Launch your election and pay

Ready to launch, or almost ready

The heading tells you where you stand. Ready to launch means everything checks out. Almost ready means something needs doing first: the Before you can launch card lists it, with a link to the step that fixes it.

The Launch election button stays greyed out until the list is empty. An opening time that has passed is fine: voting then opens as soon as you launch.

Check the summary

Your election sums up the setup in five lines, each with an Edit link to its step:

• Ballot: each question and how voters answer it, such as Board of Directors · Plurality: pick up to 3 of 5 candidates.
• Voters: how many, and how their keys go out, such as 230 voters · 230 by email.
• Voting: when voting opens and closes, and the time zone.
• Privacy and results: the secret ballot, who sees results while voting is open, and whether votes are weighted.
• Invitations: what goes out, such as An email to 230, ready to send.

A note sets out the secret ballot: “Once cast, a ballot can't be traced to its voter or changed, and voter keys can't be deactivated after launch. Remove anyone who shouldn't vote from the voter list before you launch.”

To vote through the ballot once more, press Try the ballot first. It opens in a new tab, and nothing is counted.

What happens next

The What happens next card lays out the timeline:

1. When you launch: each voter gets a private key. If you hand out keys, print them with Print keys on the Voters tab, or download them as a CSV.
2. The opening time (or Right after, if voting opens at launch): voting opens, and the invitations go out by email or text message. From then on you can send reminders to anyone who hasn't voted, and add voters with your spare keys.
3. The closing time: voting closes, or earlier once every key has been used. The results are ready on the Results tab, and we email you a reminder to send them to members: the results link works only once you do.

What it costs

The price counts every key: listed voters, hand-out keys and spare keys.

The Price panel shows your count, the amount and the Total. The price shown is the price charged, in US dollars. See pricing.

Pay and launch

1. For a paid election, type your card details in the Card field. A free election has no Card field.
2. Press Launch election. For a paid election the button shows the amount, such as Launch election · $11.50.
3. Wait a moment. The button shows Checking your card… and then Launching…, and it can't be pressed twice.
4. You land on the election's dashboard.

It's one payment, and card payments are handled by Stripe. A mistyped card number or expiry date shows an error under the Card field. If the card is declined, you stay on the Launch step with a message that starts “Payment failed:” and gives the reason. Nothing launches and nothing is charged.

A line under the button says when members first hear from you, such as “Nothing is sent to members until Nov 3 at 9:00 AM.”

After you launch

• We email you the vote link to post where your members will see it, such as your website or newsletter. Members still need their own key to vote.
• Voting opens at the time you set, and the invitations go out then.
• The setup is locked so every voter gets the same ballot. View election setup, in the More menu on every tab, shows it, read-only. See view a launched election's setup.
• From the dashboard, you can send reminders and close voting early. While voting is open, you can add voters with spare keys on the Voters tab.

Not ready yet?

Leave the page. As the Launch step says: “Your election is saved. Close this tab and come back any time; nothing launches or charges until you press the button.” Pick it up again from My elections.