternative counting methods.

A better ballot for New York

August 2, 2012

In 2010, New York State used paper ballots for the first time. Unfortunately, a NY League of Women Voters survey...

Plain language is a process

July 11, 2012

There are great lists of guidelines and tips for writing in plain language, but when you are faced with making...

What can you learn from usability testing in the civic space?

April 11, 2012

A look at how usability testing helps answer questions for better election design.

Usability matters – even with paper ballots

February 2, 2012

An message on a ballot scanner doesn't explain that an overvote will not be counted - potentially leading to many lost votes.

Initial observations and insights about ranked choice voting from a flash usability test

January 9, 2012

Participants voted on the Alameda County demonstration ballot and the Portland, Maine ballot from 2011.

Solving the double vote problem in New York State through design

November 29, 2011

Overvotes, double votes and other challenges of switching from lever machines to paper ballots.

Flash usability testing for double votes in New York

November 18, 2011

Flash testing gathered data about how voters mark ballots where the same candidate can appear on more than one party line.

Why is it so hard to produce a usable, well-designed ballot?

March 7, 2011

Although the butterfly ballot became the emblem for bad ballot design, we continue to see ballot design problems

New York should have piloted their new voting system

November 8, 2010

Our thoughts: why didn't New York test their new ballot?

Testing ballots: Real names or fictional? Direct how to vote or not?

May 9, 2009

Why fictional-but-realistic ballots work best for usability testing.

Text on the left or right – which works better?

September 30, 2008

A usability test compared two ballots to see which one worked better for voters.

Style Guide for Voting System Documentation at NIST

September 19, 2008

Research on how to write a manual for poll workers setting up and running voting systems