Election or Poll?
It’s the first thing BetterVoting asks you — “Which term best describes your situation?” — and you have to answer it before you’ve seen anything else.
The short answer: it changes the words BetterVoting uses, and nothing else. Pick whichever vocabulary sounds right for what you’re running. You can change it later.
What actually changes
| If you pick Election, you’ll see | If you pick Poll, you’ll see |
|---|---|
| election | poll |
| candidate | choice |
| race | question |
| elected office title | question title |
| ballot | response |
| vote | response |
So “three candidates for a race” becomes “three choices for a question,” and “42 votes cast” becomes “42 responses.”
Can I change it later?
Yes — on the Election Settings screen, the same place you set everything else.
Which should I pick?
Neither is more “official” than the other — they’re both the same product. Go by which words will read better to the people you’re sending it to.
Election tends to fit when:
- you’re filling a position or seat — a board, a committee, officers
- the people on the ballot are people, and “candidate” is the natural word
- the result is binding, or feels like it should be
Poll tends to fit when:
- you’re choosing between options, dates, names, or ideas rather than people
- “candidate” would sound odd for what’s on the ballot — candidate: Tuesday 3pm
- you’re gathering preferences rather than filling a role
When in doubt, read the ballot question aloud both ways. “Vote for a candidate in this race” versus “Choose an option for this question” — one of them will sound wrong for what you’re doing, and that’s your answer.