Voting Infrastructure and Process: Another Form of Voter Suppression?

Abstract

This study examines whether infrastructure and processes at polling places vary by the race and income of the community where polls are located and whether voting infrastructure and process are associated with actual voting by registered voters (typically termed “voter turnout”). Data come from a systematic sample of 20 polling places in St. Louis and St. Louis County, Missouri, on Election Day in November 2018, and from the US Census Bureau. Findings indicate that voting infrastructure and process at polling sites are associated with the predominant race and income level of census tracts in which they are located. Moreover, infrastructure and process factors are also associated with voter turnout. Problems in voting infrastructure and process are not usually discussed as intentional voter suppression, but this evidence suggests that they are systemic (in common terms, “just the way things are”) and have the same effect as intentional voter suppression.