Election ink

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A voter showing a stained finger during the Iraqi election of 2005. Iraq-election2005-V.jpg
A voter showing a stained finger during the Iraqi election of 2005.

Electoral ink, indelibleink, electoral stain or phosphoric ink is a semi-permanent ink or dye that is applied to the forefinger (usually) of voters during elections in order to prevent electoral fraud such as double voting. It is an effective method for countries where identification documents for citizens are not always standardised or institutionalised. One of the more common election ink compositions is based on silver nitrate, which can produce a stain lasting several weeks. It was first used during the 1962 Indian general election in India. The ink was developed by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL), a Research Institute of CSIR, Ministry of Science and Technology, Govt. of India (https://www.nplindia.org/)

Contents

and manufactured by Mysore Paints and Varnish Ltd. [1] It is exported to more than 30 countries. [2]

Application

A voter's left hand index finger stained with election ink. 15th Malaysian general election. GE15 Ink.jpg
A voter's left hand index finger stained with election ink. 15th Malaysian general election.

Electoral stain is a practical security feature to prevent double voting in elections. Ink is typically applied to the left-hand index finger, especially to the cuticle, where it is almost impossible to remove quickly. Ink may be applied in various ways, depending on circumstance and preference. The most common methods are dipping bottles with sponge inserts, bottles with brush applicators, spray bottles, and marker pens.

Composition

Electoral stain typically contains a pigment for instant recognition, a silver nitrate which stains the skin on exposure to ultraviolet light, leaving a mark that is impossible to wash off and is only removed as external skin cells are replaced. Industry-standard electoral inks contain 10%, 14%, or 18% silver nitrate solution, depending on when the mark must be visible. Although usually water-based, electoral stains occasionally contain a solvent such as alcohol to allow for faster drying, primarily when used with dipping bottles, which may include a biocide to ensure bacteria are not transferred from voter to voter. Hydroxides can easily remove silver chloride. Hence, other photosensitive pigmentation needs to be added. Silver nitrate can cause a condition called argyria, although this requires frequent or extreme exposure.

Longevity

Election stain typically stays on skin for 72–96 hours, lasting 2 to 4 weeks on the fingernail and cuticle area. The election ink used puts a permanent mark on the cuticle area, which only disappears with the growth of the new nail. It can take up to 4 months for the stain to be replaced completely by new nail growth. Stains with concentrations of silver nitrate higher than 18% have been found to have no added effect on stain longevity, as silver nitrate does not have a photosensitive reaction with live skin cells. This means that the stain will fade as new skin grows. [3] Silver nitrate is an irritant and is used as a cauterizing agent at concentrations of 25% or higher. [4]

Colour

Electoral stain is traditionally violet in colour before the photosensitive element takes effect to leave a black or brown mark. However, for the 2005 Surinamese legislative election, orange replaced violet as the colour for marking the voters' fingers. It was found to last just as long and be more appealing to voters, as it resembled the national colours.

Efficiency

Marker pens are the most efficient use of ink, with one 5 ml pen able to mark 600 people, although dipping bottles are often preferred, despite a 100 ml bottle only marking 1000.[ citation needed ] Dipping bottles can leave a more comprehensive stain with slightly greater longevity (depending on silver nitrate content) than markers can. However, marker pens are much cheaper and easier to transport, considerably reducing costs to the election organisers, and the advised option when stains are only needed to be guaranteed for 3 to 5 days. Marker pens also leave a much smaller mark when properly applied, which is more agreeable to many voters.

Controversies

The armed guerrilla Shining Path of Peru has repeatedly threatened to kill those found with indelible ink stains to dissuade from participation in elections. [5] [6]

In the 2004 Afghan presidential election, allegations of electoral fraud arose around the use of indelible ink stains, which many claimed were easily washed off. [7] Election officials had chosen to use the more efficient marker pen option; however, regular marker pens were also sent out to polling stations, which led to confusion and some people being marked with less permanent ink. [8]

In the 2008 Malaysian general election, the election authorities canceled the use of electoral stain a week before voters went to the polls, [9] saying it would be unconstitutional to prevent people from voting even if they had already had their fingers stained. Additionally they cited reports of ink being smuggled in from neighboring Thailand [10] to mark peoples' fingers before they had a chance to vote, thus denying them their rights.

During the 2008 Zimbabwean presidential election, reports surfaced that those who had chosen not to vote were attacked and beaten by government-sponsored mobs. The mobs attacked those without ink on their finger. [11]

During the 2010 Afghan parliamentary election, the Taliban delivered night letters threatening to cut off anybody's finger which was marked with indelible ink. [12]

During the 2013 Malaysian general election, in light of the first-ever implementation of electoral stain, voters reported that the ink could be easily washed off with running water, despite assurances by the Election Commission of Malaysia on the contrary. [13]

International use

Some of the countries that have used election ink at some point include:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ink</span> Liquid or paste that contains pigments or dyes

Ink is a gel, sol, or solution that contains at least one colorant, such as a dye or pigment, and is used to color a surface to produce an image, text, or design. Ink is used for drawing or writing with a pen, brush, reed pen, or quill. Thicker inks, in paste form, are used extensively in letterpress and lithographic printing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silver nitrate</span> Chemical compound

Silver nitrate is an inorganic compound with chemical formula AgNO
3. It is a versatile precursor to many other silver compounds, such as those used in photography. It is far less sensitive to light than the halides. It was once called lunar caustic because silver was called luna by ancient alchemists who associated silver with the moon. In solid silver nitrate, the silver ions are three-coordinated in a trigonal planar arrangement.

Electoral fraud, sometimes referred to as election manipulation, voter fraud, or vote rigging, involves illegal interference with the process of an election, either by increasing the vote share of a favored candidate, depressing the vote share of rival candidates, or both. It differs from but often goes hand-in-hand with voter suppression. What exactly constitutes electoral fraud varies from country to country, though the goal is often election subversion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marker pen</span> Type of writing tool

A marker pen, fine liner, marking pen, felt-tip pen, felt pen, flowmarker, sign pen, vivid, flomaster, texta, sketch pen, koki or simply marker is a pen which has its own ink source and a tip made of porous, pressed fibers such as felt. A marker pen consists of a container and a core of an absorbent material that holds the ink. The upper part of the marker contains the nib that was made in earlier times of a hard felt material, and a cap to prevent the marker from drying out.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Permanent marker</span> Type of marker pen

A permanent marker or indelible marker is a type of marker pen that is used to create permanent or semi-permanent writing on an object.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2004 Afghan presidential election</span>

Presidential elections were held in Afghanistan on October 9, 2004. Hamid Karzai won the elections with 55.4% of the vote and three times more votes than any other candidate. Twelve candidates received less than 1% of the vote. It is estimated that more than three-quarters of Afghanistan's nearly 12 million registered voters cast ballots. The elections were overseen by the Joint Electoral Management Body, chaired by Zakim Shah and vice-chaired by Ray Kennedy, an American working for the United Nations.

Though Afghanistan has had democratic elections throughout the 20th century, the electoral institutions have varied as changes in the political regime have disrupted political continuity. Elections were last held under the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, which was deposed by the Taliban in August 2021. The Taliban dissolved the Elections Commission in December 2021. In May 2022, when asked if the Taliban would hold elections, First Deputy Leader Sirajuddin Haqqani said the question was "premature". All political parties have been banned since August 2023.

India has a parliamentary system as defined by its constitution, with power distributed between the union government and the states. India's democracy is the largest democracy in the world.

Parliamentary elections were held in Afghanistan alongside provincial elections on 18 September 2005. Former warlords and their followers gained the majority of seats in both the lower house and the provincial council. Women won 28% of the seats in the lower house, six more than the 25% guaranteed in the 2004 constitution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martha Moyano</span> Peruvian nurse and politician

Martha Lupe Moyano Delgado is a Peruvian nurse, Fujimorist politician and a congresswoman representing Lima for the 2021–2026 term, previously serving in the 2000–2001, 2001–2006, and 2006-2011 terms. Moyano belongs to the Alliance for the Future party. She is the sister of María Elena Moyano, who was assassinated by Shining Path.

Mysore Paints and Varnish Limited, formerly Mysore Lac and Paints Limited, is a company located in the southern Indian city of Mysore, Karnataka. It is the only company in India authorised to produce indelible ink, which is used in elections to prevent people from voting multiple times. The company is currently owned and operated by the Government of Karnataka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Malaysian general election</span>

General elections were held in Malaysia on Saturday, 8 March 2008. Voting took place in all 222 parliamentary constituencies of Malaysia, each electing one Member of Parliament to the Dewan Rakyat, the dominant house of Parliament. State elections also took place in 505 state constituencies in 12 of the 13 states on the same day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Afghan presidential election</span>

Presidential elections were held in Afghanistan on 20 August 2009. The election resulted in victory for incumbent Hamid Karzai, who received 49.67% of the vote, while his main rival Abdullah Abdullah finished second with 30.59% of the vote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Malaysian general election</span>

General elections were held in Malaysia on Sunday, 5 May 2013. Voting took place in all 222 parliamentary constituencies, each electing one MP to the Dewan Rakyat, the dominant house of Parliament. State elections also took place in 505 state constituencies in 12 of the 13 states on the same day. The elections were the first since Najib Razak became Prime Minister in 2009.

Parliamentary elections were held in Afghanistan on 18 September 2010 to elect members of the House of the People. The Afghan Independent Election Commission - established in accordance with the article 156 of the Constitution of Afghanistan for the purpose of organizing and supervising all elections in the country - postponed the poll from its original date of 22 May to September 18.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Cambodian general election</span>

General elections were held in Cambodia on 28 July 2013. The National Election Committee (NEC) announced that some 9.67 million Cambodians were eligible to cast their ballots to elect the 123-seat National Assembly. Voter turnout was reported to be 69.6%, a record low for a general election. Polling precincts opened 7:00 a.m. and closed at 3:00 p.m. The Cambodian Minister of Information, Khieu Kanharith announced in preliminary results that the Cambodian People's Party won 68 seats and the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party won all the remaining 55 seats. This election marked the largest seat loss by the Cambodian People's Party to date, and their lowest share of seats since 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Afghan presidential election</span>

Presidential elections were held in Afghanistan on 5 April 2014, with a second round held on 14 June. Incumbent President Hamid Karzai was not eligible to run due to term limits. The registration period for presidential nominations was open from 16 September 2013 until 6 October 2013. A total of 27 candidates were confirmed to be running for office. However, on 22 October Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission disqualified 16 of the candidates, leaving only 11 in the race. By April 2014 three candidates gave up the race and decided to support some of the eight remaining candidates. Opinion polls showed Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani as the front-runners and indeed the results of the first round of the election had Abdullah in the lead and Ghani behind him. The second set of results came after the run-off on 14 June, two months after the first round. Preliminary results were expected on 2 July and the final result on 22 July. However, widespread accusations of fraud delayed these results. As a result, John Kerry, then United States Secretary of State, mediated the negotiations between the two final candidates, Ghani and Abdullah. After a series of negotiations and talks between Ghani, Abdullah and Kerry, the two candidates agreed to sign an Agreement to form a National Unity Government based on 50–50 power sharing. As a result of that political agreement, a separate position was created for Abdullah as Chief Executive. The National Unity Government's term ran out after the next Afghan presidential election was held in September 2019.

Parliamentary elections were held in Afghanistan on Saturday 20 October 2018 to elect members of the House of the People. 3,296,643 people voted, 42% of registered voters. They had originally been scheduled for 15 October 2016, but were initially postponed to 7 July 2018, and then again to 20 October. Much of the prelude to the elections focused on the debate over reforming the country's electoral laws. The current system is one of single non-transferable vote. Kandahar's election was held on October 27. Polls were also delayed in Ghazni, due to an intensifying Taliban insurgency in the province, and as of September 2020 still have not been held. The new Parliament was inaugurated on 26 April 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 Venezuelan regional elections</span>

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References

  1. ↑ "Lok Sabha elections 2024: Sole supplier of indelible ink says 70% production complete". Hindustan Times. 2024-03-06. Retrieved 2024-04-03.
  2. ↑ Dhillon, Amrit (2019-03-28). "The ink with a 'secret formula' that powers the world's biggest democratic exercise". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2024-04-03.
  3. ↑ "Chemical Safety Database". Ptcl.chem.ox.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 2008-10-11. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  4. ↑ "Silver Nitrate and Wound Care: The Use of Chemical Cauterization". WoundSource. 2021-03-10. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
  5. ↑ Toledo-Leyva, Camilo (2021-05-25). "Ataque de Sendero Luminoso en Perú polariza aún más las elecciones". Deutsche Welle (in European Spanish). Retrieved 22 May 2022. "En temas electorales, Sendero Luminoso siempre ha estado presente desde 1980. En 1985, por ejemplo, sembraban un mayor terror y convocaban a paros armados. Incluso esperaban en los caminos, y a aquel que tuviera el dedo con la tinta indeleble de haber sufragado, les cortaban el dedo", asegura Yaranga.
  6. ↑ "Sendero Luminoso irrumpe con una bomba en las elecciones presidenciales de Perú". Hoy (in European Spanish). 9 April 2006. Retrieved 22 May 2022. Incluso algunos pasajeros aseguraron haber recibido amenazas de muerte si los encuentran con tinta indeleble en el dedo anular.[ permanent dead link ]
  7. ↑ Baldauf, Scott (12 October 2004). "An Afghan 'Hanging chad' Dispute". Christian Science Monitor. Csmonitor.com. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  8. ↑ Raman, Sunil (2004-10-12). "India link to Afghan ink stink". BBC News. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  9. ↑ "MSN News article". News.my.msn.com. Archived from the original on 2008-05-13. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  10. ↑ Wong, Raphael (2008-03-05). "Ink Washout - The Star". Thestar.com.my. Archived from the original on 2008-04-30. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  11. ↑ "World | Africa | Tsvangirai rejects 'sham' ballot". BBC News. 2008-06-27. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  12. ↑ Najafizada, Eltaf; Rupert, James (20 October 2010). "New Candidates May Win Half of Afghan Parliament Seats Amid Ballot Fraud". Bloomberg.
  13. ↑ "Election ink under scrutiny in Malaysia - Asia-Pacific". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  14. ↑ Boone, Jon (20 August 2009). "Afghanistan election ink safeguard fails detergent test". the Guardian.
  15. ↑ "Skopje interested on the indedible ink used by Albania in the elections". www.balkaneu.com.
  16. ↑ "An Algerian man, with ink applied on his forefinger, prepares to vote a polling station in the Chanot Park on April 12, 2014 in Marseille, southern France".
  17. 1 2 3 Anne-Sofie Holm Gerhard, Melika Atic, Panto Letic and Peter Erben (2019). "Indelible Ink in Elections" (PDF). International Foundation for Electoral Systems . pp. 20–22. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-11-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  18. ↑ Khmer Times. (2023, July 7). The Ink To Prevent Double Voting. https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501320642/video-the-ink-to-prevent-double-voting/
  19. ↑ Khmer Times. (2023, July 6). Gov't Spends Nearly $1m On Indelible Ink for National Elections. https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501320035/govt-spends-nearly-1m-on-indelible-ink-for-national-elections/
  20. ↑ Carmichael, R. (2013, July 27). Cambodia Poll Monitors Report Problem With Indelible Ink. https://www.voanews.com/a/cambodia-poll-monitors-report-problem-with-indelible-ink/1711199.html
    https://web.archive.org/web/20230326221328/https://www.voanews.com/a/cambodia-poll-monitors-report-problem-with-indelible-ink/1711199.html
  21. ↑ "Municipales 2016: ¿Por qué ya no se entinta el dedo a la hora de votar?". T13 (in Spanish). 23 October 2016. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  22. ↑ "Egypt elections in pictures". 24 May 2012 – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
  23. ↑ Anand, Anu (17 April 2014). "Indian elections: voters united by anti-fraud ink mark". the Guardian.
  24. ↑ "Key facts: the Indonesian Legislative Election". 8 April 2014.
  25. ↑ "As Iraq moves on with vote, Falluja trapped by sins of the past". The Indian Express. 2018-05-13. Retrieved 2018-05-17.
  26. ↑ Perry, Tom (30 May 2016). "Sunni hawk wins Lebanon vote, risking new tensions". Reuters.
  27. ↑ "Remove Election Ink From Finger After Voting". www.miricitysharing.com. 7 May 2016.
  28. ↑ "Ahead of GE14, EC orders 100,000 bottles of indelible ink from India - Malay Mail". www.malaymail.com.
  29. ↑ "UNDP Provided Indelible Ink in Myanmar Elections: A Powerful Integrity Tool". UNDP in Myanmar. Archived from the original on 2019-03-30. Retrieved 2016-06-23.
  30. ↑ "Observing Nepal's 2013 Constituent Assembly Election - Election Standards at The Carter Center". electionstandards.cartercenter.org. 26 December 2014.
  31. ↑ "Nicaragua election observers report problems - CBC News".
  32. ↑ "Election fraud: The curious case of magnetic ink - The Express Tribune". 10 October 2013.
  33. ↑ "Living in Peru » News » Congress eliminates use of ink in Peruvian elections". Archived from the original on 2016-08-16. Retrieved 2016-06-23.
  34. ↑ Agencia Andina de Noticias (2 July 2011). "Tinta indeleble se utilizará por última vez en elecciones municipales complementarias de mañana". andina.pe (in Spanish). Retrieved 2021-03-20.
  35. ↑ "Hardliner claims Philippine election win". BBC News. 9 May 2016.
  36. ↑ "Final report of the OAS electoral observation mission" (PDF). Secretariat for Political Affairs. Retrieved 2023-02-16.
  37. ↑ ""Solomon Islands Electoral Act 2018" (PDF).[ permanent dead link ]
  38. ↑ "A South African woman gets ink on her fi".
  39. ↑ "Sri Lankan Voters Go To The Polls".
  40. ↑ "Sudan voting extended; ink washing off voters' fingers | Radio Tamazuj". Archived from the original on 2016-06-02. Retrieved 2016-05-11.
  41. ↑ "Syria holds parliamentary polls in regime-held areas". The Times of Israel .
  42. ↑ "Tunisia veteran claims election win". BBC News. 22 December 2014.
  43. ↑ "The brief history of elections in Turkey". Daily Sabah . 30 October 2015.
  44. ↑ "Venezuela's Socialists trounced in vote". BBC News. 7 December 2015.
  45. ↑ "CNE anunció que no usará tinta indeleble para la elección de la ANC". El Nacional. 10 July 2017. Archived from the original on 27 May 2018. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
  46. ↑ https://qz.com/emails/quartz-obsession/1850026645/indelible-ink-the-mark-of-democracy
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