Civic design
Designs the touchpoints between citizens and democratic life, such as ballots, forms, election information and government procedures.
What problem it addresses
A confusing ballot or a poorly designed form can cause a vote not to count or someone not to receive what they are entitled to.
Principles
Plain language
Understood the first time.
For everyone
Accessible to anyone with the right to take part.
Tested with voters
Usability testing also serves democracy.
Applications in design
Use it like this
Test ballots and forms with real voters before using them.
Avoid
Approving a ballot just because it complies with the law.
Don’t fall for it
A design error in an election cannot be fixed afterwards.
Connections
Authors and works
- 2013
Whitney Quesenbery and Dana Chisnell
Wrote and edited the Center for Civic Design guides for designing ballots, signs and election forms that respect the voter's intent.
Sources
Original sources
- Chisnell, D., & Quesenbery, W. (2013). Field guides to ensuring voter intent (Vol. 1: Designing usable ballots, and following). Center for Civic Design. View source: Chisnell, D., & Quesenbery, W. (2013)
Last reviewed: