Electronic voting system is a system where votes are cast through electrical means rather than traditional paper ballots. Mostly of two types e.g. poll-site electronic voting conducted through touch screen where electronic voting terminal (Direct Recording Electronic Voting Terminal) is located in polling stations or remote electronic voting through any device such as PDA, mobile phone and personal computer with internet connections.
Electronic voting has numerous advantages to the electoral authorities and voters. It creates significant reduction and simplification of work since there are no tedious paper works such as making entries in voters register, stamping and sealing of ballot papers, counting at tallying centers and separate registration of the results in the election information system. Electronic voting is less costly as it does not require forms, envelopes and other document in conjunction with few election officials required as compared to traditional ballot paper voting. It’s quick saving time to voters as vote counting and tallying is reliably automated with results being declared immediately enhancing electoral security. Voting errors by mistake or other ambiguities are avoided as desired candidate appears on the screen before confirmations are made by the voter, involuntary voting errors such as over voting or under voting are also prevented. Electronic voting system encourages accurate voter information as the web page has objective user interface not to influence the behavior of voters. Electronic voting is user friendly to special generation e.g. the blind, immobile voters and elderly. It’s also sufficiently flexible since varied ballot question format in different languages can be used and can’t run out of papers.
Some of the disadvantages of electronic voting system include; hackers causing denial of services by preventing legitimate voters from using the voting facilities as they flood network there by reducing band width, penetrating and altering services and disrupting services to a specific system or users. Hackers can also physically tamper with the machines by uploading foreign software to corrupt election results. Viruses like Trojan horse may attack computers from operating system to web browser level corrupting web page, databases and network. Computer software may have internal problems which may eventually halt, delay or cause errors in calculations. The electronic voting system has inequality challenges since it’s apparent that the poor may not afford to secure electronic voting equipment hence they are denied the privilege to vote when they can’t use computer facilities. Electronic voting requires knowledge and sense of familiarity with the machines hence not compatible with illiterate. Voter intimidation and vote selling when there is no strict chain of custody of receipts when voter-verifiable audit trials are used.
The impact of electronic system depends on human-technology interaction i.e. the way voters, poll workers, and election officials interact with the technology. It encourages high voter turn out to participate in an election due to convenience and mobility of the system. Voters can develop trust on outcome when they prove that they have contributed to the final results by, tracing and verifying through voter –verifiable audit trials With end to end auditable voting system providing voters with receipt as approve that their votes have been included in the national tally, votes casted by valid voters and results tabulated properly creating electoral transparency and accountability. When inconsistencies arise between electronic and paper records, the confidence and transparency of electoral procedure may be undermined. Although familiarity with electronic technology improves trust, the characteristics of the voters like age and education may influence the confidence e.g. highly computer literate voters might be knowledgeable about possible vulnerabilities of ICT-based technology finding it difficult to trust the election results. There may be no democratic representation when digital divide tilt election unjustly favoring particular group of voters to the disadvantage of others. Type of machines used also determines the level of confidence e.g. voter using optical scanners have more confidence than Direct Recording Electronic users. General acceptance or rejection of results shows the legitimacy of electoral authorities and quality of the election administration. Electronic voting system requires few poll personnel to administer elections hence reduction of job opportunities to the jobless population
As every country is on its way to electronic voting system, the electoral voting system should uphold electoral quality and democratic legitimacy increasing the citizens’ trust and confidence in political institutions with electoral integrity of freeness and fairness in elections. So the relevant government agencies should educate voters on how to use voting equipment responsibly to nurture transparent mechanism in building public confidence.
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