Can someone find out whom you voted for? No. Here is what you should know : NPR

With less than 35 days until Election Day and early voting underway across the country, many Americans are questioning the secrecy of their ballots.

Election officials, voter registration organizations and election law experts, including New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, have responded to these questions from Americans.

toulouse oliver concerns have been addressed Issues surrounding voter voting privacy in social media posts; citing research A survey released in April found that 70% of New Mexico voters believe they can learn someone’s voting choices without their consent.

You can’t know who someone voted for without their consent.

Tappan Vickery, senior director of programming and strategy for voter registration group HeadCount, said she has also received questions about ballot privacy.

Vickery said recent coverage of election observers and Americans becoming more conscious about what information is available online are some of the factors that raise concerns about ballot privacy. He said there is. The other thing is today’s political situation.

“Right now, with the partisan divisions and the anger that is causing this in this country, people are scared of having their own opinions and being in spaces where they don’t feel welcome. “Sometimes,” Vickery said.

Concerns about voting privacy extend to personal relationships as well. Olivia Dreisen Howell, Co-Founder Fresh start registryThe organization, which helps people start over after major life changes, said it had been fielding questions from women about whether their partners would know who they voted for.

“For many women, especially in this election, with so many important issues on the table, they may choose to vote for Kamala Harris across their registered party—and , this may be the first time I have made this decision – and it may be contrary to my husband’s voting behavior,” Dreysen-Howell said.

Here’s what you need to know about privacy and voting.

So…is it really a secret who I vote for?

Who you vote for is not made public. The only way someone will know exactly who you’re voting for is to tell them.

secret ballot Election law experts tell NPR that election laws are the cornerstone of democracy, and that secret voting dates back to the late 1800s.

“Voters in every state have the right to cast a secret ballot, either in the state constitution or state law. So when you go to vote, your name is not associated with your ballot. Your ballot is anonymous. When it’s tallied, it doesn’t connect to you,” Michael Morse, an assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Carey School of Law, told NPR.

Who you vote for is confidential, but depending on where you live, some voter information may be made public.

Your name, address, and political party affiliation may all appear on a voter registration list known as the voters’ register. Morse said these lists are public records and may indicate the last election in which he participated. Campaigns can also collect data from these lists over time and use it in their campaigns. And while certain information about voter information is publicly recorded, other information you submit, such as your Social Security number or driver’s license number, is not, Morse said.

Voters drop their ballots into a drop box in Minneapolis on September 20th.

Steven Maturen/Getty Images

hide caption

toggle caption

Steven Maturen/Getty Images

If you donate to candidates or political activities, depending on the amount you donate, your donation amount and place of employment may also be made public. The Federal Election Commission has Public database of individual contributions to campaigns and candidates.

This information may give people a clue about how you voted, but it still does not indicate who you voted for.

If you vote by mail, your ballot will also be kept secret. If you vote by mail, you can vote in a private setting and remain private when your ballot is received by an election official.

“Even in states that use mail-in voting, the envelopes are kept securely until the counting is complete,” Vickery said. “So the people receiving your ballot can’t see your name and know who you voted for. There’s confidentiality.”

Why is some of my voter information public? What if I want to keep it all private?

Morse said election administration includes both voter privacy and public transparency.

“We don’t have to worry about our voting choices being made public, but we also need to have some level of public transparency to have confidence in the process,” he said. For example, “whether you’re registered to vote, whether you’ve participated in the past, or whether you’ve donated to a particular campaign are typically public rather than private,” he said.

Depending on your location, you have the option to limit your usage. Voter information It’s published. According to the law, many states have “address confidentiality programs” in place for victims of domestic violence, human trafficking, sexual assault, and others whose safety is threatened. U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

In states such as alaska and nevadaVoters can request in writing that their address and phone number not be made public. Law enforcement officers, judges, and people in certain other professions may also have certain information removed from public databases.

There are also federal and state laws that protect voters and their privacy when voting and prohibit election officials from disclosing your information.

“An election observer should not be looking over your shoulder to see who you are voting for. If that is happening, it should be reported because it is illegal,” Vickery said.

Who you vote for is anonymous, but please consider the privacy policy of where you register to vote regarding the release of some of your voter information.

“Make sure your privacy policy aligns with your comfort level in terms of how you use data and how you communicate with people,” Vickery said.