The Polling Locator Tool and Election Day

VIP supported 6 elections on November 8th. Over 60 different media outlets embedded the Google gadget to empower their viewers with information on where to vote. Resulting in a couple hundred thousand people using the polling locator tool on websites across the country.

Over 20 newspapers, 10 blogs, 5 candidates, 5 issued based organizations, 5 political parties, 5 county and board of elections, and multiple local TV stations embedded the VIP tool. The success of the gadget this election season, and the variety of websites that used it, highlights how people seek polling location information in various ways.

The Google gadget was used across states that were filled with races the entire county was watching this election season. In Ohio, the gadget was used by both the We Are Ohio Campaign and the Ohio Republican Party. In Virginia, over 20 different websites used the device to support the state legislature elections. Mississippi’s election was the focus of the national attention as citizens voted on the state’s “Personhood” Law. Newspapers, like The Sun Herald and The Dispatch, used the gadget to provide readers support in finding their polling locations.

What we learned this off season election supports the data found that voters seek out information from a range of sources. A way to ensure citizens have access to the ballot box is to put election information in places people frequent. The Voting Information Project is working to provide citizens with more Internet resources on how to engage in elections. Throughout the next year, please check back to find information about upcoming primaries and how you can support VIP.

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