Interface Design Mailingliste: [Interface] Schlechtes Informationsdesign koennte die US-Praesidentschaft entscheiden

Autor: Marian Steinbach (marian_at_ds.fh-koeln.de)
Datum: Mit 08 Nov 2000 - 20:34:45 CET

• Nächste Nachricht: Marian Steinbach: "[Interface] Das Usability-Problem der amerikanischen Praesidentschaftswahl"
• Vorherige Nachricht: Marian Steinbach: "[Interface] GUIs Just Want to Have Fun"
• Nachrichten sortiert nach: [ Datum ] [ Thread ] [ Subject ] [ Autor ] [ Attachement ]

*Voters Confused By Ballot In Florida County * November 08, 2000

*With the results of the U.S. election depending on a few thousand Florida votes, some residents of Palm Beach County complained that a confusing ballot layout led them to vote for Pat Buchanan when they wanted to vote for Al Gore, news reports said on Wednesday.*

The gripes flowed during an Election Day when Florida seesawed between the Democratic vice president and his Republican rival George W. Bush.

The winner of the U.S. presidency was undetermined early Wednesday, hinging on a recount in Florida, where fewer than 1,800 votes separated the two candidates.

The Palm Beach Post newspaper said on Wednesday that county Democrats were concerned about complaints from voters that they were not sure whether they were punching ballots for Gore or Buchanan, the Reform Party candidate who polled less than 1 percent nationwide.

"We're continuing to look at the issue and our options,'' Gore's Florida
campaign spokeswoman Liz Lubow told the newspaper.

The Palm Beach County ballot listed candidates on two facing pages of the ballot booklet with punch holes for each candidate in a single column between the facing pages, the newspaper said.

The Democratic ticket, Gore-Lieberman, was the second one listed on the left page. But the punch hole for Gore-Lieberman was the third one down in the column.

A thick black arrow pointed from the Democratic ticket to the corresponding hole, but some voters were left wondering, the newspaper said.

"This is ridiculous, this ballot. We have senior citizens going crazy,''
Lois Frankel, a Democratic state representative from West Palm Beach, told the newspaper.

In Florida, state law dictates the order in which the candidates are listed on the ballot, but allows local elections officials to determine how the ballot is laid out.

• Nächste Nachricht: Marian Steinbach: "[Interface] Das Usability-Problem der amerikanischen Praesidentschaftswahl"
• Vorherige Nachricht: Marian Steinbach: "[Interface] GUIs Just Want to Have Fun"
• Nachrichten sortiert nach: [ Datum ] [ Thread ] [ Subject ] [ Autor ] [ Attachement ]