Engineering for Democracy - How do Engineers support voting in US elections?

Abstract

Every year, citizens across the U.S. participate in democracy through the seemingly simple act of voting. In reality, voting is a highly complex ecosystem. Constitutionally, the states are responsible for elections. Rather than a single set of election rules, election rules exist for each of the 3,000+ counties in the U.S. This complexity makes designing universal systems for election operations difficult, requiring significant effort to approve and implement even small changes. Despite this, those tasked with planning, operating, and designing elections are often under-resourced and overworked. Election administrators are required to master seventeen domains–with STEM-related aspects including designing ballots, training poll workers, allocating resources, accommodating citizens aged 18 and older while maintaining accessibility for those with physical and cognitive disabilities, and planning for in-person voting, vote-by-mail, and overseas voting. Despite these requirements, most election administrators are not trained designers, engineers, or experts in human factors, and their extensive workload limits their time to commit to any one task. Election administrators desperately need support, with many requesting help to no avail. Engineers have the capability and expertise to assist election administrators through the execution of research and direct collaboration in tackling challenges in planning and operating elections and related infrastructure. The Engineering for Democracy Institute is attempting to address this lack of participation by developing the STEM for Elections Network, a key pillar in growing the next generation of researchers. During this presentation, we hope to inspire others to see the systems of systems in elections, not just the winner.