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What We Heard on Demonstration Day

Annex V: Discussion guides

I. Demonstration Day – Facilitated Discussion Guide – Version 1

Time: 60 minutes

Topics: Voting on Campus + Communications

Introduction (5 minutes)

  • Welcome participants and explain the process:

  • Facilitator introduces her/himself and her/his role:
  • The role of the facilitator is to ask questions, make sure everyone has a chance to express themselves, keep track of time, be objective.

  • Introduce the note-taker:
  • The note-taker will be taking notes on the feedback you provide. The results are confidential and reported all together. Individuals are not identified in the notes or in our reporting. We will be using the feedback you provide in these sessions, together with the results from the online surveys that you already completed, to prepare a report that we will share with all of you. It will also inform our work as we prepare for the 2019 general election.

  • This session will last one hour. As you can see, we have split into two groups. Each group will spend approximately 20 minutes talking about the voting process that you just experienced. After that, we will spend about 20 minutes talking about the communications products that you received. During these discussions, we would like you to keep in mind the needs and viewpoints of the communities or members that you represent.
  • We will take the last 10 minutes or so to summarize what we heard from you. We'll have a quick wrap-up at the end.
  • Are there any questions before we begin?

Discussion 1: Voting on Campus Experience (20 minutes)

  • Let's begin with the voting on campus experience.
  1. How easy or difficult was the voting process? (4 minutes)
    1. What made it easy?
    2. What made it difficult?
  2. Did you find anything unexpected or surprising about this voting process? It could be good or bad. (4 minutes)
  3. Was there anything about the process that you didn't understand or that you would have liked a better explanation for? (4 minutes)
  4. In addition to what we have already discussed, were there any particular issues or concerns for your community or your members? (4 minutes)
  5. Summing up, if a friend asked you how it went, what would you tell them? (4 minutes)

Discussion 2: Communications Products and Messages (20 minutes)

  • Prior to Demonstration Day, we sent you a series of emails with communications products and advertising. These were meant to simulate the kinds of communications that electors could expect to see or hear in the lead-up to a real election. We now want to ask you a few additional questions about those communications products.
  1. Did the information you received in advance help you prepare for the voting experience you just had? (5 minutes)
    1. If yes, why?
    2. If no, why not?
  2. Was there information about this particular voting process that you needed but did not receive? In other words, now that you have experienced the voting on campus process, do you feel you had enough information and the right information, or would you have liked more or different information? (5 minutes)
  3. Are there ways that our communications products could make the voting on campus process easier to understand for your community or your members? (5 minutes)
  4. [Ask during the first facilitated discussion session only] I'd like to ask you about the two posters that were posted in the voting demonstration room: the ID poster and the Feedback poster. [Hold up or tape to the wall a copy of each poster.] (5 minutes)
    1. Did you notice the posters when you were participating in the voting demonstration? [Note: If no one recalls seeing the posters, ask them to take a few moments to review them now.]
    2. Probe each poster separately:
    3. Did you find this poster helpful? Why or why not?
    4. Is the information clear?
    5. Is it easy to read and understand?
    6. [For Feedback poster only]: What do you think of the inclusion of the QR code? Would you use it?

Wrap-up / Final Questions or Comments (15 minutes)

  • The facilitator, with the help of the note-taker, summarizes the key findings for each discussion topic.
  • Do you have any final questions or comments before we finish?
  • This concludes what we need to cover for this session.
  • Thank you for sharing your views with us. Your input and feedback are important and insightful, and we really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with us.

II. Demonstration Day – Facilitated Discussion Guide – Version 2

Time: 75 minutes

Topics: Advance Polls + Ordinary Polls + Communications

Introduction (2 minutes)

  • Welcome back!
  • This session will last just over one hour. We will talk about the two voting processes that you just experienced, and we will spend about 20 minutes on each process. After that, we will spend 15 minutes talking about the communications products that you received. During these discussions, we would like you to keep in mind the needs and viewpoints of the communities or members that you represent.
  • We will take the last 10 minutes or so to summarize what we heard from you. We'll have a quick wrap-up at the end.
  • Are there any questions before we begin?

Discussion 1: Advance Polls Voting Experience (20 minutes)

  • Let's begin with the first voting experience – voting at advance polls with technology.
  1. How easy or difficult was the voting process? (4 minutes)
    1. What made it easy?
    2. What made it difficult?
  2. Did you find anything unexpected or surprising about this voting process? It could be good or bad. (4 minutes)
  3. Was there anything about the process that you didn't understand or that you would have liked a better explanation for? (4 minutes)
  4. In addition to what we already discussed, were there any particular issues or concerns for your community or your members? (4 minutes)
  5. Summing up, if a friend asked you how it went, what would you tell them? (4 minutes)

Discussion 2: Ordinary Polls Voting Experience (20 minutes)

  • Let's move on to the second voting experience – voting at ordinary polls on election day.
  1. How easy or difficult was the voting process? (4 minutes)
    1. What made it easy?
    2. What made it difficult?
  2. Did you find anything unexpected or surprising about this voting process? It could be good or bad. (4 min)
  3. Was there anything about the process that you didn't understand or that you would have liked a better explanation for? (4 min)
  4. In addition to what we already discussed, were there any particular issues or concerns for your community or your members? (4 min)
  5. Summing up, if a friend asked you how it went, what would you tell them? (4 min)

Discussion 3: Communications Products and Messages (15 minutes)

  • We now want to ask you a few additional questions about the communications products that you received by email before Demonstration Day.
  1. Did the information you received in advance help you prepare for the voting experience you just had? (5 minutes)
    1. If yes, why?
    2. If no, why not?
  2. Was there information about these particular voting processes that you needed but did not receive? In other words, now that you have experienced the voting process at advance polls and voting on election day, do you feel you had enough information and the right information, or would you have liked more or different information? (5 minutes)
  3. Are there ways that our communications products could make the voting process at advance polls or on election day easier to understand for your community or your members? [5 minutes]

Wrap-up / Final Questions or Comments (10 minutes)

  • The facilitator, with the help of the note-taker, summarizes the key findings for each discussion topic.
  • Do you have any final questions or comments before we finish?
  • This concludes what we need to cover for this session.
  • Thank you for sharing your views with us. Your input and feedback are important and insightful, and we really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with us.