Ballot and election design

AIGA Design for Democracy began to focus on election design in the wake of the 2000 presidential election, seeking to apply information design principles of clarity and simplicity in order to make voting easier and more accurate for all U.S. citizens. Design for Democracy developed solutions for subsequent elections in Illinois (Cook County and Chicago) and Oregon, as well as election design guidelines for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). In 2005, Design for Democracy began work with the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), resulting in the establishment of national ballot and polling place design guidelines in 2007, which were distributed to 6,000 election officials across the country in 2008.

Design for Democracy continues to work with states and local election jurisdictions to empower designers, election officials, local legislators, election equipment providers and printers to use these guidelines. Results are achieved through:

• The Election Design Fellows program
• Dissemination of the top 10 election design guidelines, also demonstrated in this NYTimes.com interactive op-ed
• Distribution of Design for Democracy advisor Marcia Lausen’s book, Design for Democracy: Ballot and Election Design (University of Chicago Press/AIGA)
• Participation in national meetings of election officials, such as those organized by the Election Center and the International Association of Clerks, Recorders, Election Officials and Treasurers (IACREOT)
• Workshops and individual consultations with local election officials, election equipment providers, ballot printers and legislators

View before and after comparisons, among Design for Democracy’s collection of ballot design samples, to see results on ballots from across the United States.

Read about Design for Democracy's partnership with the EAC in Interactions magazine and view the complete project case study along with the resulting report and samples.

Put Design for Democracy’s guidelines to use

AIGA encourages all states and election jurisdictions to hire professional designers, who may be found through AIGA’s Election Design Fellows program, the AIGA Designer Directory or the AIGA Design Jobs board. Designers are encouraged to adapt Design for Democracy’s detailed ballot and polling place design guidelines and top 10 election design guidelines to local ballots, polling place signs, voter registration forms and other election materials, with respect to local laws, equipment and budgets.

Design for Democracy is also available to consult with local election officials, election equipment providers, ballot printers and legislators interested in updating election laws. Contact Design for Democracy for additional information.