Civic Design Democracy is a design problem.

Want to do great civic design? So do we. That’s why we created Field Guides To Ensuring Voter Intent.

It started with a rant. “Why, oh why are people not using the recommendations from all this great research about election design?” It turned into a conversation among a merry band of election nerds about how to make good design and usability accessible to busy public servants who just want to do the right thing.

Research results don’t have to be boring. Design doesn’t have to be hard. With the Field Guides, we created short, simple, readable, usable tools for people who want to make voting interactions easier, faster, and more pleasant for voters, poll workers, and administrators. Turns out, designers of all stripes love these little guys for their research-based guidelines and examples, and their applicability far beyond ballots.

Are you a government worker?

We’re in the business of helping people who work for villages, towns, cities, counties, parishes, boroughs, states, and countries to do good design. So we want to put Field Guides in the hands of anyone who works for citizens — not only election officials. So, if you like the Field Guides and you would like to have a copy for yourself, single sets will cost you $0.01 (that’s right 1 penny), plus shipping.

If you’re not a government worker, we’d love you to have copies of the Field Guides, too. In fact, it would be ideal if you bought a 5 pack. Keep a set for yourself and pass the rest around! So, “buy” is the operative word here. We want to continue to make the Field Guides available to government folk for as close to free as we can get. Your purchase subsidizes printing, promotion, and distribution to our favorite public servants.

Specs

Each 32-page, 3.5 x 5-inch book includes 10 guidelines, steps, or tips, along with a quick checklist at the end to help you know whether what you’re making will work.

The covers are printed on 100% recycled chipboard. The internal pages are vegetable- based inks on 100% recycled papers. The Field Guides are printed by Scout Books and designed by Oxide Design Co.

Brilliantly researched, guideline gems and examples about how to deal with typical election design problems.

We call these the “original 4” because they were the first in the series, originally funded by a Kickstarter project and then supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Want to know when new titles are available? We’ll notify you.

Set of 4 titles

Everyone who touches the Field Guides wants a set for themselves. The form factor is designed for the busy county election official to pick up and within minutes learn useful, field researched, critical design techniques that help ensure every vote is cast as voters intend.

These are the “original 4” titles, in multiples. Take a set for yourself, and pass the rest on!

Want to know when new titles are available? We’ll notify you.

5 sets of 4 titles (You can order multiple 5 packs on the next page.)