Ballot

A ballot is a device used to cast votes in an election, and may be a piece of paper or a small ball used in secret voting. It was originally a small ball (see blackballing) used to record decisions made by voters.Ancient Greek ostraca, 5th century BC, Ancient Agora Museum in Athens, housed in the Stoa of Attalus.Ancient Greek bronze secret ballots used to cast a juror's vote on a case, 3rd century BC, Ancient Agora Museum in Athens, housed in the Stoa of Attalus1864 ballot of the National Union Party (United States)Ballots may be tickets rather than forms, as in Israel.Perspective view of a 2000 Palm Beach County, Florida 'butterfly ballot'.Top view of the same 2000 Florida 'butterfly ballot'.Russian ballot to the 2011 State Duma elections with list of political parties A ballot is a device used to cast votes in an election, and may be a piece of paper or a small ball used in secret voting. It was originally a small ball (see blackballing) used to record decisions made by voters. Each voter uses one ballot, and ballots are not shared. In the simplest elections, a ballot may be a simple scrap of paper on which each voter writes in the name of a candidate, but governmental elections use preprinted ballots to protect the secrecy of the votes. The voter casts their ballot in a box at a polling station. In British English, this is usually called a 'ballot paper'. The word ballot is used for an election process within an organization (such as a trade union 'holding a ballot' of its members). The word ballot comes from Italian ballotta, meaning a “small ball used in voting” or a “secret vote taken by ballots” in Venice, Italy. In ancient Greece, citizens used pieces of broken pottery to scratch in the name of the candidate in the procedures of ostracism. The first use of paper ballots to conduct an election appears to have been in Rome in 139 BC, following the introduction of the lex Gabinia tabellaria. In ancient India, around 920 AD, in Tamil Nadu, palm leaves were used for village assembly elections. The palm leaves with candidate names were put inside a mud pot for counting. This was called Kudavolai system. The first use of paper ballots in America was in 1629 within the Massachusetts Bay Colony to select a pastor for the Salem Church. Paper ballots were pieces of paper marked and supplied by voters. Before the introduction of the secret ballot, American political parties distributed ballots listing their own candidates for party supporters to deposit in ballot boxes.