Ballot box, mid-20th century
notes: label: Description
content: The act of voting has been the centerpiece of American democracy since the founding, but the physical means of doing so has evolved over time. Article I, Section IV of the U.S. Constitution gives individual states the right to decide how their elections are run, though there are certain regulatory laws in place that states must follow. Therefore, election standards can and do vary widely across the country, especially as new technologies become available.
label: Description
content: Early voters used paper ballots dropped into slotted, often unsecured, boxes. As voting technologies diversified to include gear and lever machines and, eventually, computerized machines, many voting districts rejected the simple ballot box of the early republic. In some cases, however, districts with small voting populations, that lacked the budget to upgrade their technologies or that may have distrusted new techniques continued to rely on the tried and true ballot box. This simple slot-top box was still in use in the twentieth century.
setName: label: See more items in
content: Political History: Political History, Campaign Collection
label: See more items in
content: Government, Politics, and Reform
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of the Honorable Michael V. DiSalle in memory of Thomas H. Williams
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: PL.305360.04
label: catalog number
content: 305360.04
label: accession number
content: 305360
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Ballot Box
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 30 in x 18 in x 18 in; 76.2 cm x 45.72 cm x 45.72 cm