HOW DOES IT WORK?

"By filling out a simple questionnaire, you can compare your views on the issues to the positions of the major political parties. (...) You can also choose to offer your impressions of the major party leaders and the parties themselves. (...) When you're done, Vote Compass produces three different results: one indicates where you are on the political landscape compared to the parties; another shows you how much you agree with each of the parties; and the third highlights how you rank the party leaders."

MY EXPERIENCE

I'm ashamed: I don't follow politics, but I believe that voting is very important. During the 2011 federal elections in Canada, I tried the Vote Compass because I saw on Facebook that some of my friends had use it. I gave it a shoot because it would not test my knowledge about politics... otherwise, I would have feel insecure. Instead of telling me what party wants what, the tool led me to ask pertinent questions about MY values and MY opinions. After the "test", I was happy to see my values and my opinions correlate (more or less) with those of the political parties involved. The information was visual and graphical so with a quick look I could understand what were my similarities and differences with them. I felt empowered. I like to compare the tool to a Wizard in the sense that it helps you through the steps of a smart reasoning about politics.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

Accessibility for those with cognitive disabilities is often an overlooked topic even though it affects a large number of people. There are different problems people  may have that affect their ability to vote such as memory, reading text (e.g. dyslexia), problem solving, keeping focused, etc. These people can vote, but might need help understanding the political issues and making the right decision. A tool similar to Vote Compass could help them, and the population at large.

AN OTHER ADVANTAGE

"Vote Compass echoed the voices of the nearly 2 million Canadians who used it during the 2011 federal election campaign (...) and provided insights into political opinions across Canada."