For those of you itching to learn how SMS can help with helping voters to the polls on election day read on. During the recent Presidential Election in Venezuela nearly 8 million voters used SMS to find their polling station.
Citizens of Venezuela could enter information of where they lived and receive information on where there polling station is. I tried to do something similar during the Pat Lamarche gubernatorial race this past November.
The SMS application to handle enquiries from the 16 million registered voters to know which was their voting center was provided by Ogangi Corporation and was used by 7.8 million voters. The Consejo Nacional Electoral (CNE) also used SMS to tell with the 350,000 electoral witnesses where and when they should receive their training.
To use the service voters send in their personal ID (Cedula de Identidad), and receive an answer like this:

Name and Family Name, no es miembro de mesa y vota en ESC BAS RAFAEL ANTONIO GODOY de la parroquia DOMINGO PENALVER"

Electoral Witness received this message:

"Usted es miembro de mesa y debe capacitarse del 30 DE OCTUBRE AL 10 DE NOVIEMBRE en ESC BAS RAFAEL ANTONIO GODOY de la parroquia DOMINGO PEN"

The text in number was widely promoted by TV, broadcast radio and newspapers. "This is the first time SMS was used in an election in Venezuela with this level of Official Support and Promotion" said Santos. "The CNE is planing to keep the service operating permanently as a new comunication way in adition to their web site and freephone line" he said.

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