Voter file

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A voter file is a list of all registered voters in an area. In the US most states compile this list under the organization responsible for elections. It is generally available to candidates for office and political organizations for a fee. This is sometimes also known as a Voter Roll.

In the United States the voter files are being directed by the 2002 Help America Vote Act. It specifies certain measures each state must take to ensure that their file is compliant and compatible. Private firms often provide United States Voter Files.

[edit] Contents

In most instances the Voter File contains each voter's name, address (sometimes it also contains an alternate mailing address), birth date, date of registration, political party (if the state is a party registration state) and voting history (indicating those elections in which the voter voted, not the voter's actual votes).

[edit] Usage

Generally this data undergoes Data cleansing and is put into a voter database for use by political campaigns.