The initiator of a large-scale study studying voter activity on voting days on March 15-17, 2024 was the Yaroslavl regional public organization “Yaroslavl Citizen”.
March 2024 is a landmark month for the political life of Russia; the elections of the Head of State in today’s difficult conditions promised an unprecedentedly high turnout. Studies conducted by various polling organizations have made different forecasts regarding voter turnout. Not only traditional strata of the population demonstrated a desire to vote, but also those categories of citizens who usually had not previously taken part in voting.
This unique chance to study the electoral activity of the population should not be missed. To do this, the public organization “Yaroslavl Citizen” undertook to observe and analyze the dynamics of the movement of Yaroslavl residents to polling stations.
To achieve these goals, 5,000 researchers were selected and trained whose tasks were to carefully observe in the vicinity of the polling station and carefully record those who go to vote, note the time, gender and approximate age of voters. As a result, it was possible to collect schedules of residents visiting polling stations throughout the Yaroslavl region. Now the Foundation is studying the materials received and analyzing them.
We can already say that the “lion’s share” of voters fulfilled their civic duty on Friday (about 35% of the total number of voters). Saturday and Sunday are relatively stable days; on both days, fewer voters came than on Friday, about 13% and 14.6%, respectively.
Women are traditionally active. In all districts of the region, on each day, representatives of the fairer sex, women, were in the majority at polling stations.
This year, the youth did not disappoint either; if traditionally 12-15% of student (voting) youth come to the elections, then more than 65% of this category of Citizens (with a capital “G”) came to the presidential elections.
The public organization “Yaroslavl Citizen” collected unique data on the traffic of residents who came to polling stations by gender, age and time of visit to the polling station.
Naturally, it was mainly the working population who went to the polls on Friday.
And here new horizons open up for research, already having information about the gender and age structure of voter traffic to polling stations, having information about the intensity, direction and content of information signals that were disseminated by election headquarters, one can draw conclusions about the effectiveness of campaign technologies and the quality and relevance disseminated information.
In simple terms, ordinary observation led experts from the public organization “Yaroslavl Citizen” to serious and interesting, and most importantly, relevant research, the results of which will help build information projects in the future.
There are many interesting discoveries and useful knowledge ahead, which the Foundation will certainly introduce readers to.
Photo YaROO “Yargrazhdanin”
