Online voting ramps participation by almost 10 per cent in Markham
How to get younger citizens to vote? It’s a question political watchers obsess about, and one answer may be to implement online voting.
A report on Markham, Ont.’s 2006 e-voting pilot for its municipal election concluded online voting engages typically apathetic and difficult-to-reach citizens in the democratic process. The Understanding the Digital Voter Experience report (www.delvinia.com/egov), prepared by Delvinia Interactive, the town’s digital agency for the 2006 election, concludes the benefits outweigh the risks associated with voting online. Among the report’s findings: > 91 per cent of those who voted online said they would be “very likely” to vote online in the future > one in five Markham online voters said they did not vote at all in the 2003 municipal election > 88 per cent of online voters cited “convenience” as their primary motivation > Markham saw online voting jump 48 per cent to 10,639 online ballots in 2006 from 7,210 in 2003 > this contributed to an overall 2006 voter turnout of 37.6 per cent, well above the typical 28 per cent for a municipal election > 90 per cent of 2006 Markham online voters would be “very likely” to vote online if it was offered in a provincial election, while 89 per cent would do so for a federal election.
“As politicians harness the power of the Internet to reach voters through Web sites, e-mail and blogging, why are citizens still forced to go offline to cast their ballots?” asked Adam Froman, president and CEO of Delvinia.
Bluetooth headsets are very useful - until you misplace them. When you lose the attractive little S-800, you use your phone to signal the headset to start buzzing.
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