Anecdotes, Data and Elections

By Wendy Underhill

The most recent issue of The Canvass, NCSL’s election-related newsletter, had a lead article entitled “Measuring Elections: Data, Not Anecdotes.”

Little did I know as I wrote it that the title was close to both a quote and a frequent misquote.  Apparently the correct quote is “the plural of anecdote is data,” and the misquote is “the plural of anecdote is not data.” 

At the very same time we were putting the finishing touches on The Canvass last week, the folks at Electionline Weekly were publishing an article by Steve Weir, recently retired clerk-recorder from Contra Costa County, Calif.  In it, Weir says:

There are two major observations that I have had during my 24 years as County Clerk-Recorder. First, the people who work in elections are extremely dedicated and ethical. Second, we have in our hands access to a wealth of data that we should use to tell our story. However, many of us miss the opportunity to review and to “own” our data.

Weir worked at the local level, but his words apply equally well at the state or national level.  Indeed, similar sentiments underpin the Pew Charitable Trusts’ new  Elections Performance Index. This tool makes data easily accessible to lawmakers and election officials to help them assess which policies are working effectively and where they might want to go in the future.

The Canvass provides lots more details about the Elections Performance Index and other efforts to use data to measure election administration. I’ll just add here, “Try it. You’ll like it.”