Data and GIS for Democracy

Presented by the Spatial Analytics and Visualization Institute (SAVI) at San José State and the Public Interest Technology University Network (PIT-UN), the Data & Democracy Workshops features a combination of short lectures on conceptual and theoretical knowledge, lab sessions and exercises.

In case you missed it: There is a presidential election in the United States this November. Before counties mail ballots and confirm voter registration status with text reminders or wallpaper cities with information on how and where to vote, election officials have a unique opportunity to learn how undertaking data-driven projects using open-source software can bolster free and fair elections.

The six sessions that make up the Data and Democracy Workshop Series are designed to empower election officials, policy professionals and researchers to explore how Python, R and open-source Geographic Information Science and Technology (GIST) tools can unlock the power of data analysis and visualization in the design and administration of elections. The workshops are hosted by San José State University’s Spatial Analytics and Visualization Institute (SAVI) with the support of Public Interest Technology University Network (PIT-UN). By partnering with PIT-UN, SAVI faculty hope to foster an inclusive discussion on how the role of GIST technology can defend democracy and transcend political boundaries for collective impact.

Ahoura Zandiatashbar is the director of San José State’s Spatial Analytics and Visualization Institute.

“With the Spatial Analysis and Visualization Institute, SJSU is the only CSU campus in the Bay Area that focuses on the use of mapping and geospatial analysis and visualization to advance equity, justice and democracy,” says SAVI Director and Assistant Professor of Urban and Regional Planning Ahoura Zandiatashbar. 

Geospatial analysis and visualization — essentially, visual representations of data such as maps, graphs, statistics and cartograms — are assets to election officials and policymakers, says Judi Heher, ’24 MA Geography, MUP, who will teach a workshop on voter turnout analysis on August 10. A former computer science teacher and guide with the College of Humanities and the Arts’ Public Art as Resistance tours, Heher’s workshop will focus on how to improve access to polling stations, especially for people living in remote areas, non-native speakers of English and historically disenfranchised populations.

“Mapping is something that brings a lot of people into the conversation,” says Heher. “What happens the moment you see a map? You look to see where you live, what’s going on in your neighborhood, your county, your state.”

Mapping the future

The concept of using GIS tools to better understand election data first arose in 2020, a year marked by the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and the presidential election. Zandiatashbar adds that GIS tools were used not only for election purposes, but also to track the spread of the Coronavirus. In an era defined by social distancing and strict county, state and federal rules about how and when to gather in public, tools like the COVID-19 Dashboard created by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins became critical, if not lifesaving, resources. “Mapping came to the attention of the public for a few reasons,” he says. “One: It is an easy way to communicate information. You often see news agencies and programs using maps during elections, showing which states are turning red or blue.”

Judi Heher developed this map as part of her master’s project, which focused on how well ballot drop boxes in Santa Cruz County supported voters in the 2020 general election. Since so many factors play into why a person may not vote, she developed a marginalization index that considered key socioeconomic factors related to voting. Elections officials can develop tools like this map to determine their placement of ballot drop boxes. For example, the Santa Cruz Elections Office may place more ballot drop boxes in the southwest of the county (look for the dark blue) than in the northeast (look for the yellow) because of its higher marginalization index ranking. Image courtesy of Judi Heher.

In terms of how learning these tools can assist officials with planning for the fall election, Zandiatashbar says that GIS and mapping technologies can assess how well ballot drop boxes are distributed in certain regions.

 “We draw upon GIS and mapping to analyze access [to ballot drop boxes and voting centers] through car and bus access, as well as walking access,” he explains. “We are concerned about communities who have not participated as much in previous elections. For instance, immigrants who have since become citizens, racial and income minorities. Do they have easy access to ballot drop boxes and vote centers? How can we distribute the infrastructure so those folks can have reasonable access to participate in the election?”

Zandiatashbar and Heher say that the purpose of the Data and Democracy workshops is to increase voter turnout. By showing election officials and policymakers how to harness open-source tools like Python and R, they hope to demystify data visualization in such a way that officials can plan ahead for free and democratic elections.

Another skill that workshop participants can learn is raster analysis, or how to interpret data based on images, pixels and geographic location. Graduate student Owen Hussey, ’21 Geology, ’24 MA Geography, will share how participants can use raster analysis to determine a location’s relative accessibility.

“It is my hope that participants will walk away with the skills needed to accurately determine the accessibility of ballot drop box locations in their area, as well as to provide insight into how less-accessible locations could be improved,” Hussey says. “To do this, participants will learn how to use raster data, measuring tools, and weighted analyses to calculate an ‘Accessibility Index,’ which will provide a metric by which ballot drop-off locations can be rated and compared. This topic is important because having more accessible ballot drop box locations means a better voter turn-out come election season.”

While it may be hard to interpret a cluster of dots on a map, Zandiatashbar recognizes that overlapping data sets have the potential for exponential impact. Many of the barriers voters face when trying to turn up to voting centers — lack of transportation, even a fear or distrust of the government agencies that often house polling stations — could be addressed by analyzing U.S. Census data and better understanding the physical and economic conditions of the region. What if, by setting up voting centers closer to transit hubs, or partnering with trusted local businesses to share election information, election officials could make it easier and more comfortable for registered voters to use their voices?

GIS mapping and open source technologies are the “perfect tools for nonprofit organizations who are advocating for minorities, justice and voter turnout,” Zandiatashbar says. 

The stakes are high for election officials as well, adds Heher. Given the pushback that county clerks and registrars faced following the 2020 presidential election, she says it’s especially important that election offices consider data-driven tools that can better demonstrate how they work.

“When it comes to democracy, we need people at the local level who understand big data and can use it to improve their local community by making sure that those who have a valid right to vote are able to do so — and that they have access to the facilities for them to make their voices known,” she says. “When they have access to these tools and know how to use them, [election officials] can speak with greater confidence about how fair the election has been. I believe when you give people the tools and wherewithal to use them, they will.”

The Data and Democracy Workshops occur online on August 10, 17 and 24, with two sessions each Saturday. Though registration is listed online at $200 per workshop, discounts codes are available for students and community partners. Email Heher to access relevant discounts. Workshop attendees, in addition to online badges, will also receive one Certification Maintenance credit per workshop for those who are The American Institute of Certified Planners.

Register for the Data and Democracy Workshops.