Solving Voter Confusion
You can find almost anything online, but until recently, that didn't include voting locations. The Pew Charitable Trusts has chipped away at the problem with its Voting Information Project, providing polling place and ballot info for voters nationwide in 2012. Pew is also working with Google and other tech companies to automate the process in the next two to three years, so jurisdictions will be able to update their own voting info. Pew is also working with EngageDC on a feature called ElectionDesk to allow jurisdictions to get instant feedback from voters using social media. Problems can be fixed even before the media starts widely reporting them. (Forget "I voted" stickers; now you get a hashtag.)
It's unknown how VIP has affected voter turnout, but there were over 25 million look-ups in '12, David says. VIP tries to reduce problems like long lines caused by people going to the wrong polling place. New Jersey and New York used it after Hurricane Sandy forced many polling places to move within days of the election. With such a mobile population, Pew has also worked with states to improve voter registration. Many are now sharing data on people who have moved or died and are building online registration systems. David says seven states and DC will have more accurate voter lists than ever before because of Pew's Electronic Registration Information Center, or ERIC.
