Conducting elections amid pandemics: lessons learnt from the United States and a way forward for Pakistan

Jawaria Khan; Surfaraz Hussain Ansari

doi:10.47264/idea.jhsms/3.1.13

Authors

Jawaria Khan Department of Government and Public Policy, National Defence University, Islamabad, Pakistan. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5305-8191
Surfaraz Hussain Ansari Department of Government and Public Policy, National Defence University, Islamabad, Pakistan.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47264/idea.jhsms/3.1.13

Keywords:

electoral system, digital Pakistan, election commission, election management, election management bodies, online voting, postal ballot, Covid-19, electronic voting, election survey

Abstract

Conducting general elections while the pandemic prevails is a huge upcoming challenge for all democracies. Issues and controversies of the 2020 US elections that were conducted amid pandemic are sufficient to alert the rest to take proactive preventive measures and fast track relevant policy adoption ahead of time. Implications of the Coronavirus Pandemic on US General Elections 2020 were grave. From public opinion to election campaigning, from virtual rallies to the very act of voting itself, the virus upended the whole election process. Keeping in view the issues faced by the US, especially the controversy of use of postal ballots for vote, the study discusses policy guidelines and considerations that can help in developing a framework to adopt innovative and risk-free measures in conducting elections amid pandemics. Furthermore, it discusses a way forward for Pakistan in case the situation of Pandemic prevails. The study also includes opinions of electoral experts who have worked on electoral projects in Pakistan. In order to present the opinion of public, a survey has been included which depicts the choice of voters regarding use of alternate voting methods in future elections because voters’ trust in any new system is a key for successful policymaking.

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