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Democracy & Elections: fun facts and quiz
The essentials in 7 ideas, with fun facts, an illustrated story and a quiz to see how much you know.
The essentials
The Secret Ballot
Voting in secret protects people from pressure and bribes. Australia pioneered the modern secret ballot in the 1850s, so it’s sometimes called the “Australian ballot”.
Key fact
Before secret ballots, votes were often cast out loud, in public.
Who Can Vote
Voting rights widened over time: property rules were dropped, women won the vote, and many countries lowered the voting age to 18, some even to 16.
Key fact
Austria lets 16-year-olds vote in national elections.
Turnout
Turnout is the share of eligible people who actually vote. It varies a lot: some countries see over 80%, others under 50%.
Key fact
Countries with compulsory voting, like Australia, often top 90%.
Referendums
In a referendum, voters decide a single question directly, like a new law or a change to the constitution. Switzerland holds them several times a year.
Key fact
Swiss citizens can force a national vote with enough signatures.
The Electoral College
US presidents are chosen by an Electoral College of 538 electors, shared out by state. A candidate can win the presidency while losing the national popular vote.
Key fact
A candidate needs 270 electoral votes to win.
Campaigns & Debates
Candidates campaign with rallies, adverts and debates. The first televised US presidential debate, Kennedy against Nixon, was in 1960.
Key fact
Many radio listeners thought Nixon won; many TV viewers favoured Kennedy.
Free & Fair Elections
Elections are free and fair when everyone can vote, candidates can campaign, votes are counted honestly and results are accepted. Observers often monitor them.
Key fact
International observers watch elections in many countries.
Fun facts
“Ballot” comes from the Italian “ballotta”, a small ball once used for voting.
Swiss women only won the right to vote in national elections in 1971.
In Australia, voting day often comes with a “democracy sausage”, grilled and sold outside polling stations.
Two Swiss cantons still make decisions by a show of hands at an open-air assembly.
If the Electoral College ties at 269 each, the House of Representatives chooses the president.
In 1858, Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas held seven debates, each lasting about three hours.
Some countries mark voters’ fingers with ink that won’t wash off, so nobody votes twice.
Story: The 270-Metre Petition
The 270-Metre Petition
1893, New Zealand. Campaigner Kate Sheppard and her allies gather over 30,000 women’s signatures, asking for the right to vote.
The sheets are glued end to end into a roll about 270 metres long. In Parliament, it’s unrolled down the chamber floor.
That September, New Zealand became the first self-governing country where women could vote in national elections.
True or false?
Tap your answer to see if you got it, and why.
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Question 1 of 10
The secret ballot protects voters from pressure.
Show the answer
True. Nobody can see how you voted.
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Question 2 of 10
Some countries let 16-year-olds vote.
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True. Austria, Malta and Brazil among them.
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Question 3 of 10
Turnout measures how many eligible people vote.
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True. As a share of those who could.
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Question 4 of 10
In a referendum, people vote directly on a question.
Show the answer
True. Not for a person or party.
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Question 5 of 10
A US presidential candidate needs 270 electoral votes to win.
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True. More than half of the 538.
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Question 6 of 10
The first televised US presidential debate was in 1960.
Show the answer
True. Kennedy against Nixon.
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Question 7 of 10
Election observers help check that votes are fair.
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True. They watch voting and counting.
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Question 8 of 10
Votes have always been secret.
Show the answer
False. Open, public voting was common until the 1800s.
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Question 9 of 10
Women could vote everywhere by 1800.
Show the answer
False. Women’s suffrage came mostly in the 1900s.
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Question 10 of 10
Turnout is always 100% in democracies.
Show the answer
False. Many people don’t vote.
Keep going in the app
KnowSoda learns what you know and brings back what you’re about to forget. Democracy & Elections has 6 more ideas at the Advanced and Expert levels.
Sources
- International IDEA — Voter turnout database
- Australian Electoral Commission — History of the secret ballot and compulsory voting
- Swiss Federal Chancellery — Popular initiatives and referendums
- U.S. National Archives — The Electoral College
- Estonian State Electoral Office — Internet voting
- UK Parliament — Women and the vote
- Election Commission of India — General Elections 2024
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — gerrymandering; US presidential election of 2000
