Secret ballot

A secret ballot is a type of vote where the voter's choices are anonymous. This is to make bribery or intimidation of voters more difficult.Samuel Eagle Forman, The American Republic: A Text in Civics for High Schools, Academies and Normal Schools (New York: Century Co., 1916), p. 273 Secret ballots are good for many different voting systems. The most basic form may be blank pieces of paper. The voter writes only his or her choice, then places it into a sealed box. The box is emptied later for counting.

The French Constitution of 1795 states that "All elections are to be held by secret ballot".15px Full text of the French Constitution of 1795 on Wikisource  Britain followed later. The secret ballot was first used in Britain on 15 August 1872 in a by-election. The original ballot box, sealed in wax with a liquorice stamp, is kept at Pontefract museum.Pontefract's secret ballot box, 1872.

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category:elections
category:secrecy