This question is posted by ACE on behalf of Jonathan Mellon.

Original Question:

I am an academic conducting research on electoral registers and their effects on official turnout figures. I am interested in finding any measurements of register accuracy and completeness across different countries, as well as current and historical estimates (including details of the definitions used). Answers to either question below are welcome, as are any examples and/or sources!

In countries where voter registration is derived from other sources, such as civil registers, are there separate measures of the accuracy and completeness of those other sources? 

In countries where the registers are now seen as highly accurate and complete, are there estimates of how accurate and complete the registers were under previous systems? If you do not have hard data, any approximate estimate of how accurate the registers are would be much appreciated.

Summary of Replies:

This question has garnered many resources from which to pull some information being sought, and there will be additional resources provided below, while there was less discussion surrounding the questions at hand. One practitioner provided many resources to consult regarding information on Columbia, more specifically the information surrounding procedures of Colombian elections and their results, statistics surrounding voters (and their eligibility), as well as information on the three large databases that make up the Registraduría Nacional, meaning the national civil registry. The three databases are the registry of births, the national identification database, and the archival data of previous votes.

For country to country comparisons, the ICTs in Elections Database linked below may be helpful, as well as the “Introducing Biometric Technology in Elections” publication, which includes case studies from Bangladesh, Fiji, Mongolia, Nigeria, Uganda, and Zambia.

You may also want to consult this previous consolidated reply on how public electoral registers are handled by EMBs.

Additional resources and databases you may wish to consult:

ICTs in Elections Database <https://www.idea.int/data-tools/data/icts-elections>.

The Electoral Management Design Database <https://www.idea.int/data-tools/data/electoral-management-design>.

 “Introducing Biometric Technology in Elections.” International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, Guide (2017): https://www.idea.int/publications/catalogue/introducing-biometric-technology-elections

Smith, Christopher. “How Complete is the Electoral Register?” Political Studies 29, no. 2 (1981): 275-278.

Rosenblatt, G., P. Thompson, D. Tiberti, and on behalf of the Electoral Commission. “The Quality of the Electoral Registers in Great Britain and the Future of Electoral Registration.” Parliamentary Affairs 65, no. 4 (2012): 861-876.

James, T. S. “The Spill-Over and Displacement Effects of Implementing Election Administration Reforms: Introducing Individual Electoral Registration in Britain.” Parliamentary Affairs 67, no. 2 (2014): 281-305.

Mann, Christopher B. and Lisa A. Bryant. “If You Ask, they Will Come (to Register and Vote): Field Experiments with State Election Agencies on Encouraging Voter Registration.” Electoral Studies (2019).

Contributing members:

Francisco Barrera

LES EXTRAÑABA ESPERO APORTAR CON MIS CRITERIOS Y APORTES.

deseo un año nuevo lleno de éxitos.

Adjunto Link de estadísticas y de resultados de votación en Colombia:

https://www.registraduria.gov.co/-Historico-de-Resultados-

https://www.registraduria.gov.co/-Presidencia-.html

https://www.registraduria.gov.co/-Historico-de-Resultados,3635-.html

Estadísticas de censo electoral en Colombia (documentos por lugar aptos para votar)

https://www.registraduria.gov.co/-Censo-Electoral,3661-.html

Estas cantidades salen del archivo general de ciudadanos colombianos mayores de 18 años que tienen derecho al voto (es una sub base de datos)

En la Organización Electoral Colombiana (Registraduria Nacional), se tienen tres grandes bases de datos

1.       Archivo del Registro Civil de Nacimientos (Registro Civil Colombiano), tiene las bajas por muerte o por cambios de sexo o cancelaciones por aspectos legales.

2.       Base de datos o Archivo Nacional de Identificación, en el cual se encuentran todos los nacionales colombianos mayores de 18 años que tienen documentos de identidad ID.

3.       Archivo general del censo de Votación, el cual es un subproducto del archivo de Identificación con las personas que tienen derecho a votar y con la identidad del lugar de votación.

Adicional a lo anterior se tienen los archivos de estadísticas electorales y de inscripción, que son los primeros Link que le adjunto.

Saludos.