Election departments are the source of official election information — and effective communication is necessary to become a more trusted messenger for your community.
About the series
To combat the rise of election misinformation, the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) launched #TrustedInfo2020 and #TrustedInfo2022, new education campaigns to promote election officials as the credible, verified source of election information. The goal of #TrustedInfo2022 is to drive voters directly to election offices’ websites and social media pages to ensure voters are getting accurate information.
Even with effective, coordinating messaging there is no guarantee that voters will find or understand the information they’re looking for. From election websites to social media pages, election communication needs to be clear, accessible, and user-friendly. And during the COVID-19 pandemic, digital communication of accurate, up-to-date election information is more important than ever.
That’s why we’re launching the training series Communicating Trusted Election Information. The first three courses cover best practices in election websites, social media, and accessible communications. The fourth course introduces how your election office can identify and combat misinformation. The fifth and sixth courses highlight two more audiences that need accurate election information: public officials and the media.
In a busy election year, communication is worth prioritizing. When you view the courses, you’ll learn practical, easy-to-implement steps that can immediately help your community find the information they need to participate in elections.
Curious if the courses are a good fit for you? If you are responsible for communicating with voters, public officials, or the media — especially if your office has limited or no communications staff — you’ll benefit from these trainings. And if you’ve taken the first three CTCL courses in 2017 or 2018, the content is similar, so you might consider them a timely refresher on the topics.
This 6-course series builds on the other CTCL COVID-19 resources provided at no cost to election officials.
Available courses:
Course 1: Improving Your Election Website
Course 2: Accessible Communication for Election Offices
Course 3: Social Media for Voter Engagement
Course 4: Combating Election Misinformation
Course 5: Educating and persuading public officials
Course 6: Working with the media
Questions about the series? Email us at [email protected].
Course 1: Improving Your Election Website
- Identify the top civic information people are looking for online
- Apply principles of plain language and design to your website
- Prioritize digital methods for building trust with your voters
Course materials:
Download the Participant Guide for Improving Your Election Website, PDF, 5mb
Download the slides for Improving Your Election Website, PDF, 1mb
Course 2: Accessible Communication for Election Offices
- Learn the principles of accessible communication and how they increase public trust
- Understand how people with disabilities experience information online
- Establish actionable guidelines for making your website more accessible
Course materials:
Download the Participant Guide for Accessible Communication for Election Offices, PDF, 9mb
Download the slides for Accessible Communication for Election Offices, PDF, 1mb
Course 3: Social Media for Voter Engagement
- Review what research tells us about how voters look for election information
- Know how to use social media to build trust with voters year-round
- Implement basic design principles to create engaging graphics
Course materials:
Download the Participant Guide for Social Media for Voter Engagement, PDF, 13mb
Download the Twitter Campaign Handout for Social Media for Voter Engagement, PDF, 138kb
Download the Social Media Calendar Template for Social Media for Voter Engagement, xlsx, 18kb
Download the slides for Social Media for Voter Engagement, PDF, 9mb
Course 4: Combating Election Misinformation
- Get familiar with terms and concepts related to information operations
- Identify different forms of misinformation, malinformation, and disinformation and how to respond
- Develop resilience with a defensive communications strategy
Course materials:
Download the Participant Guide for Combating Election Misinformation, PDF, 6mb
Download the Slides for Combating Election Misinformation, PDF, 14mb
Download the Misinformation Checklist, PDF, 121 kb
Course 5: Educating and persuading public officials
- Confidently inform policymakers about how you administer elections
- Establish and maintain trusted relationships with public officials
- Get involved in initiatives advancing practical and voter-centric policies
Course materials:
Download the slides for Educating and persuading public officials, PDF, 54Mb
Download Office Tour Agenda Template, docx, 303kb
Course 6: Working with the media
- Make the most of media coverage to educate voters
- Counter misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation in the press
- Develop productive relationships with credible journalists
Course materials:
Download the slides for Working with the media, PDF, 37Mb
Download Media shortlist template, docx, 14kb