Casting your Vote

Hybrid Electronic Voting

Uptown Community Planning Group uses a secure, online voting system (supported by a paper ballot option) for our annual elections. We have chosen to do this for a number of simple reasons;

  • It is secure, supporting flexible voting options while ensuring that ballots remain secret, only voting totals are made available.

  • It allows us to greatly expand options for community engagement with simple online and in person voting options.

  • It supports generating ballots to allow voters to vote for the residential seats in their neighborhoods as well as all business seats.

  • As a broadly used, commercially available system, it is proven to be secure, cost effective and flexible enough to meet the needs of our elections.

Vote on YOUR schedule

We will offer multiple ways to cast your vote.

We will have an open voter registration period that starts prior to the opening of voting, when we also accept candidate applications. Voter registrations continue until the last vote is made.

Online voting will open 2 weeks before the elections closes. You can receive your electronic ballot via SMS or email. Either will contain a link with a system generated key that is unique to you and not known to the election team. Each ballot is unique and can be used only once.

There will be at least one in-person voting opportunity during the final week of voting. You can register in advance or at the time you vote. At the polling place you can receive an SMS or email to allow you to vote on your phone or tablet. We will also have tablets available to allow you to vote. All voting is electronic.

FAQ

  • The elections will use both traditional paper ballot voting opportunities and an electronic voting system described above. This hybrid system may create some delays but will give people multiple opportunities to vote and get involved.

  • Each ballot will provide the ability to allow you to vote for candidates vying for the seats you are eligible to vote for:
    - The owner and renter seats for your neighborhood
    - All business and non-profit seats across Uptown
    You are not able to vote for resident seats in neighborhoods other than your own.

  • Yes. We will have staff at the polling places to assist with in-person voting. These folks are not running in the election and will remain independent and will not act for or against any candidate or voter choice. You can also send an email to this team for questions when voting remotely.

  • The system allows polling staff to “spoil” a ballot for a voter. This invalidate the original ballot and will re-issue a new one. Election staff and administrators do not have access to the actual ballots.

  • There is a 24 hour challenge period following close of the election. UCPG will retain voter rolls and candidate application data until this period elapses, at which time personal information will be destroyed. At no time will personal information leave the control of UCPG election staff.