The Core Mechanics: How Voting Actually Works
The traditional People's Choice method is the poker chip vote. Every attendee gets one poker chip (or token, or paper ticket) when they enter the show. They walk around, and at the end of their visit, they drop their chip in a container next to the car they want to vote for. The car with the most chips wins.
This is simple, physical, and social. You see someone drop a chip in a container, you wonder why they picked that car, you go look at it. The voting process creates interaction. That's good for a community event.
The container next to each car is typically a cup, a jar, or a custom box — labelled with the car number. Clear containers let the owner see the votes accumulating, which they love. At the end of voting, your team collects all containers, counts the chips, announces the winner.
What Can Go Wrong (and How to Prevent It)
The chip vote works if people only vote once. It breaks down when someone stuffs the ballot — grabs a handful of extra chips or votes multiple times. At a community show this is usually minor and forgivable. At a competitive show with cash prizes or significant trophies, it's a real problem.
Hand-stamp or wristband
Everyone gets a wristband at entry. One wristband, one chip. Works well for paid-entry shows. Harder to implement at free events with a continuous flow of attendees.
Numbered tickets
Instead of identical chips, use sequentially numbered tickets. Collecting them is slower but harder to abuse.
Digital voting
Attendees enter the car number on a phone to vote, and the system limits one vote per device. Works well with QR codes on dash cards that link directly to a voting page. Eliminates the counting step entirely. Requires mobile signal or wifi at the venue.
At the Great Lakes Invitational, we moved to QR code digital voting a few years ago. Scan the QR code on the dash card, cast your vote, system records it. We still put out a physical backup vote box for people who don't want to use their phone, but the digital vote is the primary. It's faster to count, harder to abuse, and attendees like that they get instant confirmation their vote was recorded.
Voting Windows and Closing Time
Set a hard voting close time and announce it clearly — on your signage, on your program, over the PA. I recommend closing voting at least 30–45 minutes before your trophy ceremony so you have time to count and verify.
Announce the voting close time at least twice over the PA before it happens: once an hour before, once 15 minutes before. "Voting for People's Choice closes in 15 minutes — if you haven't voted yet, go find your favourite car and drop your chip now." This drives a last-minute surge in participation, which is good for the energy of the event.
Don't let voting close later than planned because some owner is lobbying for an extension. Set the time, hold the time.
Who's Eligible
This is a policy decision you need to make before the show and publish clearly. Options:
- All registered entries eligible — simple, maximum participation
- Registered entries in judged classes only — excludes walk-ins or display-only entries from winning
- Separate People's Choice by category — gives you two awards and avoids all votes concentrating on one car
I've run it both ways. For smaller shows, one overall People's Choice is plenty and easier to manage. For larger shows, splitting by era gives you two moments at the ceremony and two happy winners.
Announcing the Winner
The People's Choice announcement should not be the first thing at your trophy ceremony. Build to it. Get through the class awards, let the room settle, then save People's Choice for near the end — treat it as a climax. The crowd has been watching the vote containers fill up all day. They're curious. The announcement lands hard when it comes at the right moment.
Read out the top three vote-getters by car number, ask the crowd if they can place them, then reveal the winner last. It takes 90 seconds and it's the most excited a crowd will be all day.
Key takeaway
People's Choice is the crowd's voice at your show — run a clean process with a hard close time and count it accurately, and you'll send every owner home feeling like they got a fair shot.