Archive for 2012

Geographic information systems (GIS) are becoming more and more valuable to election offices. Los Angeles County’s Ken Bennett’s GeekNet presentation highlights why (and how) GIS is poised to help election administrators do their jobs.

Maricopa County, Arizona has upgraded its provisional ballot process to handle the large volume of such ballots – a classic example of a bigger county using bigger resources to make a big job more manageable.

Dana Chisnell’s recent presentation on web design is a useful reminder to look past age and demographics to the things that really matter when users interact with technology.

From electionlineWeekly June 14, 2012 – “News Roundup: 2012 has been a litigious year”

Even as work continues to improve voting technology, voters’ best defense against problems at the polls is to be prepared in advance.

Phoenix city councilmembers are divided on whether to file suit against a newly-enacted election consolidation law which would put local and state elections on the same calendar.

Controversy over a church sign at a New Hanover County, NC polling place has led to a new policy regarding messages at such sites. This is potentially important given new research that suggests that “contextual priming” can have a powerful effect on elections.

Redistricting’s effect on election administration – a process I call “52 pickup” – is on in earnest in Kansas after a court-ordered plan was released late last week. Brian Newby’s ElectionDiary gives us a front-row seat in Johnson County.

A red pickup truck has become a “star witness” in a Spokane County, WA dispute about the residency of a candidate for County Commission. These fights illuminate the power of domicile to amuse – and confound – in the workings of the election process.

A vignette from yesterday’s Wisconsin recall highlights what happens when the moving parts in an election don’t quite come together.