Can Blockchain Create More Transparent Elections?

Originally published in My Crypto Advisor on April 9, 2021

Elections are the backbone of democracy, the more transparent the polls, the more the people are at peace with the leader that represents them. Democracy was founded by ancient Greeks and Romans to enable people to choose a leader representing them, but unfortunately, recent elections have become the opposite. The last two presidential elections conducted in the United States were clouded with controversies. The Democrats claimed that Donald Trump won the election due to Facebook privacy issues and Russian interference. Some Republicans believed that Joe Biden won the last presidential election because of widespread voter fraud. The current electoral system is flawed; that is why a new system to ensure a free and fair election is needed. Let’s explore the various ways in which blockchain technology can help to build a more transparent election.

Blockchain technology is a decentralized peer-to-peer ledger system in which information is recorded in a public ledger, which any participant in the system cannot alter. There are three characteristics of blockchain technology that are important for our elections: immutability, public, and transparency. Immutability means that no one in the system can alter any entry by an electorate. A public blockchain-based electoral system will allow anyone with an internet connection the ability to participate in the network.  Blockchain technology provides transparency, election results can be shown and accessible to everyone while protecting the voters’ identity. A blockchain-based electoral system ensures that everyone can evaluate, participate, and trust the system.

The arrival of technology has improved different aspects of our lives, including the electoral system. With online-based verification and voting, we should expect the rest of the presidential election to be announced in less than 24 hours. But no, any online-based system cannot be trusted by the electorate because the results can be tampered with on the system. That is why the traditional voting system is still used for voting. The blockchain-based voting system can help to speed up the electoral system because blockchain is a trustless system in which entries can’t be tampered with by a middleman. Any tampering will render the vote invalid. Also, blockchain is open-source in which codes can be evaluated and written to become better, which is not possible in the traditional system.  The traditional lengthy voting system doesn’t make sense because elections are counted in a concealed room. A few people have access, and the results are still disputed several years after the elections. The blockchain-based system is fast, and it ensures that those results are accurate.

Transparency has been the bane of several elections in recent times. The results are counted on a secret ballot. There is often a mistake during the counting, which opens up the electoral system’s lack of trust. Blockchain can build trust through immutability and transparency. A blockchain-based voting system is better than online voting; voters or officials cannot alter entries. Voters can trust that their votes are truly counted in the election. Another problem with the voting system is the verification process, which takes several weeks before the election; with blockchain, money spent on verification can be saved by using a blockchain-based voting system which can verify the voters’ identity.

Democracy is great, but incomplete without a free and fair election. Though the traditional voting system has promised transparent elections, the promise is a mirage because of the voting systems’ inconsistencies.  If the government can adopt a blockchain-based voting system, American citizens could have the most transparent and undisputed election in history.

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