Glossary
Ballot chasing
The campaign practice of tracking which supporters haven't returned their ballots yet, and contacting exactly those people until the ballot comes back.
Documented in California since at least the 1990s — originally with paper lists from the registrar. Modern software automates it. It requires knowing ballot status, never vote choices.
Where this term appears
- Court records show the full 'ballot chase' workflow operating in a California city in 1980…Claim
- Since 2008, officials have had to give voters a way to confirm their mail ballot arrived.Claim
- Ballot chasing (the feedback loop)Campaign operation
- 'Returned?' becomes an official digital stateTimeline step
- An organized absentee operation appears in SangerTimeline step