On Election Day, a copy of the final voters’ list for the electoral district must be available at the voting station. This is an absolute necessity, and plans should ensure that the requirement is met. How it is met may vary. In some countries the local electoral offices are responsible for compiling the preliminary list, recording changes, finalising and printing the final list. The task is thus highly decentralised, although consistent standards apply across the country, and the final list doesn't need to be distributed, since it has been created locally. Other countries take a more centralised approach to the list production, necessitating appropriate methods for distributing lists to local offices. Increasingly lists are distributed via electronic data transfer facilities, using either wire-based transmission, wireless or satellite communications. However, some countries still print the lists centrally and distribute the printed copies to local offices. Whatever the distribution method, security of transmission is essential in order to maintain the integrity of the voter registration system.
Use of the Voters List by Parties and Candidates
For the election management authority, the voters list provides definitive statements on voting eligibility for each person listed. For political parties and candidates, it provides the names and contact information (normally addresses) of all persons eligible to vote in the approaching election. Political parties and candidates usually undertake significant canvassing efforts, contacting voters to identify who will support them and distributing campaign literature.
Canvassing also gives parties and candidates an opportunity to solicit volunteer help or financial support for their election campaign. This is one reason for obtaining voters’ mailing addresses at the time of registration. Frequently the residential address is the same as the mailing address but this is not always so, especially in rural areas. Canvassers sometimes ask voters whether they are willing to have a campaign sign placed on or near their home, or to canvass their neighbours and friends on behalf of the candidate or party.
Parties and candidates use modern techniques to determine the likelihood that a voter will support them in the election. Voters may be identified as very likely, possible or very unlikely supporters which will make the candidate's campaign strategy differ for each category. Committed supporters, for example, often receive reinforcing information. A more aggressive approach may be taken for possible supporters, including a personal visit from the candidate where possible. Voters unlikely to support a candidate may be ignored altogether, in the hope that little contact will make them less interested in the election and possibly less likely to participate. Parties and candidates also offer assistance, including transportation to the polls, for voters who are identified as likely supporters.
Parties' and Candidates' Contribution to the Voters List
Campaigns in many democratic countries have both centralised and decentralised features and they may have significant national and local impact. National campaigns may be conducted through major media outlets, such as radio, television and newspapers; they make no use of a voters lists. For the local campaigns, however, the key element is often door-to-door canvassing and the voters list is an important aid. As a result, parties and candidates may be active and often welcome contributors to the process of creating a final voters list.
The parties’ role in list review and revision must be treated cautiously by the election management authority. While making use of the information parties can provide, electoral administrators must be wary of relying on people with a partisan interest.
Timing for the production of a voters list is a significant factor for many political parties. Parties and candidates typically receive a preliminary voters list early in the campaign and use it for campaign purposes. The final voters list may be printed too late for parties to make much use of it. But it enables them to check whether changes that they requested to the preliminary list have been made. It also provides an opportunity for the parties to formally endorse the quality of the list.
