Election Administration Data in the United Kingdom

Article Read time:
Projects: Election Initiatives
Election Administration Data in the United Kingdom

In the United States, the Election Assistance Commission collects data on the administration of federal elections through the Election Administration and Voting Survey (EAVS). Data from EAVS are essential to understanding how states and localities run elections and are a key part of Pew’s Elections Performance Index. On the other side of the Atlantic, the United Kingdom Electoral Commission gathers a large amount of similar elections data.

Both the U.K. and U.S. data sets include information on registered voters; total participation; and mail ballots sent, returned, and rejected. Although complete data from the May 2015 election are not yet available, those from previous U.K. elections show that, as in the U.S., voting by mail is on the rise, with nearly 1 in 5 ballots cast by mail in 2010, compared with 1 in 20 in 2001.

The U.K. Electoral Commission also collects data on the total overvotes and undervotes cast and the number of individuals who tried to register to vote after the deadline had passed. An overvote occurs when a person casts more than one vote in a single contest, and an undervote happens when a person does not vote for every contest on the ballot.

Data sets are available to download, and the commission issues a report describing and analyzing the data after each election, noting trends and changes. Additionally, the commission has conducted a number of public opinion surveys about voter experiences and detailed assessments of its voter registration system, and it has tackled the challenging task of estimating the total cost of running an election.

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
RELATED
Tags
Election administration
Projects
Election Initiatives
Places
United Kingdom

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

An adult and a child huddle in front of a laptop computer, their faces lit by the screen, with a room and bright windows behind them.

Article

November 27, 2023 Researchers Share How State Grants Boost Broadband Access
A group of teenagers gather in a park with bikes, their silhouettes in high contrast to the cloudy sky behind them.

Article

November 2, 2023 Insights on Brain Development Can Improve Youth Justice
Five video cameras on tripods stand in a line, with one reporter holding a camera slightly out of focus, all aimed at the same subject.

Article

October 6, 2023 Data-Based Journalism Needed to Advance Youth Justice

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.