Creating an election in ElectoSense

Every election is built and managed from the Elections page. The workflow is: create the election, configure settings, build the ballot, add voters, then switch the status to Active.

1. Start a new election

Open Elections and click Create Election. Enter an election title in the Create New Election modal and submit. You will be taken to the election edit screen at /admin/elections/edit/<id>, where you can adjust the title, description, and status.

2. Configure settings

On the Settings tab of the election edit page you can configure:

  • Basic Details — heading, welcome message, and start / end dates (date-time local)
  • Public Voting Link — copy the URL, generate a QR code, view the voter page, or Edit Code to customize the election code in the URL
  • Voter Verification — require name entry (disable anonymous votes), require facial verification, or require location confirmation

Save changes with Save Settings.

3. Build the ballot

Switch to the Ballot tab and click Add Ballot Item. Each ballot item can be one of the following types:

  • Single Choice — voters pick exactly one option
  • Multiple Choice — voters pick up to a maximum number of options
  • Yes/No — for motions, resolutions, and approvals
  • Ranked Choice — voters rank options in order of preference
  • Approval — voters approve any number of options up to a maximum

Inside the ballot item editor, add your options or candidates one row at a time, set the maximum selections where relevant, and open Advanced to enable write-ins (not available for Yes/No or Ranked Choice).

4. Add voters

On the Voters tab, choose an access mode:

  • Anyone with the link (Public) — anyone who has the voting URL can cast a ballot, subject to the verification settings above
  • Only invited voters (Invite-only) — each voter receives a unique invitation and can only vote once

For invite-only elections you can Send Invites, Import CSV, or Add manually. Reusable voter records live in the org-wide directory at All Voters and can be pulled into any election.

5. Review and activate

Before going live, double-check:

  • The election title, description, and ballot text
  • All ballot items, options, and candidates
  • The voter list and access mode
  • Start / end dates and voter verification settings

When everything is ready, change the Status dropdown at the top of the edit page from Draft to Active. Once active, ballot changes are locked to preserve integrity — you can still switch to Pause or Closed as needed.

6. Share access

For public elections, share the Public Voting Link from the Settings tab, or generate a QR code to print and distribute. For invite-only elections, use Send Invites on the Voters tab.

Common mistakes

  • Publishing before all ballot items and options are in place
  • Forgetting to set start / end dates, or setting them in the wrong timezone
  • Leaving the election in Draft status and wondering why voters can't access it
  • Selecting the wrong access mode for the audience

If this is your first election, the safest approach is to build it end-to-end as a draft, click through the voter experience once, and only then switch the status to Active.