Surfacing Electoral Processes: Operational Transparency Increases Trust in Elections and Voter Turnout

Surfacing Electoral Processes: Operational Transparency Increases Trust in Elections and Voter Turnout | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Surfacing Electoral Processes: Operational Transparency Increases Trust in Elections and Voter Turnout Joseph Sherlock This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7153108/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Trust in elections is a critical factor in the stability of democratic institutions, and recent declines in election confidence highlight a need for effective interventions. One mechanism causing distrust in elections is a lack of understanding and awareness of how elections operate and the existing security protocols in place. We hypothesize that by increasing operational transparency around election processes and security, governments can mitigate distrust and encourage greater electoral participation. This study takes a mixed-methods approach, starting with two pilot studies – one lab and one field experiment – and culminating in robust field research. Results from 3 field experiments with election offices in California suggest that print and email-based interventions designed to increase operational transparency consistently increase trust, and that this link is mediated by perceived transparency and the perception that one’s vote has been counted. Further and extra to the pre-registration, results show that the interventions that increase trust also increase voter turnout with some consistency. The effects are often strongest amongst voters with no party preference, a group that may engage rarely with politics, and therefore may have a large knowledge gap. These experiments present a positive picture for operational transparency as a means to improve trust and voting turnout. This paper concludes with ideas for practical applications of findings such as voting machines receipts, counting live stream platforms, and in-person tours of election offices. Scientific community and society/Social sciences/Government Scientific community and society/Social sciences/Politics Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7153108","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":487316189,"identity":"4799eb69-e0ea-40e5-aeb5-8b71c848446e","order_by":0,"name":"Joseph Sherlock","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABD0lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACxgYoYQCkDjAwJMhJMDA3gKUkiNDCANJiLAERw60Frg+mJXEGIS3M7e0PHxfuYLA3Z+99cOBDTVr6zPaDDQw/ahgSZzbgsKDnjLHxzDMMiTt7jhscnHEsJ3c2T2IDY88xhsTZuNw0I4dNmreNIcHgRhrDYd6Gitx5EkCH8TYwJM7DqSX9+W+gFnuD+8/AWtLlgFoY/+LVkmDGDNTCuOEGG0hLToI0UAszyBacDgP6RXpmm0TihjNpDEC/pBnO7ElsOCxzTMIYl/cNgSH2ubDNxt7g+DHGBx9qkuUljh8++PBNjY3sjAM4tACNYsaIgwP4IlKeAaxlFIyCUTAKRgEeAABSbF3TbqDgPgAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0009-0000-3718-0373","institution":"King's College London","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Joseph","middleName":"","lastName":"Sherlock","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-07-18 02:35:13","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7153108/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7153108/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":88344701,"identity":"b052cb41-59dc-44da-aa00-5b6897643404","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-08-05 13:23:30","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":4577648,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"OperationalTransparencyandElections.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7153108/v1_covered_9ed2a572-cd94-4f27-aea4-de813486bec9.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"There is \u003cb\u003eNO\u003c/b\u003e Competing Interest.","formattedTitle":"Surfacing Electoral Processes: Operational Transparency Increases Trust in Elections and Voter Turnout","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7153108/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7153108/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eTrust in elections is a critical factor in the stability of democratic institutions, and recent declines in election confidence highlight a need for effective interventions. One mechanism causing distrust in elections is a lack of understanding and awareness of how elections operate and the existing security protocols in place. We hypothesize that by increasing operational transparency around election processes and security, governments can mitigate distrust and encourage greater electoral participation. This study takes a mixed-methods approach, starting with two pilot studies \u0026ndash; one lab and one field experiment \u0026ndash; and culminating in robust field research. Results from 3 field experiments with election offices in California suggest that print and email-based interventions designed to increase operational transparency consistently increase trust, and that this link is mediated by perceived transparency and the perception that one\u0026rsquo;s vote has been counted. Further and extra to the pre-registration, results show that the interventions that increase trust also increase voter turnout with some consistency. 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