CIVIC INFORMATION WITH PROVENANCE
Political Vote API
Present political records with clear sources.
A political information interface should help readers understand who a record describes, which office or event it relates to, and where the information came from. This page focuses on neutral civic context and candidate metadata. It does not provide persuasion tools, audience targeting, live political intelligence, or official candidate verification. The proposed data choices emphasize transparent sourcing and careful interpretation.
Identify people, offices, and candidacies separately
A person, an office, and a candidacy in a particular event are distinct records. Give each its own identifier and preserve the relationship between them. A name alone is insufficient for reliable matching, particularly when records span jurisdictions or years. Keep readable names, source identifiers, office scope, and relevant event context together. Avoid merging two people because their names look similar. A proposed directory should provide a review process for ambiguous matches and describe uncertainty rather than publishing a confident but unsupported identity connection.
Use sources for the scope they actually cover
The FEC candidate browser is one official source for U.S. federal candidate data. Its coverage should not be confused with every candidate on every ballot in every jurisdiction. Record the source, retrieval time, and meaning of each field, including dated affiliations or status labels. Distinguish a source record from an editorial interpretation. A filing-related entry should not silently become a claim about a person's ballot access or election outcome. Explain the limits of the source alongside the information a reader is likely to rely on.
Publish corrections without reshaping the historical record
Define a correction process for names, office associations, affiliations, and mistaken matches. Preserve the date and reason for a consequential change so readers can understand why the current view differs from an earlier one. Apply comparable field definitions and source standards across the directory. Keep factual metadata separate from opinion or commentary, and avoid inferring personal characteristics from a reader's browsing behavior. The useful product is an inspectable civic reference that supports independent understanding, with clear gaps where the available evidence does not justify a stronger claim.
COMMON QUESTIONS
A clearer
starting point.
Does a candidate record prove ballot access or election success?
Not by itself. Interpret the record according to its source, field definitions, jurisdiction, and event context. A directory entry may answer a narrower question than a reader expects. A proposed interface should state that scope clearly and avoid transforming an administrative or filing record into an unsupported outcome claim.
How can a political directory maintain a neutral presentation?
Use consistent fields, comparable labels, transparent sources, and the same correction process for equivalent records. Distinguish facts from editorial interpretation and show gaps without filling them through speculation. This page concerns public civic information design, rather than tailoring persuasive messages or profiling readers according to political preferences.
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Connect the ideas.
All 18 topic guides02 / 18
Election Vote API
A single-contest election feed should make a precise promise: these records describe this office or question, in this jurisdiction, for this election.
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04 / 18
Presidential Vote API
Presidential elections do not share one universal data model. A page must identify the country, election event, geographic scope, and process represented.
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15 / 18
Elections Vote API
An elections index helps readers find the right event and jurisdiction before inspecting individual contests. Its central questions are coverage, calendar meaning.
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