Before proceeding with the design and implementation of a voter education program, election authorities may first turn to election legislation, where it exists, to determine who is entitled to egage in such activities. Even if the law is relatively explicit about what entities in society can conduct voter education or public information, and most laws are not, it may still be necessary to interpret the law in order to implement it.
Once it has been determined which entities have a legal obligation or the legal right to engage in voter education, the process of developing the goals, objectives, and parameters of a particular voter education programme will create opportunities to build coalitions, or create strategic alliances, within civil society and between civil society and responsible government agencies, such as the national election authority. By building partnerships, election authorities and civil society groups can reduce the overall cost of a voter education program while increasing its reach.
Agreement about goals, objectives, and parameters of a particular voter education programme may be achieved in one of two ways:
On the one hand, the election authority can determine these on its own and then try to sell them to those with whom they seek to collaborate. This approach often reveals disadvantages in terms of the time required to 'sell' the programme as well as a lack of a sense of 'ownership' among civil society groups and a difficulty in establishing a consensus and then maintaining it throughout the course of the programme. These disadvantages can ultimately lead either to resistance or resentment by civil soceity groups which in turn will adversely affect their perception of the election authority and undermine future attempts at strategic partnering.
On the other hand, the election authority can utilize a number of mechanisms to ensure early ownership and ongoing support of voter education programme. These may include:
- educator conferences
- consultative meetings
- interviews with civil society leaders
- wide and transparent distribution of draft and final electoral legislation and regulations
- timely provision of other documents likely to be of interest to educators such as press releases, poll worker training materials, and public information materials, for example, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Many authorities fear that these activities delay the process or, in the case of the provision of drafts, may lead to confusion. While there may be differences of opinion, however, or even public controversy, these measures often result in better law and better programmes in the end with savings in the time needed to convert people to the cause, to bring them 'up to speed' about the electoral process, or to adapt to the standards set by the programme. Time and effort invested early in the this process is often rewarded with success in the long run.
For more information or organizational arrangements for conducting voter education programmes, please refer to the section on Organisation.
