THE ONE LAKH CHALLENGE
With its population of over 184 million, Election Day in Pakistan is one of the largest in the world. In 2013, nearly 86 million people were registered in 70,000 polling stations. In the next general elections expected to be in 2018, there may be over 100 million registered voters, and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will set up one lakh (100,000) polling stations, stretching from the dense urban neighbourhoods of Karachi to the remotest mountain villages of Chitral.
This is no small task. The ECP has to find 100,000 government buildings, such as schools, with space for hundreds of voters, observers, party agents, and staff. The buildings have to be secure, accessible, and have facilities such as water and electricity.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Where a polling station is located is a highly-contested aspect of elections in Pakistan as it is around the world. There can be a lack of clear information on polling locations or manipulation by returning officers. Research in other countries[1] has found that the distance between a voter’s home and the polling station can affect whether he or she will vote. And if polling station locations change frequently, voters may get confused and are less likely to cast their ballots.[2]
A BIRD’S EYE VIEW
With help from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) the ECP is taking advantage of the widespread use of smartphones to help voters, party agents, and observers find their polling stations with ease. By law, polling stations lists (called polling schemes) are finalized by returning officers in the weeks before the election. These paper lists are posted publically at the relevant offices. In recent elections, the Election Commission, NADRA, and the mobile operators have also collaborated to offer a highly-popular SMS service which voters can use to find out their polling station.
In the upcoming Islamabad Capital Territory local elections on 30 November, ECP and UNDP Pakistan collaborated to produce an interactive online map with accurate, and up-to-date locations of each polling station as well as a recent high-resolution photograph of the entrance. The data was collected using GPS-enabled smartphones under the supervision and direction of the returning officers, and integrated with the final polling scheme. The new web app, launched on 23 November, is an unpreceded increase in the transparency of the polling scheme.
By giving everyone a bird’s eye view on the polling map, the app makes the whole election more transparent and credible. Candidates can more easily raise concerns about polling station placements, the ECP can keep an eye on the work of returning officers, and the returning officers themselves can communicate any changes directly to the general public.
SCALING UP TO PAKISTAN
Building on the experience of the Islamabad pilot scheme, UNDP Pakistan and the ECP intend to scale-up the app to cover the entire country for the next General Elections in 2018. No matter which of one lakh polling stations is the right one for them, voters from Karachi to Chitral will be able to locate it at the push of a button.
Try the app online at ecp.gov.pk.
[1] Haspel, M. and Knotts, H. G. (2005), Location, Location, Location: Precinct Placement and the Costs of Voting. Journal of Politics, 67: 560–573. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2508.2005.00329.x
[2] Brady, Henry E., and John E. McNulty. "Turning out to vote: The costs of finding and getting to the polling place." American Political Science Review 105.01 (2011): 115-134.