Ballot

A ballot is a device (originally a small ball - see blackball (blacklist)) used to record choices made by voters. Each voter uses one ballot, and ballots are not shared. In the simplest elections, a ballot may be a simple scrap of paper on which each voter writes in the name of a candidate, but governmental elections use pre-printed to protect the secrecy of the votes. The voter casts their ballot in a box at a polling station.

In Ancient Greece citizens used pieces of broken pottery to scratch in the name of the candidate in the procedures of ostracism. This was done because parchment was expensive and had to be imported from Egypt, broken pottery was abundant and virtually free.