Key Considerations: Evaluation of System

Last updated on December 17, 2013

For Implementing Bodies

• Is a comprehensive post-election system of evaluation in place, and are the responsibilities for this evaluation clearly defined (for example, between project management committee, another oversight body, or independent consultants)?
• Are resources available to commission post-election surveys and focus groups to collect information about voters’ experiences using the technology?
• Does the evaluation focus on the original objectives of the project, and to what extent they have been achieved with the adoption of the electronic voting or counting system?
• Are issues such as efficiency, usability, accessibility, accuracy, security, and cost among others considered in the evaluation?
• Are the number of complaints received about the electronic voting or counting system and the nature of these complaints also evaluated?
• Will interviews be conducted with voters, election officials at various levels, candidate and party representatives, election observers and journalists?
• Will post election evaluation reports serve as the basis for post-election roundtable discussions among stakeholders about the project?
• How will the findings from the evaluation be used to improve the process in the future, in time for the next election cycle?

For Oversight Actors

• Does the evaluation of the electronic technologies involve a broad range of stakeholders, including election officials, party representatives, observers, and voters?  
• Are evaluation reports made available to the public?
• Have election officials facilitated any post-election dialogues or other mechanisms to provide stakeholders an opportunity to offer recommendations for future improvements?
• Is there an EMB mechanism in place for tracking the implementation of stakeholder and evaluator recommendations ahead of the next election cycle?
• Have oversight actors evaluated their own efforts to monitor the new technologies and have they shared their findings with the EMB and the public?
• Are oversight actors preparing to assess and adapt their own methodologies in relation to future electronic voting and counting implementation plans?