Transcript Accessibility of the Bi-lingual ballot: a survey of

Accessibility of the bi-lingual ballot:
A survey of Spanish and English speaking
eligible voters for the
Cuyahoga County Board of Elections
The Baldwin Wallace University
Community Research Institute
Report Highlights
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Survey project goals and strategies
Recommendations based on research findings
Survey respondent demographics
Respondent voting behaviors
Ballot design preferences
Outreach to voters and non-voters
Survey project goals
• Does the bi-lingual ballot help Spanish-speaking
citizens to vote?
• What outreach approaches will help increase
voter turnout among Spanish-speaking citizens?
• Would an alternative ballot design offered in
Spanish and English result in better usage by
Spanish speaking citizens?
• Does the current bi-lingual ballot design hinder
access by English-speaking citizens?
Data Gathering Strategies
• Walking survey of neighborhoods and public
gathering places with higher populations of
Hispanics: Clark-Fulton; Brooklyn Centre; Detroit
Shoreway; Ohio City
• Exit polling on Election Day (Nov. 5th)
• Phone survey of Cleveland west side residents
• Phone survey of registered voters across
Cuyahoga County
• Literature review of studies and surveys of
Hispanic voters across the U.S.
Exit Poll Survey Collection
bi-lingual stations=694 surveys
non-bilingual stations = 707 surveys
Map of Cleveland Near West Side
Community Survey Locations
Cuyahoga County Residential Landline Phone Survey
(11/12/13 – 11/26/13) 523 surveys completed
4.3% margin of error at 95% confidence level
Recommendations
Ballot Design
• Respondent Preference for Existing Bilingual Ballot Design:
based on the survey results, stay with the existing bilingual ballot.
• Side-by-Side Bilingual Ballot Option: If the side-by-side ballot
is considered, this will need further study, possibly through use of
focus group design to explore voter and non-voter perceptions in
more detail. Unfamiliarity with the design option may have
affected respondent perceptions.
• Separate Language Ballot: Received lowest level of preference
among overall respondents in three surveys. Did get more support
from Spanish-speaking respondents in community survey.
Recommendations
Voting Accessibility
• Voting Accessibility: increase outreach and publicity efforts
for elections that follow changes to voting locations. Monitor
parking accessibility during peak voting times. Consider
changing voting locations to provide better accessibility,
particularly concerning parking.
• Outreach to Eligible Voters: consider outreach to employers
with information about legal requirements for allowing time
for employees to vote. This may need to focus on employers
with shift work such as fast food restaurants and
manufacturing, in which shift assignments can become an
obstacle to voting. An alternative is to target new voters with
more information about early voting by mail.
Recommendations
Eligible Voter Outreach
• Language Outreach: work with grassroots organizations such as
Esperanza, El Barrio, the Hispanic Alliance, the Spanish-American
Committee, and the Hispanic Roundtable to disseminate information
about voting eligibility requirements and encourage and assist with
voter registration. To the degree that these efforts are already
occurring, they should be maintained and expanded.
• Voter Registration Outreach: Disseminate voter registration
materials at public schools and libraries, particularly for parents.
Consider including materials in student packets that are sent home from
schools. Use exterior signage and bulletin boards at libraries and
schools to post information about registration and voting locations,
process, and deadlines.
Survey demographics: Gender, Age
Gender
Male
Female
Age
Exit poll
survey
49%
51%
Community
survey
45%
55%
Community
survey
25%
County phone
survey
37%
63%
18-29
Exit poll
survey
7%
County phone
survey
3%
30-39
14%
28%
8%
40-49
20%
24%
15%
50-59
30%
14%
27%
60-69
20%
7%
18%
70 and
older
10%
1%
29%
Survey demographics: Education
Educational
attainment
Exit poll
survey
Community
survey
County phone
survey
Some high
school
High school
diploma
6%
22%
2%
23%
29%
23%
Some college
25%
21%
18%
2 year college
degree
13%
14%
13%
4 year college
degree
20%
10%
23%
Graduate
degree
13%
4%
21%
Survey Demographics: Ethnicity/Race
Exit poll
Race/ethnicity survey
Hispanic –
11%
Puerto Rican
Hispanic –
non-Puerto
Rican
Hispanic both
AfricanAmerican
Caucasian
Community
survey
47%
County phone
survey
1%
3%
24%
0.5%
1%
9%
0.5%
16%
8%
17%
61%
7%
78%
Multiracial
3%
4%
3%
AsianAmerican
Other
1%
2%
1%
4%
2%
n/a
Spanish Language Respondents: English Proficiency
Proficiency in conversation
Level of
Exit poll
selfSpanish
reported
responses
proficiency
Very well
58%
Community survey
English
responses
Community survey
Spanish
responses
87%
19%
Proficiency reading books,
news sources
Level of
Exit poll
selfSpanish
reported
responses
proficiency
Commun
-ity
survey
English
responses
Community survey
Spanish
responses
Very well
55%
84%
17%
30%
Pretty well
14%
14%
20%
2%
31%
A little
22%
1%
29%
205
292
Not at all
9%
2%
34%
Pretty well
16%
8%
20%
A little
19%
3%
Not at all
7%
N
103
Respondent Voting Registration and Voting Frequency
Voting registration and
County
participation in November 5th, phone
2013 election
survey
Registered to vote
95%
Voted in 11/5/13 elections
(% of those registered to vote)
Voting frequency
First time voting
73%
Community survey Community survey
English responses
Spanish responses
71%
55%
Exit poll survey Community survey
60%
51%
County phone survey
1%
3%
0%
22%
0%
6%
Have missed a few
elections
9%
18%
9%
Vote in most
elections
85%
19%
78%
No answer
2%
0%
7%
Vote in Presidential
elections only
Exit poll statistical significance: language (p=.007); age (p=1.601E-12); education (p=.003); ethnicity/race (p=3.60E-11)
Community survey statistical significance: age (p=.007); education (p=.003)
County phone survey statistical significance: age (p=2.112E-10); ethnicity/race (p=.000); region (p=.020)
Types of Respondent Voting Difficulties
Specific voting difficulties reported
Change in voting precinct/location
Facilities issues (parking, finding entrance,
lighting)
Difficulty using bilingual ballot
Ballot scanner issues
Difficulty understanding ballot directions
Difficulty understanding issue language
Incorrect/missing voter info
Lack of issue/candidate awareness
Handicapped accessibility
Disliked fill-in “bubble” format
Pens malfunctioning/missing
ID requirements
Problem with poll worker
Late mailing of absentee ballot/application
Ballot stub issues
Inconsistent procedures from year to year
Citizenship/resident status issues
Provisional ballot difficulties
Number
26
Percentage
17%
15
14
13
13
13
13
10
7
5
5
5
4
3
2
2
2
1
n=153
10%
9%
8%
8%
8%
8%
7%
5%
3%
3%
3%
3%
2%
1%
1%
1%
1%
Respondent Awareness of Voting Process
Respondent is aware Exit poll
of the following
survey
voting process factors
Community
survey (voters)
Community
survey (nonvoters)
County phone
survey
Bilingual ballot
N/A
71%
71%
64%
Early voting by mail
94%
77%
57%
97%
Early voting at the
Board of Elections
office
85%
68%
54%
81%
Respondent Voting Preferences
Respondent prefers
to vote in the
following manner
Exit poll
survey
Community
survey (voters)
Community
survey
(non-voters)
County phone
survey
At a polling location
on Election Day
82%
49%
51%
49%
At the Board of
Elections office
before Election Day
2%
20%
27%
2%
By mail before
Election Day
16%
31%
22%
49%
County phone survey statistical significance: age (p=.008); ethnicity/race (p=1.896E-07)
Ballot Design Preferences
Respondent ballot Exit poll survey Exit poll survey
preference
English
Spanish language
language
respondents
respondents
(8% of survey)
(92% of survey)
Keep existing
49%
49%
bilingual ballot
Exit poll survey
total
49%
Arrange English
and Spanish side
by side on ballot
18%
38%
20%
Provide separate
ballots in English
and Spanish
33%
13%
31%
Exit poll survey statistical significance: language (p=1.683E-07); age (p=.006); ethnicity/race (p=4.107E-12)
County phone survey statistical significance: ethnicity/race (p=.023)
Ballot Design Preferences:
Exit Poll Survey Respondents
Respondent ballot
preference
Exit poll survey
English
language
respondents
(92% of survey)
Exit poll survey
Spanish language
respondents
(8% of survey)
Exit poll survey
total
Keep existing
bilingual ballot
49%
49%
49%
Arrange English
and Spanish side
by side on ballot
18%
38%
20%
Provide separate
ballots in English
and Spanish
33%
13%
31%
Ballot Design Preferences:
Community Survey Voter Respondents
Respondent
ballot
preference
Community
survey:
English
language
voters
Community
survey:
Spanish
language
voters
Community
survey:
Either
language
voters
Community
survey: Total
voters
(72% of
survey)
Keep existing
bilingual ballot
37%
31%
35%
34%
Arrange
English and
Spanish side by
side on ballot
Provide
separate ballots
in English and
Spanish
N
31%
31%
36%
31%
32%
38%
29%
35%
142
153
60
355
Respondent Views About Ways That Help Voters to Vote
Ways to help voters to
vote
Community survey:
English language voters
Community survey:
Spanish language voters
County phone survey:
voters
Send information by mail
to my house about
elections
Distribute information at
local stores and businesses
in my neighborhood
64%
63%
74%
29%
24%
21%
Send text message to my
cell phone
Ads on radio
38%
25%
12%
29%
32%
25%
25%
43%
50%
13%
14%
27%
24%
N/A
19%
26%
32%
27%
32%
36%
46%
Ads in the Plain Dealer
Ads in La Prensa
Provide information
through bulletin of houses
of worship
Billboard ads on roads
near my house
Get information from
candidates and campaigns
who go door-to-door
Non-voter Respondents: Reasons for Not Voting
Community survey
Reasons for not voting
English
responses
Spanish
responses
Phone survey*
No language
differentiation
I don’t know if I am registered to vote
27%
33%
50%
It is difficult to get time off from work
to go and vote
I don’t know where to vote
27%
32%
38%
16%
18%
25%
16%
15%
13%
16%
12%
25%
7%
11%
0%
n=62
n=117
n=8
It is difficult getting transportation to
go and vote
I don’t know when to vote
It is difficult to arrange for childcare
so that I can go and vote
Percentages exceed 100% due to respondents choosing multiple options
*Note: The small numbers of responses to this question in the phone survey (n=8) renders these percentages statistically insignificant.
Non-Voter Respondents
Most Accessible Ways to Register to Vote
Locations for voter
registration identified
by non-voters as
easiest to access
Offices of the Board
of Elections
Public library
Public school
Offices of a
community
organization
Community service
provider (health
center; social services
office)
Websites of any of the
above types of
organizations
Community survey:
English language
non-voters
Community survey:
Spanish language
non-voters
County phone
survey: non-voters
26%
28%
24%
52%
50%
8%
56%
65%
13%
76%
57%
14%
4%
13%
10%
12%
19%
33%
Respondent Sources of News Information
Source of information
Exit poll
English
Spanish
responses
responses
Print newspaper
56%
42%
Local TV
Radio
National network news (e.g.,
Fox, CNN, MSNBC)
Websites
Social media
Friends, family, work
Spanish language sources
(e.g., Telemundo, La Prensa)
73%
47%
41%
62%
32%
39%
54%
31%
45%
N/A
(included in
national
network
responses)
n=1267
44%
24%
32%
N/A
(included in
national
network
responses)
n=112
Percentages exceed 100% due to respondents choosing multiple options
Community survey
Phone
English
Spanish
responses responses survey
43%
74%
50%
37%
37%
64%
56%
40%
45%
77%
50%
66%
48%
40%
35%
19%
48%
43%
67%
58%
54%
23%
54%
4%
n=203
n=294
n=518
Discussion