South African Election Satisfaction Survey (ESS) 2011: Voters - All provinces

https://doi.org/10.14749/1538033821

1.0

Dataset

• Roberts, Benjamin
• Struwig, Jare
• Human Sciences Research Council

2018-12-03

2020-03-31

• Human Sciences Research Council (Producer)

• Electoral Commission of South Africa

Schema: UK DATA ARCHIVE - HASSET
DECISION ON POLITICAL PARTY OF CHOICE; DISTURBANCES AT VOTING STATIONS AND ELECTION COMMISSION PERFORMANCE; ELECTORAL COMMISSIONS PERFORMANCE AND CONDUCT; ELECTORAL FREENESS AND FAIRNESS; POLITICAL COERCION AND INTIMIDATION; POLITICAL PARTY TOLERANCE; SECRECY OF THE VOTE; VOTER EDUCATION; VOTING EXPERIENCE

• Abstract

  Description: Topics covered in the questionnaire are: distance to the voting station, queuing time for voters, accessible to persons with disabilities and the elderly, signage and instructions at voting stations, voting procedures inside the voting station, trust in the electoral commission, evaluations of electoral officials, voting procedure for voters with special needs, effectiveness of the electoral commission's voter education campaign, usefulness of information sources, disturbances at voting stations, electoral freeness and fairness. The data set for dissemination contains 62 variables and 14 516 cases from the expected 15 000 which represented 95% response rate. In terms of the number of voting stations, a 100% realisation rate was achieved. All 300 selected voting stations were therefore visited on Election Day.

  Abstract: The objective of the 2011 Election Satisfaction Survey (ESS) was to determine opinions and perceptions of voters on Election Day. The main intention of the survey was to determine if elections were free and fair. A further aim of the study was to assess the operational efficiency of the Electoral Commission in managing the 2011 municipal elections. Three hundred voting stations throughout South Africa were selected using complex sample design. Around 50 randomly selected voters were interviewed at each of the 300 voting stations. The prime target population was therefore individuals aged 18+ who reside in South Africa and who were registered to vote in the 2011 Municipal Elections-and voted. As voters exited these voting stations they were interviewed. The study method comprised a brief (5-minute) face-to-face interview. The Electoral Commission was keen to release the survey results together with the official election results (which took place 3 days after the election). The HSRC together with the IEC developed the voter questionnaire. Questions included the distance travelled to the voting station, means of transport utilised, time spent in the voting queue, perception of IEC officials' competence, and perception of the freeness and fairness of the election.

• Collection 18 MAY 2011

• South Africa (ZA)

The study was conducted among South Africans who voted in the 2011 Municipal Elections. The target population for the voter component of the study was individuals aged 18 years and older who were registered to vote in the 2011 Elections.

A complex sample design was used in drawing the sample of voting stations. The design included stratification and a multi-stage sampling procedure. The database of voting stations obtained from the IEC was merged with that of Population Census Enumeration Areas (EAs). The sampling of the voting station was done proportionally to the dominant race type, geo-type and the number of voting stations in a given province. This was to ensure that a Municipally representative sample of voting stations was selected and the results of the survey could be properly weighted to the population of legible voters in the country. At the actual voting stations, fieldworkers used random sampling to select voters to ensure a fair representation in terms of gender, race, age, and disability status. In the cases of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, the numbers of voting stations were sampled below proportion given that almost half of the South African registered voters are based in these provinces. Conversely, the number of voting stations in the Northern Cape was over-sampled in order to generate sufficient interviews in that province to facilitate meaningful analysis. Table 1 provides the distribution of voting stations per province and the number of voters interviewed. At each voting station, the interviewer was instructed to interview 50 voters during the course of the day. Interviews were divided into four time slots: 07:00 - 10:30; 10:31 - 14:00; 14:01 - 17:30 and the remainder between 17:31 and closing time (21:00). This was done to ensure a spread of interviews throughout Election Day, since it was imagined that different dynamics might be at play depending on the time of day. Province Voting Stations Sampled Expected sample Western Cape 32 1600 Eastern Cape 40 2000 Northern Cape 14 700 Free State 21 1050 KwaZulu-Natal 53 2650 North West 28 1400 Gauteng 55 2750 Mpumalanga 27 1350 Limpopo 30 1500 Total 300 15000

• Longitudinal: Cohort/Event-based
  Longitudinal: Cohort/Event-based
  

• Face-to-face interview

Not available

By accessing the data, you give assurance that The data and documentation will not be duplicated, redistributed or sold without prior approval from the rights holder. The data will be used for scientific research or educational purposes only. The data will only be used for the specified purpose. If it is used for another purpose the additional purpose will be registered. Redundant data files will be destroyed. The confidentiality of individuals/organisations in the data will be preserved at all times. No attempt will be made to obtain or derive information from the data to identify individuals/organisations. The HSRC and IEC will be acknowledged in all published and unpublished works based on the data according to the provided citation. The HSRC and IEC will be informed of any books, articles, conference papers, theses, dissertations, reports or other publications resulting from work based in whole or in part on the data and documentation. For archiving and bibliographic purposes an electronic copy of all reports and publications based on the requested data will be sent to the HSRC and IEC. To offer for deposit into the HSRC Data Collection and the IEC any new data sets which have been derived from or which have been created by the combination of the data supplied with other data. The data team bears no responsibility for use of the data or for interpretations or inferences based upon such uses. Failure to comply with the End User License may result in sanctions being imposed.
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