The effects of centralising electoral management board design

James, Toby S. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5826-5461 (2017) The effects of centralising electoral management board design. Policy Studies, 38 (2). pp. 130-148. ISSN 0144-2872

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Abstract

The public administration of elections frequently fails. Variation in the performance of electoral management boards around the world has been demonstrated, illustrated by delays in the count, inaccurate or incomplete voter registers, or severe queues at polling stations. Centralising the management of the electoral process has often been proposed as a solution. There has been little theorisation and no empirical investigations into the effects that centralising an already decentralised system would have, however. This article addresses this lacuna by conceptualising centralisation through the literature on bureaucratic control and discretion. It then empirically investigates the effects through a case study of centralisation in two UK referendums. Semi-structured interviews were used with those who devised the policy instrument and those who were subject to it. The introduction of central directions had some of the desired effects such as producing more consistent services and eliminating errors. It also had side effects, however, such as reducing economic efficiency in some areas and overlooking local knowledge. Furthermore, the reforms caused a decline of staff morale, job satisfaction and souring of relations among stakeholder organisations. The process of making organisational change therefore warrants closer attention by policy makers and future scholarship on electoral integrity.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	electoral integrity,electoral management body,voter registration,electoral reform
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Political, Social and International Studies Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Policy & Politics
Depositing User:	Pure Connector
Date Deposited:	23 Sep 2016 23:53
Last Modified:	21 Jul 2023 09:41
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/59734
DOI:	10.1080/01442872.2016.1213802

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