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Democracy nowadays relies on elections as the cornerstone for their workings. A democratic election is all about trust which can only be maintained in democratic institutions if the process is protected from interference and tampering. While there have been security, voter fraud, manipulation, and a lack of transparency concerns with previous election outcomes.
They’ve only grown over the last several years. Traditional voting systems have been increasingly manipulated by hacking, stuffing ballots, and tampering with results. This has helped many people to seek innovations in using such technologies to strengthen election integrity.
One of the best technologies to secure elections is Blockchain. Blockchain which was created as a means of powering cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin could transform the way that people vote and elect representatives.
It would secure the process by assuring the election of those candidates and ensuring the announcement of results. It would also increase transparency, halt fraud, and allow secure audits. Interface with Election Integrity Authentication and Auditing tasks using Blockchain Technology and this article illustrates the same.
Blockchain and The Core Principles
If we define blockchain it is distributed and decentralized ledger technology that enables immutability, safety, and transparency.
Namely, it organizes its nodes through a network (computers) that jointly validate and keep records of transactions or pieces of data to prevent any one single entity from influencing the entire page.
The key features that make blockchain a valuable tool for election integrity include:
Decentralization: An example of a blockchain application is a distributed network of many nodes collaborating to confirm and verify data which means blockchain is resistant to any kind of censorship and manipulation.
Immutability: What this means is that once data is recorded on a blockchain we can’t alter or delete it without the consensus of the entire network i.e. the blockchain remains tamper-proof.
As soon as data is written to the blockchain and finalized there is no way to change or delete this data without having the consensus of the network and with it being on the blockchain data is tamper-proof.
Transparency: Blockchain is transparent; everyone in the network would have access to all transactions or data recorded on the blockchain and exposure of such data on the blockchain would not have the possibility of getting altered.
Security: The cryptographic techniques used by blockchain will secure data while preventing unauthorized parties from modifying or corrupting information.
Consensus Mechanisms: There are many ways to utilize a consensus algorithm (like Proof of Work or Proof of Stake) that is used among blockchain networks to make sure everyone agrees that these are valid transactions.
Candidate Authenticity and Blockchain
It is an important first step in any election process candidate authenticity. Traditionally, the candidate lists have been enrolled and legitimized by government agencies or electoral authorities for traditional paper voting. But this is a process that’s usually opaque prone to gaming and often error-prone or fraudulent.
Blockchain can offer several advantages in ensuring the authenticity of candidates
Candidate Registration Immutable Records
Through blockchain, you can create a permanent and immutable record of those who are qualified to vote in an election. Once a piece of data is added to the blockchain.
It is not possible to alter or remove that data. In other words, it’s difficult for fraudulent or ineligible candidates to get their registration status to go ‘active’. Consider a ‘candidate’ saying that they meet the requirements for example age, residency, and qualifications, details can be checked against an immutable blockchain record to verify authenticity.
Verification that is Decentralized and Transparent
If the blockchain system is decentralized the candidate authentication process is not a single entity controlling rather multiple nodes will participate in the verification process. This provides transparency if manipulated candidate records were recorded they would be easily detected.
This will allow election observers, citizens, or regulatory bodies to all have access to the blockchain to see the candidate’s authenticity and make the whole process more open and transparent.
Explaining Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) for the Candidates
Self-sovereign identity (SSI) is a component within the blockchain that would provide every person including the candidates with their own identity. It should be noted that there is no need for the key information to be stored in one center which means that blockchain enables candidates to verify their identity.
For example, the candidates could submit documents to a blockchain (such as education certificates or voting card proof of nationality and residence) that can be checked by the voter or the electoral body. This serves to check those notorious individuals who wish to deposit themselves in the race by impersonation.
Examining Smart Contracts for Candidate Eligibility
Smart contracts are also possible within Blockchain technology—self-executing contracts whose provisions are coded into the language of the contract itself. Smart contracts can also be applied to the verification process in an environment such as elections.
For example, one of the applications of smart contracts could be whether a candidate fulfills all the requirements of the electoral law to be allowed on the ballot. This will help in getting rid of the manual errors or the biased decisions made towards the candidates.
Methods of blockchain and voting authentication
Election voting is the most central aspect of the process and vote legitimacy is pivotal in any credible election. There are two forms of voting manual where ballots are normally prepared on paper and electronically where voting is done through mechanical devices such as Tele council voting machines that are prone to fraud, tampering, or hacking.
Blockchain can offer several solutions to enhance voting authenticity:
Secure, Transparent Voting
In the blockchain voting system, every vote generated in the ballots is stored as a transaction in the blockchain and after that validated and checked by the network. For the same reason as it is a distributed ledger once a vote is cast through the blockchain it cannot be manipulated in any way.
Moreover, through screen sharing observers and candidates of the election can view the election progressing in real-time and need to confirm the votes count or check whether there are any attempts to manipulate the votes during the process.
Cryptography and security of votes
Every voter can also possess a cryptographic key used to encode a vote and to cast the vote securely. The blockchain systems utilize the public and private keys to encrypt the votes meaning that the vote will be conducted anonymously and yet be kept confidential but at the same time can be audited.
The blockchain guarantees that a given vote is authentic since it is encrypted into a given value. This avoids vote twining, manipulation, or illegitimate access since people will vote through the App which is linked to their emails.
Voter Authentication as a result of Possessing Digital Identifiers
The other complex aspect related to the election is voter authentication it is important to ensure that only the legal voters would take the action. With blockchain, actual ID is replaced with digital ones that are accredited by decentralized identity management solutions.
They can be linked to the IDs that are stored on the blockchain so only people who have the right to vote do so. Thirdly, blockchain application also enables the use of a biometric or a multi-factor authentication to further bring credibility in the process that the voter is who he or she claims to be.
Remote and Secure Voting
Another growing question for modern elections is to vote from a distance, especially in the zones of continuing unrest disaster. Blockchain technology can enhance how people vote since they can vote remotely by e-voting while the results can be verified.
By relying only on the blocks the voters are allowed to vote from anywhere in the world while the casting vote will be counted as original without the perspective of being manipulated or forged.
In regards to the uses of blockchain in election results authentication
Once the voting process is done it will be very important to verify the legibility of the exercised election. They have to be credible, clean, and auditable forms of announcing the decisions of the electorate. Blockchain provides several mechanisms to ensure that election results are authentic and cannot be manipulated.
The votes are then tallied in a central server the results of which can be stored on the blockchain. Unlike manual tallying where some numbers are sometimes deliberately altered when the results are recorded electronically they cannot be altered forming the basis of a genuine unalterable figure.
Blockchain may be used in the sense that the results of the election can be audited by any person who has access to the blockchain network so that there are no altercations. Therefore, the results are more genuine and subject to audit by the public.
Live Data Feed of Election Counting
By usage of blockchain, one can have real-time reporting and hence both the voters and the election authorities. This makes it possible for the election results to be displayed as soon as the voting time for a particular election elapses without any possibility for this to be changed.
It will be more efficient in terms of election observation because election observers along with the other citizens will be able to easily recognize that the results as translated in the official tally are true to the intention of the people’s votes.
Forensic Traceability and Auditabilty
One of the reasons why elections are authentic is Blockchain sustainability. But because every transaction (or vote) is recorded on the blockchain it’s easy then to trace the origin of any discrepancy in the results.
Where the results of an election are contested auditors and investigators can examine the blockchain to confirm individual votes confirm candidate eligibility and ensure the integrity of the voting process. The ability to trace any attempts to falsify or manipulate any results means the election is more trustworthy.
Election Results Verification using Smart Contract
Election results can also verified and authenticated automatically using smart contracts.
For example, say all votes are cast and counted and a smart contract could later check that the sum of votes counted equals the number of registered voters to rule out any tampering on the way votes are counted. It automates to reduce the opportunity for human error and increase the speed of election audits.
Blockchain and Election Audits
The purpose of election audits is to verify the results of elections and to maintain faith in the electoral process by the public. Blockchain’s transparency, immutability, and audibility make it an invaluable tool for election audits.
Comprehensive Audit Trails
Blockchain provides a way for creating the whole of the election trail: In the case of this election, the blockchain length or amount of available space on the blockchain decreases daily as the number of votes cast, registered candidates, and election results grows. It improves the practice of audit by eliminating the use of paper-based records.
Third-Party Verification
By its nature blockchain is a decentralized system which means it can be validated and third-party verifiable by independent organizations, election observers, and stakeholders. These entities can independently verify that the votes were correctly counted that the results are genuine and that the election was run fairly.
Post-Election Audits
This method allows easy and accurate post-election audits using Blockchain. Since blockchain is transparent, auditors can see every vote.
In the case Where there is a discrepancy auditors trace the problem down to the source guaranteeing accurate election results.
Conclusion
Blockchain technology could bring great potential to increase the election process’s integrity, transparency, and security. The blockchain offers tampered proof, transparent, and auditable processes from candidate authentication to secure voting and result verification.
Since every vote is on the blockchain it’s an immutable record of the vote and result making it easy to verify the authenticity of the results of the elections and even ease the emergence of any kind of democracy.
With governments and electoral authorities starting to explore blockchain for elections the technology will bring back public trust ensure fair and transparent elections, and deliver secure mechanisms for election audits Maybe the future of elections will be decentralized transparent, and more secure than ever thanks to blockchain technology.