What's needed to bring the US voting system into the 21st century | Tiana Epps-Johnson

49,525 views ・ 2019-02-12

TED


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譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Helen Chang
00:13
OK, I want to take a moment to let each of you think to yourselves
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好,我想先用一點時間, 讓大家自己思考一下,
00:18
about the last time you sent or received a fax.
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你上次發送或收到 傳真是什麼時候。
00:22
(Laughter)
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(笑聲)
00:23
Well, for me, it was this morning,
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我的話,是今天早上,
00:25
because one piece of my work
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因為我工作的一部分,
00:27
is making sure that everyone in the US has the information that they need
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就是要確保美國的每一個人 都得到他們需要的資訊,
00:32
to make decisions about the candidates on their ballot.
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來決定要圈選 選票上的哪個候選人。
00:35
And collecting that information
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要從當地負責維護那些資料的
00:36
from the local government offices responsible for maintaining it
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政府辦公室收集那些資料,
00:40
means sending and receiving a lot of faxes.
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就表示要發送和接收很多傳真。
00:45
Voting is one of our most fundamental rights.
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投票是我們最基本的權利之一。
00:48
It's one of the most tangible ways
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投票是一種很具體的方式,
00:50
that each and every one of us can shape our communities.
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可以讓每個人形塑我們的社區。
00:53
And as we enter this fourth industrial revolution,
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隨著我們進入第四次工業革命,
00:56
where technology is changing everything around us,
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科技在改變我們周遭的一切,
00:58
you would think, with something as important as the right to vote,
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你們會想,投票權這麼重要,
01:03
that we would have the most modern, secure,
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我們應該會有現存最現代化、
01:06
inclusive system that could exist ...
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最安全、最廣泛的系統……
01:09
But we don't.
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但並非如此。
01:11
When we look at comparable democracies,
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如果我們拿其他民主國家來比較,
01:13
the US has one of the lowest voter turnout rates in the world.
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美國的投票者出席率 是世界最低的國家之一。
01:17
We have a system where even the most persistent voters
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我們的系統會讓 即使是最持久的投票者
01:21
come up against exhausting barriers.
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也會遭遇到讓人心力交瘁的障礙。
01:23
A system where 20th-century technology --
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在這個系統中, 二十世紀的技術——
01:26
like fax machines --
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比如傳真機——
01:27
and outdated practices stand in the way of full, vibrant participation.
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以及過時的做法, 都阻礙了完整、有活力的參與。
01:33
In US presidential elections, turnout hovers around 60 percent.
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美國總統大選的 出席率大約是六成。
01:38
The numbers are even lower for local elections.
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地方選舉的數字更低。
01:41
That means that nearly 40 percent of Americans aren't voters.
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那就表示,近四成的 美國人不投票。
01:45
That's nearly 100 million people.
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那是近一億人。
01:50
I believe in something very straightforward:
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我的信念非常直截了當:
01:54
that everyone should have the information that they need to become a voter,
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人人都應該有成為 投票者所需要的資訊,
01:57
that the voting process should be seamless and secure
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投票過程應該要無縫且安全,
02:01
and that every voter should have information they trust
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且每位投票者都應有 他們可以相信的資訊,
02:04
to make decisions about the candidates on their ballot.
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來決定要圈選 選票上的哪位候選人。
02:07
Because when more people vote,
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因為,越多人投票,
02:09
together, we make better decisions for our communities.
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我們就能一起為我們的社區 做出更好的決策。
02:13
So I've spent the last eight years on a mission
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我過去八年的時間 都投入在一個使命上,
02:16
to push our democracy into the 21st century.
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就是將我們的民主 推向二十一世紀。
02:20
Now, one of the most common approaches to election modernization
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要做選舉現代化, 最常見的方法之一,
02:23
is advocating for policy change,
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就是提倡政策改變,
02:26
and that's an incredibly important piece of the strategy
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那是策略中極重要的一部分,
02:29
for building a system where millions of more people become voters.
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目的是要建立一個系統, 讓投票人數再增加數百萬人。
02:33
But I've taken a different approach.
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但我採用了一個不同的方法。
02:36
I focused on a critical yet largely untapped resource
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我把焦點放在一項很重要
卻大部分尚未開發的 選舉現代化資源:
02:39
for election modernization:
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02:42
local election officials.
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地方選務人員。
02:44
I work with thousands of local election officials across the country
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我和全國數千名 地方選務人員合作,
02:48
to build tools and skills that they can use immediately
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建立工具和技能, 讓他們能馬上用來
02:52
to transform the way that they're engaging today's voters.
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轉變他們和現在 投票者的接觸方式。
02:56
Folks like Kat and Marie.
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像凱特與茉莉。
02:58
Kat and Marie have worked together for years in a windowless office
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凱特與茉莉一起在一間沒有 窗戶的辦公室中工作了數年,
03:02
in the basement of the Mercer County Courthouse in West Virginia.
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西維吉尼亞默瑟郡 法院大樓的地下室。
03:06
Together, they have a tremendous responsibility.
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他們兩人共同承擔極大的責任。
03:09
They're local election officials serving Mercer County's 40,000 registered voters.
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他們是地方的選務人員,服務 默瑟郡有登記的四萬名投票者。
03:15
Local election officials are the public servants
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地方選務人員是人民公僕,
03:17
that do the day-to-day work that makes our election system function.
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他們每天的工作, 讓我們的選舉系統能運作。
03:21
When you fill out a voter-registration form,
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當你填好一張投票者登記表時,
03:23
they're the folks that process them and add you to the rolls.
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他們負責處理登記表 並把你加入名單中。
03:27
They're the folks who buy the technology that we use to cast and count ballots.
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他們也負責購買用來 投票和開票的技術。
03:31
They recruit and train the volunteers at your local polling place.
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你當地投票所的志工 是由他們招募和訓練的。
03:35
And they're the official nonpartisan source
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他們是官方的無黨派來源,
03:38
for informing people in their communities about how to vote.
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負責告知社區中的人要如何投票。
03:41
And unlike other countries
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和其他國家不一樣,
03:43
where there's some form of centralized election authority,
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其他國家有中央化 選舉機構的形式,
03:46
in the US,
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在美國,
03:48
there are 7,897 different county and municipal offices,
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有 7897 間
不同的郡辦公室和市辦公室,
03:54
like Kat and Marie's,
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就像凱特和茉莉的,
03:55
that each have an independent role in administering elections.
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每間辦公室在實施選舉時 都有獨立的角色。
03:59
Yes, that's nearly 8,000 slightly different ways
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是的,依你的居住地, 你可能在投票時,
04:02
that you might experience voting based on where you happen to live.
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會遇到近八千種稍微不同的方式。
04:07
When I was talking with Kat and Marie,
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當我和凱特及茉莉談的時候,
04:09
like so many election officials that I talk with in rural towns
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就如同我在鄉村小鎮 談過的選務人員,
04:13
and in major cities alike,
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以及大城市的選務人員,
04:15
they were deeply proud of getting to help people in their communities,
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對於能協助他們社區的人, 他們深感驕傲,
04:19
but they were also worried.
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但他們也會擔心。
04:21
All of the new tools that people were using to get information --
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大家用來取得資訊的新工具——
04:24
the internet, social media --
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網路、社交媒體——
04:26
they were difficult to figure out how to use effectively.
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他們很難搞懂要如何有效地運用。
04:29
And they felt like they weren't fully meeting the needs of Mercer County voters.
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他們覺得自己沒有完全滿足 默瑟郡投票者的需求。
04:34
One thing that they really wished that they had was a website
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他們真的很希望能有一個網站,
04:37
so they could create a hub
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讓他們創造一個中心, 提供資訊說明
04:38
with information about how to register in upcoming elections,
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如何登記參加下次選舉, 也可以刊登選舉結果。
04:41
and a place to put election results.
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04:44
See, at the time, when voters had questions,
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在當時,當投票者有問題時,
04:47
they had to either call or visit their office,
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他們得要打電話 或拜訪他們的辦公室,
04:50
which meant that Kat and Marie were inevitably answering
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也就表示凱特和茉莉無可避免
要不斷地回覆同樣的問題,
04:53
the same questions over and over again,
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04:55
which is both a superinefficient use of their time,
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這樣的時間運用非常沒效率,
04:59
but also created totally unnecessary barriers for voters
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也對投票者造成了不必要的阻礙,
05:02
when that information could just live online.
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畢竟資訊明明就可以 放在網路上的。
05:06
And Mercer County wasn't alone.
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默瑟郡並不是唯一。
05:08
At the time, they were one of 966 counties in the US
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在那時,美國有 966 個郡 都沒有將投票資訊放在網路上,
05:13
that had no voting information online.
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他們的郡只是其中之一。
05:16
I'll let that sink in.
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讓大家消化一下。
05:19
They were one of the nearly one-third of counties in the US
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除了他們,美國有三分之一的郡
05:22
that had no place online
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都沒有線上資源來提供 如何投票的官方資訊。
05:23
to find official information about how to vote.
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05:28
To Kat and Marie, not having and election website was unacceptable,
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對凱特和茉莉來說, 沒有選舉網站是不可接受的,
05:32
but they didn't have very many options.
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但他們沒有很多選項。
05:34
They didn't have the budget to hire a web developer,
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他們沒有預算可以 僱用網站開發商,
05:37
they didn't have the expertise to build a site themselves,
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他們自己沒有架站的專長,
05:39
so they went without.
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所以他們就沒有用網站。
05:41
And 40,000 voters in Mercer County went without.
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默瑟郡的四萬名投票者 就沒有用網站。
05:46
We're in a moment where we have an unprecedented opportunity
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此刻,我們有個前所未有的機會,
05:50
to transform civic engagement.
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可以轉變公民參與。
05:53
Technology is revolutionizing science and industry.
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科技正在徹底改革科學和工業。
05:56
It's already transformed how we connect with one another
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它已經轉變了我們連結彼此、
05:59
and understand the world around us,
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了解周遭世界的方式,
06:01
but our democratic institutions --
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但我們的民主制度——
06:04
they're being left behind.
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它們被拋在後頭。
06:07
The US is one of the few major democracies in the world
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除了美國,世界上只有 少數幾個主要民主國家
06:10
that puts the onus of voter registration on the individual voter,
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把投票登記的職責 交付給個別投票者,
06:14
rather than the government.
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而非政府。
06:16
The rules that govern how to vote vary from state to state,
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每個州管理投票 方式的規則都不同,
06:19
and sometimes even county to county.
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有時每個郡也不同。
06:22
And we have ballots that are pages and pages long.
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我們的選票有好幾頁這麼長。
06:25
This November, on my ballot,
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今年十一月,在我的選票上,
06:28
there are literally over 100 different people and referenda
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有超過一百個不同的人以及公投
06:31
for me to make decisions about.
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要我來做選擇。
06:34
We have to be using the best tools we can bring to bear
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我們必須要用我們 能取得的最佳工具,
06:36
to help voters navigate this complexity,
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來協助投票者了解 這麼複雜的狀況,
06:39
and right now, we're not.
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而現在,我們沒有這樣做。
06:42
One of the most common narratives I hear in my work
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我在工作中最常聽到的一種說法,
06:45
is that people aren't civically engaged because they're apathetic --
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就是大家之所以公民參與度不高, 是因為他們很冷淡——
06:49
because they don't care.
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因為他們不在乎。
06:52
But as my brilliant friends at the Center for Civic Design say,
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但,就如同我在公民設計中心的 一位聰明友人所言,
06:55
if there is apathy,
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如果要說有冷淡,
06:57
it comes from the system,
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那也是系統冷淡,
06:59
not the voter.
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而不是投票者。
07:01
We can change the system right now
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我們現在就可以改變這個系統,
07:04
by connecting local election officials like Kat and Marie
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做法是把像凱特 和茉莉這樣的選務人員
07:08
with 21st-century tools
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和二十一世紀的工具連結,
07:10
and the training that they need to use them to better serve voters.
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提供他們使用工具所需要的訓練, 讓他們為投票者做更好的服務。
07:16
Tools and training to do things like use social media for voter engagement,
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他們需要的工具和訓練包括
用社交媒體來做投票者連結,
07:21
or use data to staff and equip polling places
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或是使用資料來安排 投票場所的人員和設備,
07:23
so that we don't see hours-long lines at the polls,
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才不會要排幾小時的隊才能投票,
07:27
or training on cybersecurity best practices
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或是網路安全最佳做法的訓練,
07:29
so that we can ensure that our voting systems are secure.
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讓我們能確保我們的 投票系統是安全的。
07:34
When we invest in this approach,
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若我們投資這項方法,
07:35
we see meaningful, lasting results.
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我們就會見到有意義、 持久的結果。
07:40
Kat and Marie are online now.
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凱特和茉莉現在都上線了。
07:42
Inspired by their experience, we built a website template
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受到他們的經驗鼓舞, 我們建立了一個網站樣版,
07:45
using research-based best practices in civic design,
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用的是以研究為基礎的 公民設計最佳做法,
07:49
and developed the training
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我們也開發了訓練,
07:50
so that Kat and Marie are able to maintain their site themselves.
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讓凱特和茉莉能夠自己維護網站。
07:55
In less than a week,
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不到一週,
07:56
they went from having never seen the back end of a website
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他們從未曾見過網站的後台,
08:00
to building a resource for Mercer County voters
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變成能夠為默瑟郡的 投票者建立資源,
08:02
that they have been independently keeping up to date since 2014.
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他們從 2014 年起至今 就完全獨立在做網站更新。
08:07
Today, the 40,000 voters in Mercer County
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現今,默瑟郡的四萬名投票者,
08:10
and over 100,000 voters in counties across the country
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以及全國各郡十萬名投票者,
08:14
have everything that they need to become a voter
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都能擁有身為投票者需要的一切,
08:16
directly from their local election official,
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直接來自於他們當地的選務人員,
08:18
on a mobile-friendly, easy-to-use, accessible website.
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透過一個行動友善、 容易操作的可使用的網站來取得。
08:24
And we can even further scale the impact
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我們還能把影響力的規模再擴大,
08:28
when local election officials are not only reaching out
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如果地方的選務人員不只 透過自己的管道向外提供服務,
08:30
through their own channels,
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08:32
but they're extending their reach by working in partnership with others.
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還能和他人合作, 把影響範圍延伸更大。
08:36
Efforts like the Ballot Information Project
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比如「選票資訊計畫」
08:38
and the Voting Information Project work with election officials nationwide
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以及「投票資訊計畫」 都是和全國選務人員合作,
08:43
to create a centralized, standard database of key voting information,
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創造出一個中央化的標準資料庫, 存放重要的投票資訊,
08:47
like what's on your ballot and where to vote.
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比如選票上會有什麼, 及去哪裡投票。
08:51
That information powers tools built by companies like Google and Facebook
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那些資訊能提供動力給 Google 和臉書這類公司所建造的工具,
08:55
to get information in the places where people already are,
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把資訊送到大家的所在,
08:58
like their newsfeed and search.
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比如新聞饋送和搜尋。
09:02
In 2016, the Ballot Information Project
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2016 年,選票資訊計畫
09:05
connected the public with information about candidates and referenda
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協助大眾連結關於候選人 和公投的資訊,
09:09
over 200 millions times,
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連結次數超過兩億次,
09:13
helping between a third and a half of every single person who cast a ballot.
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三分之一到半數的投票人受益。
09:19
And that model has been replicated for elections around the world.
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那個模型已經被 全世界的選舉給複製。
09:24
When we look at efforts in other areas of government,
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當我們考慮政府其他 領域中的嘗試和努力,
09:27
we can see the opportunity when we listen to the public's needs
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我們能夠看到機會, 只要我們能傾聽大眾的需求,
09:32
and we meet them with modern tools.
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並用現代工具來滿足它們。
09:34
I think about my friends at mRelief,
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我會想我在 mRelief 的朋友,
09:36
who have helped 260,000 families
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他們協助了二十六萬個家庭,
09:39
unlock 42 million dollars in food benefits
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在糧食券省下了四千兩百萬美元,
09:44
by helping government agencies transition away
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做法是協助政府機關做轉換,
09:46
from a 20-page, paper-based application for food stamps
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申請食物券不要再用 二十頁的紙本資料,
09:50
to a process that can happen in 10 questions over text message
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改成新的流程,只要用 文字訊息傳送十個問題,
09:56
in fewer than three minutes.
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不用三分鐘就可以完成。
09:58
That kind of transformation is possible in voting.
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那樣的轉變,在投票也是可能的。
10:02
It's happening right now,
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它正在發生,
10:05
but there's still so much work to do.
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但還有很多要做的。
10:08
Now, if you have any technical bone in your body,
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如果你有一點技術頭腦,
10:12
I know what you're thinking.
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我知道你在想什麼。 這都是可以解決的。
10:14
This is all solvable.
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10:16
The technology that we need exists.
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我們需要的技術是存在的。
10:19
We collectively have the expertise.
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我們結合起來,就有專門技術。
10:22
You might even be thinking about volunteering
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你可能還在想著要去 你當地的選舉辦公室當志工。
10:24
at your local election office.
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10:26
I love how solutions-oriented you are,
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很高興你是如此解決方案導向,
10:29
but to be clear,
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但,要說清楚,
10:31
the work that is needed to modernize our election system
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要讓我們的選舉系統現代化 所需要做的工作
10:34
isn't something that's going to happen using 20 percent time,
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並不是只花 20% 的 時間就能完成的,
10:38
or through a hackathon,
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也不是透過駭客馬拉松 或一次性的技術專案計畫就能完成。
10:39
or by doing a one-off technology project.
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10:42
What we need is significant, sustained, long-term investment.
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我們需要巨大、
持久、長期的投資。
10:49
Investment in technology
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投資在技術上,
10:51
and investment in the skills of local election officials
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投資在地方選務人員的技能上,
10:53
to run 21st-century elections,
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來進行二十一世紀的選舉,
10:57
because if we don't invest in the long game,
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因為如果我們不做長期投資,
11:00
we risk finding ourselves perpetually behind.
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我們就有總是發現自己 永遠落後的風險。
11:03
So if you're ready to help millions,
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如果你準備好要協助數百萬人,
11:07
if you're ready to close the gap between the system that we have
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如果你準備好要消除 我們現有的系統
11:10
and the system that we deserve,
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和我們應得的系統之間的落差,
11:12
we need you.
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那我們需要你。
11:14
Organizations that are doing this work year-round need you.
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一年到頭都在做這項 工作的組織需要你。
11:18
Local election offices need you.
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地方選舉辦公室需要你。
11:21
Come join us.
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來加入我們。
11:23
Thank you.
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謝謝。
11:25
(Applause)
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(掌聲)
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