Voting

Voting is the process of choosing one or more officials or representatives by casting an oral vote or a ballot, a document that formally expresses voter's preference or preferences as to whom should be elected or whom the voter likes and thinks has best chance to be elected. Voting can also be used to decide on policy usually by a majority but sometimes a super-majority is required. In Republics and representative democracies, a portion of the population votes to choose representative government members.

Electoral systems, the procedure for converting votes cast into winners, vary depending on both the country and the political office. In many countries organizations work to reform the election system, usually to make it fairer and ensure that as many votes as possible are used to elect the winners.

In organizations and non-government settings, voting may occur in different ways: formally via a paper vote to elect others for example within a workplace, to elect members of political associations, or to choose roles for others; or informally with a spoken agreement or a raised hand or other gesture. In larger organizations, like countries, voting is generally confined to periodic elections.

All modern liberal democracies use voting by secret ballot to prevent individuals from becoming influenced by other people and to protect their political privacy. The objective of secret ballots is to try to achieve the most authentic outcome, without any risk of pressure, threat, or services linked to one's vote; this way, a person is able to express their actual preferences.

Voting often takes place at a polling station but voting can also be done remotely by mail or using internet voting (such as in Estonia). Voting is voluntary in some countries, like the UK, but it may be required by law in others, such as Australia. Provided by Wikipedia