undervotes
Missed ballot choices
Undervotes are ballots in an election where a voter has marked fewer choices than allowed—leaving some races or questions blank.
Election officials track undervotes to distinguish intentional abstention from voter confusion or machine error: The undervote rate in the judicial races suggested many voters simply skipped to the end of the ballot.
Compare with overvotes, where too many choices invalidate a selection.
Tallying fewer than exist
- tabulationOrganizing data systematically
- tallyingSumming items systematically
- miscalculationError in estimation
- miscountError in enumeration
omission · error · oversight · inaccuracy · arithmetic · clerical · data entry · auditing
Having no visible identification
- spoiled ballotsImproperly marked voting papers
- invalidatedMade no longer binding
- chadsPunched-out paper scraps
- dimpledHaving small hollows
hanging chad · butterfly ballot · punch cards · paper ballots · absentee · provisional · mail-in
Departure from the expected
- varianceSpread around the mean
- disparityMeasurable difference between things
- gapUnfilled space between
- deviationDeparture from expected path
irregularity · pattern · statistical · audit · scrutiny · margin · threshold · detection
Bounded administrative areas
- polling stationsDesignated ballot-casting sites
- poll workersVoting site employees
- election officialsAdministrators of voting processes
- inspectorsThose who examine officially
election integrity · electoral process · turnout · registration · disenfranchisement · adjudication · certification · procedures
undercounting
Tallying fewer than exist
- tabulationOrganizing data systematically
- tallyingSumming items systematically
- miscalculationError in estimation
miscount · omission · error · oversight · inaccuracy · arithmetic · clerical · data entry · auditing · verification
unmarked
Having no visible identification
- spoiled ballotsImproperly marked voting papers
- invalidatedMade no longer binding
- chadsPunched-out paper scraps
dimpled · hanging chad · butterfly ballot · punch cards · paper ballots · absentee · provisional · mail-in
anomaly
Departure from the expected
- varianceSpread around the mean
- disparityMeasurable difference between things
- gapUnfilled space between
deviation · irregularity · pattern · statistical · audit · scrutiny · margin · threshold · detection · investigation
precincts
Bounded administrative areas
- polling stationsDesignated ballot-casting sites
- poll workersVoting site employees
- election officialsAdministrators of voting processes
inspectors · election integrity · electoral process · turnout · registration · disenfranchisement · adjudication · certification · procedures