Voting Experiences of Visual Impaired Citizens During Polling Day in Malaysia

Abstract

Voting is a core responsibility of a citizen as every citizen has equal rights to cast his/her votes during polling day. However, individuals with disabilities encountered many challenges when it comes to voting. To address these issues, we conducted a study to explore the experiences of individuals with visual impairment during polling day of the General Election 2018 in Malaysia. The study has discovered that there are some significant issues encountered by individuals with visual impairment such as trust, privacy, facilities in polling station, limited guidance in polling station and mobility.  In order to prevent these obstacles this research has suggested some solutions. The findings of this research will help the government and Electoral Commission to make elections more accessible for everyone in future especially for the visual impaired people.