Boltblue to hold SMS polling day
Boltblue, which claims to be the UK’s leading mobile Internet portal, has launched the “first ever mobile phone election” from its website, www.boltblue.com.
The Boltblue SMS election, which takes place on June 5, has been set up to “accurately gauge the mood of the UK’s voters and test the propensity of people to use their mobile devices as a voting tool,” according to a Boltblue spokeswoman.
The move follows research from Sky News and BRMB, revealing that 44 per cent of young people who were planning not to take part in the election would do so if they could use their phones to vote. The figure rises to 50 per cent among people aged 18 to 24. Of those planning to vote, 62 per cent say they would do so via their mobile phone if the facility were available.
Boltblue says its extensive reach – it claims it has over 4 million registered users, representing a third of SMS and WAP users in the UK – should make its results “highly indicative” of the actual General Election results.
Boltblue chief executive Michael Brown says: “We fully expect our members to reveal the mood of the nation in advance of polling day.
“The technology already exists to allow secure and accurate voting via SMS. Who knows? Perhaps it will be a reality in the next General Election.”
In the run up to the Boltblue Election there will be a series of opinion polls covering key topics such as education, health and tax. Links to the key political parties’ websites will also be available from Boltblue.com.
Voters will be able to participate in some mobile canvassing by sending party political icons and SMS messages to their friends’ mobile phones. By involving its members in this way, Boltblue hopes to encourage a greater proportion of youth voters to take part in the General Election this year.
