Sharon F. Blakeney

posted by Sharon F. Blakeney on May 6

The right to freely and without hindrance vote one’s conscience by secret ballot is one of the hallmarks of modern democracy. It is a right recognized as so precious to our citizens the United States Supreme Court has found that “other rights, even the most basic, are illusory if the right to vote is undermined.” Wesbury v. Sanders, 376 U.S. 1, 17 (1963). So where did this fundamental right come from? Was it the brainchild of the founding fathers? Was it in the Declaration of Independence? Or did it come from somewhere else?

During the colonial period voters cast their vote by viva voce, voice vote, or by a showing of hands. Voting orally or by a showing of hands meant that your vote was known by all and that lack of secrecy naturally led to corruption, bribery, intimidation, fraud and violence. By the late 1700s most states had begun using a paper ballot, with voters preparing their own handwritten ballot at home and then delivering the ballot to the polling place. Seeing opportunity, political parties and candidates soon began preparing brightly colored or specially designed ballots to give to the voters. These ballots could be recognized at a distance and once placed in the hands of a bribed or intimidated voter, the vote buyer could watch until it was placed in the ballot box.

Approaching a polling place in those days to vote was quite literally placing oneself in mortal danger as they were often scenes of battle and even murder. Like the viva voce method, the paper ballot system was fraught with corruption, fraud and abuse, leaving voters helpless pawns in the manipulative hands of the political system. Voter intimidation, especially by employers, was extensively practiced.

So if the right to vote by secret ballot wasn’t built into the Constitution by our founding fathers, where did it come from? The answer, surprisingly, comes from the land of wallabies, koala bears and the Aborigines – Australia. To combat the violence and corruption experienced not only in the United States but worldwide in emerging democracies, an Australian lawyer by the name of Henry Samuel Chapman invented the government-printed ballot slip in 1856 that became known as the “Australian ballot” or “secret ballot.” Chapman’s invention quickly spread from Australia to New Zealand, and then England, Canada, Belgium, and from 1888 to 1892 it made its way through half of the American states. Today the secret ballot is recognized as crucial to maintaining the integrity of the electoral process, and is now used in emerging democracies like Iraq.

Although Ms. Blakeney is an attorney, nothing in this article is intended to be a substitute for seeking personalized legal advice from an attorney licensed to practice in your jurisdiction, nor is it intended to create an attorney-client relationship with any reader.