User:Hayford Peirce/Sandbox/CZ:How to run a CZ election
The account of this former contributor was not re-activated after the server upgrade of March 2022.
There are probably many ways to run a CZ election and to count the ballots and record the votes, but here is a relatively easy way. Some tech people have, in the past, complained that the method was not secured enough, but as far as I know none of the CZ elections have had hacker intrusions, security breaches, or attempts to manipulate the voting or counting. The people who run each election will have to decide how they themselves want to handle it.
Setting up an email account for the voting
The first step, which can be done by any Citizen, is to set up an outside email account, to which the votes by the Citizens will eventually be sent. Here is an easy way that I have done for two elections and three separate votes.
- For each voting account (Managing Editor, Ombudsman, Editorial Council, etc.) a separate account should be established.
- Go to www.Gmail.com and open a new account.
- For an election for Managing Editor, for instance, open an account called 2012ManagingEditorElection@gmail.com
- Gmail will ask for a First Name, a Last Name, and a Desired login name. Give your own name, if you wish, for the First Name and Last Name, since these names will be seen on future emails from this account. Or you could use Election for First Name and Committee for Last Name. Be sure to use "2012ManagingEditorElection" for the account name—the "@gmail.com" will be added automatically.
- You will also have to create and enter a password for the new account, perhaps 123Election123.
- You will also have to select a Security Question and a Security Answer.
- You will also have to give an alternative email address for "recovery" purposes.
- You will also have to fill out the "captcha" feature, which sometimes can be difficult.
- Eventually you will receive an email at the "recovery" account telling you that the new account is open.
- There may be a further security step in which you have to give Gmail a phone number to which they can send a brief password to be entered as a final step. Gmail will send a text message to a mobile phone or a recorded spoken message to a landline phone.