Voting Information Project Tool Helps Oregonians Find Ballot Drop-Off Locations

Article By: Alexis Schuler & Lester Bird Read time:
Projects: Election Initiatives
Voting Information Project Tool Helps Oregonians Find Ballot Drop-Off Locations

In advance of the May 17 presidential primary, the Oregon secretary of state’s office customized and embedded the Voting Information Project’s (VIP) Voting Information Tool to help voters find ballot drop box locations throughout the state. Elections in Oregon are conducted entirely by mail, but voters have the option to drop off their ballots at secure sites maintained by each county.

The Oregon secretary of state’s office had maintained a map of all the drop box locations in the state during previous elections, but this year it wanted to provide a tool with an intuitive mobile interface for voters who were looking for detailed elections information or needed to locate a drop box using their mobile phone or tablet. Voters were able to access the Voting Information Tool directly, but it also allowed state and county elections staff to more easily answer questions from individuals looking for voting information.

Between the launch on April 26 and the primary, the tool had 92,331 total page views on the secretary’s website, most of which (60,589) came on May 16 and 17. Nearly two-thirds were initiated from a smartphone or tablet. Before Election Day, 8.5 percent of total web traffic on the secretary of state’s main web page went to the look-up tool; on Election Day, that figure increased to 38 percent. 

VIP, an initiative of The Pew Charitable Trusts, in partnership with the states and Google, is working to ensure that U.S. voters have the information they need, such as where to vote and what’s on their ballots. The project uses the Google Civic Information Application Programming Interface (API) to power various tools and applications, including the Voting Information Tool, Get to the Polls, short messaging service (SMS) tool,* and white-label iPhone and Android applications, as well as candidate, campaign, and media websites.

* By sending a text message to Pew, you consent to receive voting information via texts from an automated system. This is a free service, but standard text message rates may apply. You may revoke consent by contacting Pew, including by texting STOP.

Alexis Schuler is the senior director and Lester Bird is a senior associate for election initiatives at The Pew Charitable Trusts.

Follow us on Twitter using #electiondata and get the latest data dispatches, research, and news by subscribing today.

America’s Overdose Crisis
America’s Overdose Crisis

America’s Overdose Crisis

Sign up for our five-email course explaining the overdose crisis in America, the state of treatment access, and ways to improve care

Sign up
Quick View
America’s Overdose Crisis

America’s Overdose Crisis

Sign up for our five-email course explaining the overdose crisis in America, the state of treatment access, and ways to improve care

Sign up
Voter Turnout
Voter Turnout
Article March 1, 2016

Election Dispatches

Election administration by the numbers
Quick View
Voter Turnout
Article March 1, 2016

Election Data Dispatches provides data, research and analysis about election administration in the U.S. While we link to external research data and other materials, we neither independently verify them, endorse the reports, nor affirm the authors' opinions.

RELATED
Tags
Election administration
Projects
Election Initiatives
Places
United States

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

A presentation being given by a businesswoman to a group of participants at a business conference.

Fact Sheet

April 12, 2024 Four Plan Features Can Boost 'Retirement Readiness'
An illustration of a couple holding hands walking away from an outline of houses behind them

Podcast

March 22, 2024 Pathways to Homeownership: Housing in America
A landscape with mountains and clouds. BLM Rule Puts Conservation, Other Land Uses on Equal Footing

MORE FROM PEW

A presentation being given by a businesswoman to a group of participants at a business conference. Four Plan Features Can Boost 'Retirement Readiness'
A large group of people in formal or traditional attire stands together on a stage, with a digital background depicting marine life and the large text “WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies.” WTO Needs to Redouble Its Effort on Fishing Subsidies
A man in a winter hat and sunglasses kneels on a rocky shoreline in front of a campfire, holding a metal mug with gloved hands. Behind him, in the water, a motorboat is moored to the shore. Cliffs rise on both sides of the water. Why Newfoundland’s South Coast Fjords Are Sacred
An illustration of a couple holding hands walking away from an outline of houses behind them Pathways to Homeownership: Housing in America
Composite image of modern city network communication concept

Learn the Basics of Broadband from Our Limited Series

Sign up for our four-week email course on Broadband Basics
Quick View

How does broadband internet reach our homes, phones, and tablets? What kind of infrastructure connects us all together? What are the major barriers to broadband access for American communities?

Pills illustration
Pills illustration

What Is Antibiotic Resistance—and How Can We Fight It?

Sign up for our four-week email series The Race Against Resistance.
Quick View
Pills illustration

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria, also known as “superbugs,” are a major threat to modern medicine. But how does resistance work, and what can we do to slow the spread? Read personal stories, expert accounts, and more for the answers to those questions in our four-week email series: Slowing Superbugs.