# Cost of Voting Index

The Cost of Voting Index measures and ranks how difficult it is to vote in each state in the United States, focusing on voter registration and voting rules. The index also has rankings for every two years since 1996. The states ranked as being easier to vote also tend to have higher voter turnout.

## Component parts of the Index

The 2022 iteration of the index has 10 categories with various criteria within each category to measure and rank each state on how easy it is to vote.
| Categories | Issue Area | Cost of Voting Consideration |
| Voter Registration | #1–Registration Deadline (Ratio-Level) | # of days prior to the election a voter must be registered to vote |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | Same day registration not allowed for all elections |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | Same day registration not located at polling station |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | Mental competency req. for voter registration |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | No online voter registration |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | Same day reg. not allowed for presidential election |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | Felons not allowed to register while incarcerated |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | Felons not allowed to register after incarceration |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | Online voter reg. deadline greater than median |
| Voter Registration | #2–Voter Reg. Restrictions (9-Item Additive Sub-index) | Additional documents req. beyond federal min. |
| Voter Registration | #3–Reg. Drive Restrictions (4-Item Additive Sub-index) | Official group certification required |
| Voter Registration | #3–Reg. Drive Restrictions (4-Item Additive Sub-index) | State mandated training required |
| Voter Registration | #3–Reg. Drive Restrictions (4-Item Additive Sub-index) | Group required to submit documents to state |
| Voter Registration | #3–Reg. Drive Restrictions (4-Item Additive Sub-index) | Penalty imposed for violation of deadlines or rules |
| Voter Registration | #3–Reg. Drive Restrictions (4-Item Additive Sub-index) | No registration drives allowed (scored ‘‘5’’) |
| Voter Registration | #4–Pre-Registration Laws (7-Item Ordered Scale) | 0 = 16-year-olds can pre-register |
| Voter Registration | #4–Pre-Registration Laws (7-Item Ordered Scale) | 1 = 17-year-olds can pre-register |
| Voter Registration | #4–Pre-Registration Laws (7-Item Ordered Scale) | 2 = 17.5-year-olds can pre-register |
| Voter Registration | #4–Pre-Registration Laws (7-Item Ordered Scale) | 3 = 90 days before 18th birthday can pre-register |
| Voter Registration | #4–Pre-Registration Laws (7-Item Ordered Scale) | 4 = 60 days before 18th birthday can pre-register |
| Voter Registration | #4–Pre-Registration Laws (7-Item Ordered Scale) | 5 = 16-year-old policy, no legal basis |
| Voter Registration | #4–Pre-Registration Laws (7-Item Ordered Scale) | 6 = no state law discusses pre-registration |
| Voter Registration | #5–Automatic Voter Reg. (4-Item Ordered Scale) | 0 = Citizen must opt out–‘‘Back end AVR’’ |
| Voter Registration | #5–Automatic Voter Reg. (4-Item Ordered Scale) | 1 = Automatic reg. at more than one state agency |
| Voter Registration | #5–Automatic Voter Reg. (4-Item Ordered Scale) | 2 = Automatic registration at DMV, only |
| Voter Registration | #5–Automatic Voter Reg. (4-Item Ordered Scale) | 3 = No automatic voter registration |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | No Election Day state holiday |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | No early voting |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | No all mail voting |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | No Voting Centers |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | No time-off from work for voting |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | No time-off from work with pay for voting |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | Mail voting but no Election Day polling option |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | Reduced number of polling stations post-Holder |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | Reduced # of polling stations >50% (some areas) |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | Excessive Election Day wait time |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | No postage paid envelopes |
| Voting | #6–Voting Inconvenience (12-Item Additive Sub-index) | No passing out food/water to people in line to vote |
| Voting | #7–Voter ID Laws (5-Item Ordered Scale) | 0 = no ID required to cast a ballot, only signature |
| Voting | #7–Voter ID Laws (5-Item Ordered Scale) | 1 = non-photo ID required not strictly enforced |
| Voting | #7–Voter ID Laws (5-Item Ordered Scale) | 2 = photo ID required not strictly enforced |
| Voting | #7–Voter ID Laws (5-Item Ordered Scale) | 3 = non-photo ID required strictly enforced |
| Voting | #7–Voter ID Laws (5-Item Ordered Scale) | 4 = photo ID required strictly enforced |
| Voting | #8–Poll Hours (Ratio-Level) | Min. and Max. poll hours (averaged & reversed) |
| Voting | #9–Early Voting Days (Ratio-Level) | Number of early voting days (reversed) |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | State-sanctioned excuse required to vote absentee |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | No in-person absentee voting |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | No permanent absentee status allowed |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | No online absentee application process |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | Must include copy of ID to vote absentee |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | No convenient absentee ballot drop-off locations |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | Restriction on who can return an absentee ballot |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | Restriction on timing/quantity of ballots returned |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | No 3rd party dist. of absentee ballot applications |
| Voting | #10–Absentee Voting (10-Item Additive Sub-index) | No election official distribution of absentee ballots |

## Factors not in Index

The following factors, while not included, also influence the ease and likelihood of voting or voter suppression.
Ballot initiatives often give voters more reasons to go to the polls by offering a straightforward way to streamline their own election process by circumventing the incumbent politicians.
Ballot length: ballots with dozens and dozens of items to vote on can discourage citizens from doing the difficult research they may feel is required, spending less time researching each race.
Compulsory voting: voting is easier when 90%+ of citizens vote, creating positive cultural norms, establishing voting habits, and having more citizens who can help each other navigate the process.
Election frequency and timing: two-round elections, recall elections, and off-year elections all suppress voter turnout.
Gerrymandering can disincentivize voting by artificially making certain races less competitive.
Information accessibility and press freedom: information warfare, support for public or nonprofit media, and transparency in government operations all influence the ease of voting and trust of voting systems through enhanced election security. 2/3 of U.S. college students cited a lack of information as a reason for why they didn't vote.
Party membership requirements: requiring voters to register with a party makes voting more complex and difficult, especially for those people who don't identify with the party that is likely to win the seat in the general election.
Purges of voter rolls: the act of unregistering voters by sending postcards requiring what amounts to re-registration or employing a 'use it or lose it' approach where after a certain number of elections of not voting, voters are automatically removed from the voter rolls without any evidence that they have moved.
Threats and voter intimidation: Intimidation can result from the presence of cameras or guns at polling places to ballots that may not be secret. Following-through on threats by physically harming or killing people can severely deter voter participation.
Voter enfranchisement: voting starting at the age of 16 helps the learning process of how to vote, and simplicity with regard to felony enfranchisement also makes voting simpler.
Voter verification: a substantial match standard for signatures on mail-in ballots, for example, makes it less likely for valid votes to be destroyed than in a system with an 'exact match' standard, without any evidence of an increase in fraud. Many states in the U.S., for example, also allow voters to remedy ballots where the signatures seem too different. Other sources of complications arise from issues in matching data from different databases where discrepancies could arise for lots of reasons for those with the right to vote.