Voters have revealed their preference for a new single ballot paper for Scottish Parliamentary elections as part of research conducted for the Electoral Commission.

Voters in Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness were given five different designs of ballot papers to try out and were asked for their views. The preferred design was chosen by 46% of those interviewed, a number far higher than for any of the other designs. The overwhelming majority of respondents (87%) supported a ballot paper that incorporates both the constituency and regional votes on a single page.

The Commission undertook this research at the request of the Scotland Office, which has recently held a public consultation into the design of ballot papers for Scottish Parliamentary elections. 

The preferred ballot paper design contained all of the following elements:

• Two ballots side-by-side with the regional vote on the left and the constituency vote on the right.
• The constituency vote column and the regional vote column in different colours
• The corresponding parties for each vote next to each other
• The party logo to the right of the party name for both columns
• The vote-box to the right of the party logo for both columns

There was strong preference for having the two colours to show that there are two separate votes.  Voters also felt that having the regional vote column on the left was the most logical. 

Our research has shown that a single ballot paper for Scottish Parliamentary elections is the preferred choice with the voters that we interviewed. said Andy ONeill, Head of the Electoral Commissions Scotland Office.

Although this may not be the final design, it does give us a clear indication of the sort of ballot paper that people would find easiest to use.

The final decision on the design of ballot papers rests with Scotland Office Ministers. Scottish Executive Ministers are also currently separately considering the design of the Scottish local government ballot paper.