Explanation:
Election officials will appoint staff to manage and conduct voter education and information programmes on behalf of the election authority. The organisation of these offices will likely depend on the nature of the election authority, ie. is it a permanent or temporary body, the extent of election authoriy's legal mandate to conduct voter education and/or the parameters of a given programme. The staff organisation will also be determined by whether or not the programme is being developed for a specific election or as part of an on-going voter and/or civic education programme and whether or not it is directed only at eligible voters or also includes outreach to children.
Whatever the case, there will be staff tasked with the specific function of voter information and education. There will also be staff, however, who are responsibile for media relations, election official and poll worker training, and handle human relations management. Finally, there will be the commissioners and executive officers of the authority who will also have a public communications role.
Coordination of communications and the development of an education programme will be an important task within such an election authority. Educators should have a role in this and not be seen as merely functionaries. Everything that the election authority communicates has an impact on the perceptions, attitudes, and knowledge of voters. Close management of this enables the authority to limit duplication of effort and waste of resources.
Of course, the national election authority is only one part of the election administrative hierarchy. Depending upon how well developed and resourced the hierarcy is, there may be educators, public relations officials, and trainers at lower level election commissions. Managing their interaction and communication will also be important.
