I saw an experiment recently where the researchers offered people a small incentive to vote without offering it for a vote for any candidate/issue. It wasn't clear from the experiment, as I recall it, if the results were due to the incentive or the contact with the person informing them of it (a general GOTV contact), but I am wondering if this kind of experiment runs into any legal issues. The authors felt not (I believe they said they had asked some lawyers to look into it but agreed that it might be a grey area in some states).

 

Is there general argeement on this? Or does it vary by state? I think the authors gave some examples of incentives at polling places as part of their defense, but I don't recall what they were (beyond the "I voted" sticker). I.e., do some (smaller) communities have coffee and donuts at the polling place, etc.?

Doug Hess