The Hidden History of the Secret Ballot - Softcover

"Every once in a while, a book comes along that is refreshingly original and makes one think anew about a 'well-known' topic. This is such a book: a breath of fresh air in the literature on democracy." -Akhil Gupta, Stanford University

We assume that voting by secret ballot is an essential and fundamental principle of representative democracy, but the social history of the secret ballot has rarely been investigated, until now. Voting by secret ballot is a surprisingly recent phenomenon in the West. While it may indeed offer opportunities for broader political participation, its introduction has sometimes limited the electorate, excluding certain groups, even precipitating violence. This original and thought-provoking volume questions the universality of the supposed link between voting secrecy and individual political freedom. Case studies from around the world and various historical eras combine anthropology, political theory, and social history to good effect. The result is an innovative analysis of the cultural history of the West's democratic norms and their imposition on other societies.