Every two years after a November mid-term or presidential election, the Election Assistance Commission surveys states about their election practices, compiles that data and submits a report to Congress. The 226-page 2016 Election Administration and Voting Survey includes data on voter registration, turnout, absentee and pre-election voting, precinct and polling places and military and overseas voting. While the report contains charts and downloadable datasets, the EAC recognized that election officials at the county and municipal level might need help manipulating the data for their own analysis. On Dec. 13, EAC released the EAVS Data Interactive, a new data visualization tool that lets election officials, academics, activists and others examine specific data at the state and local level, as well as compare jurisdictions side by side.
“One of the messages that we’ve heard from state and local election officials is they desire to able to interact with this data, visualize it and use it to look at themselves and compare themselves with similar jurisdictions across the country,” EAC Chairman Matthew Masterson told GCN. “This dashboard is a response to allow them to use the data to evaluate their processes and procedures as they look to improve their operations.”
The Tableau-based visualization platform allows users to examine data through interactive maps, charts and graphs that drill down into details on voter registration, absentee and provisional ballots and voter turnout by voting method. By selecting a baseline county or municipality, users can compare multiple variables and filter responses based on the number of registered voters.
Full Article: New tool offers unprecedented access to U.S. election data — GCN.