International Best Practice in Voter Turnout Campaigns
By WPP Government & Public Sector Practice
A healthy democracy is built on the political participation of its citizens. Elections not only give governments legitimacy, but also create the incentive for politicians to respond to voters’ interests.
In many countries, however, electoral participation is lower than ever. This trend reflects long-term political and social shifts, though a particularly salient election can create a spike in engagement. But effective communication can boost turnout.
This report distils key lessons on increasing voter participation, combining behavioural theories with insights from practitioners who have led some of the most successful turnout campaigns in recent years.
Context and culture matter enormously. We draw on experiences from Australia, Canada, the EU, India, New Zealand, Tunisia, the UK and the USA. The lessons learned apply in most democracies, but should always be highly localised.
These recommendations are for non-partisan bodies responsible for increasing turnout – typically electoral commissions and parliaments. Some political parties have also developed highly effective strategies that could have non-partisan application elsewhere and so we include them – notably Obama’s 2008/2012 Operation Vote.
Successful turnout campaigns share some common approaches:
1. Deep data and insights into citizens’ voting barriers, values and attitudes.
2. Clear strategic decisions about which citizen segments to focus on, and how.
3. Campaigns with a nuanced, evidence-based choice of message and channel.
4. Constant feedback and evaluation of what works best.
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