Arizona Electoral Ballot
GIT Capstone Project
2018
2018
Literature Review
User Research
User Research
Whitepaper
Mockup
Mockup
As a capstone project for the Graphic Information Technology degree at Arizona State, I researched paper electoral ballots for a case study on methods for more effective, accessible voting.
Focusing on pen-and-paper ballots rather than alternatives such as electronic or internet voting allowed me to step outside digital user experience design and consider more physical ways the UX discipline can improve usability.
Focusing on pen-and-paper ballots rather than alternatives such as electronic or internet voting allowed me to step outside digital user experience design and consider more physical ways the UX discipline can improve usability.
User Research
I conducted a cross-sectional survey of voting-aged Arizona citizens to get an idea of their opinions on what was difficult about voting for them.
Additionally, I had respondents rank-sort various voting schemes from the past such as checkboxes and bubbles.
Clearer directions and improved legibility were highly desired, and checkboxes were the most popular format.
On-site Research
In order to understand the limits of printing and scanning paper ballots, I spoke with Kevin Runbeck of Runbeck Election Services︎︎︎, Maricopa County’s ballot provider.
I got an in-depth overview of the functions of the various markings found on current ballots and their purpose in sorting and aligning ballot sheets, which informed my final mockup.
Artifacts
My final submission includes a paper in which I recommended ballot best practices as informed by literature review, my original research, and in consideration of current printing and sorting techniques.
Read Whitepaper︎︎︎
