Tabellariae Leges

The ballot laws of the Roman Republic (Latin: leges tabellariae) were four laws which introduced the secret ballot to all popular assemblies in the republic. They were all introduced by tribunes, and consisted of the lex Gabinia (139 BC), applying to the election of magistrates; the lex Cassia (137 BC), applying to juries except in cases of treason; the lex Papiria (131 BC), applying to the passing of laws; and the lex Caelia (107 BC), which expanded the lex Cassia to include matters of treason. Prior to the ballot laws, voters announced their votes orally to a teller, essentially making every vote public. The ballot laws curtailed the influence of the aristocratic class and expanded the freedom of choice for voters. Elections became more competitive. Counter-intuitively, the ballot also led to an increase in bribery by removing social pressure as a means of obtaining votes.

From the founding of the Roman Republic in 509 BC to the mid second century BC, Rome had expanded from a small city state to a world power. After decisively winning the Macedonian Wars, destroying Carthage in 146 BC, and the destroying Corinth in the same year, Rome became the hegemonic power of the Mediterranean. Aside from controlling Italy, it had gained provinces in modern day Spain, Greece, Corsica and Sardinia, Sicily, and northern Africa, in addition to its many client states and allies.

During this 400 year expansion, Roman politics was largely peaceful, with no civil wars and no recorded political murders. However, the conquest of an empire would cause significant political and social changes. With an empire, political office offered more opportunities for wealth and personal advancement, increasing the stakes of elections. The Italian land conquered by Rome—technically ager publicus, or public land—in practice fell into the hands of rich aristocrats, leading to the rise of large estates called latifundia. These large estates were worked by slaves from conquered territories, who flooded into Italy in the hundreds of thousands. Due to economies of scale, the use of slave labor, and the appropriation of previously public land, many small farmers found it impossible to compete with the latifundia and were forced to sell their farms. The dispossession of these farmers, many of whom moved to Rome and became part of the landless poor, caused profound social tension and political upheaval.

...
Wikipedia