Voting Assistant Chatbot for Increasing Voter Turnout at Local Elections: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Background: Local Dutch elections suffer from a voter turnout decrease with 23% between 1986 and 2022. This raises general quality concerns about the local democracy. Therefore a Conversational Agent Voting Advice Application (CAVAA) chatbot was developed.  

Objective: To study the effect of the CAVAA chatbot on the perceived political knowledge and intention to vote in municipal elections.

Method: An experimental within-subject study (N = 95) in the run-up to the Dutch municipal elections of March 16, 2022 among a typical Dutch municipality of 27,000 inhabitants was conducted. The CAVAA asked the participant’s opinion on 20 local issues, provided further background information, and voting advise.

Results: Participants reported a greater understanding of local political issues after CAVAA use. However, no effect was found on the intention to vote.

Conclusion: A voting assistant chatbot may contribute to a higher voter turnout, but further research is desirable.

Keywords: Voting assistant chatbot, local elections, voter turnout