Voter Registration

Topic IndexContinuous Register - Advantages

The continuous list offers a number of advantages as follows:

The voters’ list is kept current because it is updated regularly;
The list can be open for public inspection at all times of the year, not only during a specified period;
Since the list is always ready, there is never any particular problem in the timing of a general or partial election (i.e. a by-election to fill a vacated seat in the legislature);
The final voters’ list can be prepared more quickly. Usually there is a revision period during an election campaign to ensure that every eligible person has the opportunity to be included on the voters’ list. With a periodic list, the campaign period may be used for the development of the initial voters’ list, as well as for the revision and production of the final list. With a continuous register, the initial list is generally taken to be the list in place at the outset of the election campaign. As a result, the official election period can be shortened by the time that would have been required to develop an initial voters’ list;
Changes and corrections can be made throughout the year and not only during registration drives. This lessens time pressure and can be expected to enhance the accuracy of a continuous list;
Use of a continuous list is not necessarily a less costly method of registration. Still, it provides opportunities for efficiencies in the creation of a voters’ list – for example, through information sharing;
A continuous list can be used for other purposes, such as industry elections in Australia, the forming of jury pools in the United States or guidance in electoral districting;
With a continuous list, voter registration rates may be higher because registration is performed on an ongoing basis. On the other hand, many jurisdictions have found that continuous lists are no more complete than lists developed through registration and may actually be less complete;
On the criterion of currency, performance varies considerably for different types of continuous registers. Those that seek to update voter information more frequently may be expected to be more current at any time. Note that the revision period has a major impact on currency. If voters can register on Election Day, either a periodic list or a continuous register may have a high effective currency rate since voters are able to report any change in status at the elections;
In federal systems, continuous lists allow the different levels of government to share information, minimising duplication. However, different levels of a federal system may use differing voter registration methods. For example, at the federal level, Canada maintains a continuous register but some Canadian provinces use periodic lists; as opposed to Nigeria which maintains a continuous voters’ register at both national and state level.
The cost of registering voters is spread across the entire period from one election to the next, allowing for consistent budget planning. But there is still likely to be a cost spike at the time of an election or a registration drive; and
Because work is spread throughout the electoral cycle, funding doesn't need to rise steeply in any particular year or at any specific time.

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Voter Registration