It’s the GE season! This year’s election is a big deal for me because it’s my first time voting. I’m feeling a little overwhelmed trying to catch up with all the news, but otherwise real excited to be a tiny part of this! 🙂
Last week, I came across a meme on someone’s IG Story* which looked something like this:
I laughed at it for a while but then it occurred to me… it’s true that crosses are usually used to denote cancellations. So why is the cross (X), rather than the tick (✓) or circle (O), used to indicate voters’ intentions?
I tried googling for an answer but to no avail. Voting with the cross (X) seems to be a long-standing norm. I then wondered if some people actually mark their votes with ticks (✓), and if they do, were those votes considered valid? Here’s what I found:
This means that a tick (✓) or any sort of marking one makes would be considered valid as long as it is within the demarcated area and if the intention is clear!
While researching, I also came across a recount of a counting agent’s experience at a counting center. In the post, he mentioned an incident in another counting center where a ballot paper marked as in Example A (see below) was deemed valid. What’s more, the vote was awarded to the party with the cross (X) and not the tick (✓)! There were also a few other examples of markings overlapping the demarcated spaces.
While some people may genuinely not know the proper way to mark their votes, I’m guessing others may have intentionally doodled on their ballot papers to invalidate theirs. If so, it’s a problem if their ballot papers are instead deemed valid, unbeknownst to them.
I was curious about the design of the ballot paper because I’ve never seen one in real life. I also felt that it would be really interesting to see how the design of Singapore’s ballot paper has evolved over the years from our first election. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find much documentation on that other than a sample slip in 1959’s mock election (see the screenshot below), and a design update in 2015. I did however come across this fascinating read about early American ballots.
The 2015 ballot paper design update included changes such as:
- The inclusion of candidates’ photos (which was first introduced in the 2011 Presidential Elections to generally positive feedback)
- White demarcated areas against a darkened background
- Wider gaps between the demarcated areas
- Being larger to accommodate the photos and wider margins
- Providing a self-inking X pen at the booth
These are really nice improvements that increase contrast and recognition so that the number of unintentionally spoilt votes can be reduced!
However, I noticed that there were no instructions on the ballot paper itself, nor were there any in the polling booths. The instructions for marking your vote with a cross (X) are only found in election posters and other informational collaterals and broadcasts. And even on those channels, examples of ballot papers which (contrary to popular belief) also count as valid votes weren’t shown.
Some might argue that showing an example of the voting slip might confuse voters on which box they should mark — they might see the upper box marked in the example and try to follow suit regardless of their intentions. However, I feel that this issue could easily be resolved by using just one fictional party like in Example B2 (see below).
Example B2 might not work simply because there are too many variations on what can be considered valid. The ambiguity of what is considered a valid vote was discussed in Parliament in 2018, during which Mr. Png Eng Huat and Mr. Dennis Tan pointed out the importance of having a clear set of rules for that purpose.
“How can we call ourselves a developed country if we cannot even define, in simple terms and without ambiguity, what is a valid vote?” — Png Eng Huat
My personal opinion on the simplest way to do away with ambiguity is to just set a strict rule on the marking and make that known — on the ballot papers and around the polling booths. Every other marking should therefore be rejected. But I also wondered if there are other less ambiguous means of mark-making that could replace the existing cross (X). Below are some ideas that came floating my way:
- Punching a hole with a single-hole punch (like train conductors used to do)
- Shading the option (like OAS or TOTO)
- Having the demarcated area as a scratch card
- Perforated ballot paper (like parking coupons) which has proven rather ineffective
- Perforated ballot paper (like those flyers with phone numbers), where the torn-out portion chip is placed into the ballot box and the rest of the paper is discarded
I also found this amazing resource detailing other forms of the ballot paper design.
Whichever ways ELD would be improving the ballot paper design in the future, I do hope that enough usability tests will be conducted before the changes are rolled out. Some thought should also go into ballot papers for the visually impaired.
From seeing a funny meme to doing a quick look at the UX of voting. This is why I love UX so much, it’s all around us 🙂
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*Unfortunately, I didn’t take a screenshot of the meme and I can’t remember which account it was and what’s the original source. Neither could I find it anywhere else afterward.
Originally published at http://fangsiqi.wordpress.com on July 8, 2020.
