Written Ballot Be Done Using MS Forms

[Guest Joe_K]

Hi!

Suppose that bylaws allow for a vote, which is usually done by voice/hand vote, to be done by "written ballot" if requested by a member.  My understanding is that this request is done to make the vote secret.

My question is, can a tool like MS Forms be used instead of actual paper/pencil?  The mechanics of MS Forms allows for anonymous voting and it saves on paper waste.  Also, it would required (of course) that all members present have the ability to access the MS Form to have the ability to vote.

Thanks for any help that you can offer...I just stumbled on this forum while searching for the answer to my question.

[Gary Novosielski]

First of all, a "written ballot" still requires that all voters be physically present at a particular place.  Absentee voting, even though in written form, is still prohibited unless the bylaws specifically authorize it, and provide the rules that apply to it. So you may be dead in the water right there.  But if you are talking about using it in a physical meeting, that might work.

Still, it's unusual that a web form would be completely untraceable, but if it really can satisfy the secrecy requirement, so far so good.  Note that a written ballot must allow for write-in votes, so the form would have to allow for that, and yet prevent overvoting.

A problem still arises that unless the voting occurs in a controlled environment where poll workers can verify and record the identity of each voter (recording the fact that they have voted, but of course not the way they have voted), the secrecy makes it difficult to ensure that only eligible members can cast votes, and that no member can cast more that one without being detected.  

Edited September 12, 2023 at 04:21 PM by Gary Novosielski

[Josh Martin]

On 9/12/2023 at 9:21 AM, Guest Joe_K said:

Suppose that bylaws allow for a vote, which is usually done by voice/hand vote, to be done by "written ballot" if requested by a member.  My understanding is that this request is done to make the vote secret.

My question is, can a tool like MS Forms be used instead of actual paper/pencil?  The mechanics of MS Forms allows for anonymous voting and it saves on paper waste.  Also, it would required (of course) that all members present have the ability to access the MS Form to have the ability to vote.

Potentially, yes. I am not familiar with the capabilities of MS Forms and cannot say for certain, but this is what RONR says in regard to electronic voting methods satisfying a requirement in the bylaws for a ballot vote:

"Voting by ballot (also known as secret ballot) is used when secrecy of the members' votes is desired. A ballot vote is a vote taken by instruments, such as slips of paper or electronic devices, by which members can indicate their choices without revealing how individual members have voted. On a ballot vote in an election or other vote involving multiple possible choices, members are able to write in or fill in a vote for any eligible person or choice and are not confined to voting for or against candidates that appear on the ballot." RONR (12th ed.) 45:18

"In many organizations—especially in those comprising hundreds of voters—the process of verifying and counting votes is greatly simplified by the use of electronic or mechanical voting devices, such as handheld keypads or standalone voting machines. The use of such devices to conduct voting may be directed by a special rule of order or convention standing rule or, for a particular vote, by a motion relating to methods of voting and the polls (30). Their use to fulfill a ballot requirement in the bylaws may be directed in the same manner, provided that the devices meet the criteria for a ballot vote as stated in 45:18. Members must be able to indicate their choices without revealing how they have voted. If the devices are to be used for an election, provision must be made to allow voters to cast write-in votes. If the devices are to be used to conduct voting on several questions or several independent offices simultaneously, then they must be programmed to allow the number of votes cast for purposes of computing the majority to be tallied independently for each question or office (see 45:36)." RONR (12th ed.) 45:42

There are some who argue that the use of the word "written" precludes the use of an electronic ballot. I do not personally agree with that view. RONR does not address that question, and that will ultimately be a question for the society to interpret.

[J. J.]

On 9/12/2023 at 3:16 PM, Josh Martin said:

 

There are some who argue that the use of the word "written" precludes the use of an electronic ballot. I do not personally agree with that view. RONR does not address that question, and that will ultimately be a question for the society to interpret.

 

I agree with Mr. Martin, but more emphatically. 

A ballot with the name of a candidate on it is a "written ballot."  How the voter indicates a vote for that candidate, e.g. putting an X in ink, punching a hole, flipping a switch, or using a mouse or keyboard, to indicate the vote, does not change the character of it being a written ballot.

That said, I agree with Mr. Novosielski.  Unless the bylaws say otherwise, the ballot would have to be secret, cast by the voter at a designated polling spot, and permit write-in votes.