Votes on the line (the pledge)
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One click, no email. Restarted from zero on 24 September 2026: only votes really put on the line are counted.
Statistics
First, official non-voting, election after election. Then, what this site counts live. Two different measures, never added up.
Official series · Live · Method and data
Official non-voting
Official results measure turnout, not reasons. Abstention and blank ballots do not count among the votes cast; this site does not say otherwise. It does not call on anyone to stay at home as a matter of principle: it sets a condition, verifiable commitments.
French presidential elections · % of registered voters who abstained
Second round 2022: 28.01%. In fifteen years, 12 points more than in 2007 (16.03%).
Source: results proclaimed by the Conseil constitutionnel / French Ministry of the Interior. Abstention rate = abstentions / registered voters. Blank and spoilt ballots excluded.
French legislative elections · 1st round · % of registered voters who abstained
First round: 17.08% in 1978, 52.49% in 2022 and 33.29% in 2024. The 2024 drop is a reminder that turnout can recover.
Source: French Ministry of the Interior, official results. First round only, to read the trend on a consistent series.
UK general elections · % of registered electors who did not vote
2024: 40.3% did not vote (turnout 59.7%), the lowest turnout since 2001. The post-war floor was 16.1% in 1950.
Source: turnout as a share of registered electors. 2024: House of Commons Library (59.7%). Earlier years: UK Election Statistics (Rallings & Thrasher / Commons Library). Abstention drawn here = 100 − turnout. Spoilt ballots remain inside turnout.
Live on Appstention
Read on every visit from the public counter. Nothing is estimated or pre-filled.
Validated declarations
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Next milestone: 100.
Validated by email. Declare my reason
Published testimonies
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Verbatim, after moderation. Read
Tests taken
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Finished since 28 September 2026; only the result is counted, anonymously. Take the test
No validated declarations yet. The counter starts at zero.
The counter could not be loaded. No figure is shown in its place. Check the public JSON.
Declared reasons
Several reasons possible per declaration. Bars appear with the first validated declaration.
Published testimonies
The optional text left with a validated declaration, published word for word after moderation. Never an address, never a name.
No testimony published yet.
Method and data
How we count, and the limits
- The person fills in the form (guide).
- They receive an email with a unique link.
- They click it: one declaration per email address.
The address stays private: it is used to audit, prevent duplicates and handle deletion requests. It is never published or linked to the testimony.
An email address is not a person.
- A person can have several addresses, or none.
- Registration on the electoral roll is not checked.
- Voluntary participation: this is not a representative sample.
Any change of method will be explained before collection changes.
Raw data (public JSON API)
GET /api/abstention2027/stats
— real time, no authentication, no personal data.
soutiens— votes put on the line (the “No answer, no vote” pledge)declarations_validees— validated declarationspar_motif— breakdown by reasontemoignages_publies,idees_publieestests_realises— tests finished (anonymous result, never the answers)palier,objectif— counter milestones
Transparency
- No inflated numbers: no pre-filled counter, no added estimates.
- Verbatim: testimonies published without rewording; only illegal or off-topic content is removed.
- Timestamped: everything published is in the RSS feed.
- Public rules: the charter sets moderation and transparency.
- Nothing personal published: no emails, no private feedback; technical logs described in the privacy policy.
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