Ballot box
Encyclopedia
A ballot box is a temporarily sealed container, usually square box though sometimes a tamper resistant
bag, with a narrow slot in the top sufficient to accept a ballot paper
in an election
but which prevents anyone from accessing the votes cast until the close of the voting period. It will usually be located in a polling station
although in some countries, notably Ireland
and Russia
, there may also be ballot boxes that are taken to people's homes where they would otherwise be unable to travel to the polling station. When very large ballot papers are used, there may be a feeder mechanism to assist in the deposit of the paper into the box.
Transparent ballot boxes may be used in order for people to be able to witness that the box is empty prior to the start of the election (i.e. not stuffed with fraudulent votes
).
At the close of the election all boxes can be taken to a single location for tallying (The count) and the result declared. Alternately the boxes can be tallied at the polling station
, with individual stations announcing their results to be tallied (known as precinct count).
Ballot boxes are in some jurisdictions obsolete, because of the increase in paperless electronic voting
.
The word ballot derives from voting systems based upon the use of a small ball instead of a voting paper: see blackball
.
The first British secret ballot
using ballot papers and a ballot box was held in Pontefract
on 15 August 1872, under the terms of the recently-enacted Ballot Act 1872
. In a ministerial by-election following his appointment as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
, Hugh Childers
was re-elected as MP for Pontefract
. The original ballot box, sealed in wax with a liquorice stamp, is held at Pontefract museum.
Tamper resistance
Tamper resistance is resistance to tampering by either the normal users of a product, package, or system or others with physical access to it. There are many reasons for employing tamper resistance....
bag, with a narrow slot in the top sufficient to accept a ballot paper
Ballot
A ballot is a device used to record choices made by voters. Each voter uses one ballot, and ballots are not shared. In the simplest elections, a ballot may be a simple scrap of paper on which each voter writes in the name of a candidate, but governmental elections use pre-printed to protect the...
in an election
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
but which prevents anyone from accessing the votes cast until the close of the voting period. It will usually be located in a polling station
Polling station
A polling place or polling station is where voters cast their ballots in elections.Since elections generally take place over a one- or two-day span on a periodic basis, often annual or longer, polling places are often located in facilities used for other purposes, such as schools, churches, sports...
although in some countries, notably Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, there may also be ballot boxes that are taken to people's homes where they would otherwise be unable to travel to the polling station. When very large ballot papers are used, there may be a feeder mechanism to assist in the deposit of the paper into the box.
Transparent ballot boxes may be used in order for people to be able to witness that the box is empty prior to the start of the election (i.e. not stuffed with fraudulent votes
Ballot stuffing
Ballot stuffing is the illegal act of one person submitting multiple ballots during a vote in which only one ballot per person is permitted. The name originates from the earliest days of this practice in which people literally did stuff more than one ballot in a ballot box at the same time...
).
At the close of the election all boxes can be taken to a single location for tallying (The count) and the result declared. Alternately the boxes can be tallied at the polling station
Polling station
A polling place or polling station is where voters cast their ballots in elections.Since elections generally take place over a one- or two-day span on a periodic basis, often annual or longer, polling places are often located in facilities used for other purposes, such as schools, churches, sports...
, with individual stations announcing their results to be tallied (known as precinct count).
Ballot boxes are in some jurisdictions obsolete, because of the increase in paperless electronic voting
Electronic voting
Electronic voting is a term encompassing several different types of voting, embracing both electronic means of casting a vote and electronic means of counting votes....
.
The word ballot derives from voting systems based upon the use of a small ball instead of a voting paper: see blackball
Blackball (blacklist)
Blackballing is a rejection in a traditional form of secret ballot, where a white ball or ballot constitutes a vote in support and a black ball signifies opposition. This system is typically used where a club's rules provide that, rather than a majority of the votes, one or two objections are...
.
The first British secret ballot
Secret ballot
The secret ballot is a voting method in which a voter's choices in an election or a referendum are anonymous. The key aim is to ensure the voter records a sincere choice by forestalling attempts to influence the voter by intimidation or bribery. The system is one means of achieving the goal of...
using ballot papers and a ballot box was held in Pontefract
Pontefract
Pontefract is an historic market town in West Yorkshire, England. Traditionally in the West Riding, near the A1 , the M62 motorway and Castleford. It is one of the five towns in the metropolitan borough of the City of Wakefield and has a population of 28,250...
on 15 August 1872, under the terms of the recently-enacted Ballot Act 1872
Ballot Act 1872
The Ballot Act 1872 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that introduced the requirement that parliamentary and local government elections in the United Kingdom be held by secret ballot.-Background:...
. In a ministerial by-election following his appointment as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom that includes as part of its duties, the administration of the estates and rents of the Duchy of Lancaster...
, Hugh Childers
Hugh Childers
Hugh Culling Eardley Childers was a British and Australian Liberal statesman of the nineteenth century. He is perhaps best known for his reform efforts at the Admiralty and the War Office...
was re-elected as MP for Pontefract
Pontefract (UK Parliament constituency)
Pontefract was an English parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Pontefract in the West Riding of Yorkshire, which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons briefly in the 13th century and again from 1621 until 1885, and one member from 1885 to 1974.-In the unreformed...
. The original ballot box, sealed in wax with a liquorice stamp, is held at Pontefract museum.