Technology and Election!
Voters and professionals all around the world are interested in and concerned about the integration of information and communications technology (ICT) into the political process. The majority of electoral management bodies (EMBs) today use cutting-edge technologies to enhance the electoral process. These innovations span from the usage of fundamental spreadsheets and word processing programs to more complex database management systems, optical scanning, and geographic information systems for data processing.?
E-voting, or using electronic technology to cast or count votes, is one particularly significant application of technology to elections. E-voting serves a variety of purposes, including increasing voter turnout in other countries and improving accessibility for voters with impairments. Almost ten years ago, some nations, primarily in Europe, started testing various forms of electronic voting.
There may be unanticipated hazards associated with these technologies, such as a rise in vote selling or difficulty in auditing election results, even as they open up new horizons and offer new opportunities for the political process, especially for voting operations. The dangers of introducing technology improperly or prematurely must also be carefully considered, particularly if doing so could jeopardize the election process's sustainability, openness, or local ownership. The public, governments, and media have been paying attention to election cybersecurity, and they will continue to do so.
Although technological advancements might significantly enhance the way elections are conducted, these benefits must be weighed against the possibility of developing new weaknesses and issues. For instance, a lot of the nations who tried out electronic voting are either switching back to paper ballots or abandoning their pilot programs due to security concerns. When giving up technologies is not an option, cybersecurity risks can be reduced by being well-prepared.
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So, what exactly is going on here?
George Jean Nathan has said that bad officials are elected by good citizens who don’t vote. Technology has been changing the way we do almost everything, and elections are no exception. We have already seen a shift towards online voting and digital systems that can streamline the process of collecting votes and tabulating results.
Yet in a world where technology is becoming more and more important, how will elections function in the future? In this article, we'll look at how technology might affect elections in the future, including how it might affect voter turnout and how it might make voting more convenient for both parties. We will explore the potential changes to the political process, from blockchain innovations to big data research.
Elections now are a great cry from the idealized picture of what they will be in the future. In actuality, voter fraud, vote tampering, and other problems that can jeopardize the democratic process frequently affect elections. There is still much room for improvement, even though there have been some recent improvements, such as the introduction of electronic voting systems. Voter turnout is one of the biggest issues facing elections today. As fewer people are voting in many countries, fewer individuals have a say in how their country is managed. This is a serious issue since it might cause people to feel cut off from their government. Elections are also complicated by the growing role of money in politics.
To have a chance of winning an election, politicians must raise substantial quantities of money in many nations. This may result in corruption and provide those with access to financial resources an unfair edge. Elections are also faced with the growing tendency of fake news and disinformation. As technology advances, it is getting simpler and easier to disseminate false information about politicians and campaigns. Voters may become confused and distrustful as a result, which may ultimately result in reduced levels of democratic engagement.
Additionally, social media and the internet have fundamentally altered how elections are conducted. To reach voters in the past, campaigns largely relied on television and print advertisements. Yet in order to succeed, today's candidates also need to have a strong internet presence. Social media is increasingly used by candidates to engage with people and spread their message. The playing field is somewhat leveled by the fact that they can reach a broader audience for less money.
Nevertheless, not every candidate has the same level of technological proficiency. Tech-savvy people frequently have an advantage over their rivals. The way that candidate information is conveyed has also altered as a result of technology. People used to learn about candidates from the news or from campaign advertisements in the past. Today, individuals can learn about candidates from a wide range of sources, such as websites, news blogs, and social media.
Both good and harmful things for candidates might come from the plethora of information. On the one hand, it provides additional opportunity for voters to learn about the candidates; on the other hand, it can be overwhelming and make it challenging for voters to go through all the information and come to a well-informed decision.
And last, voting is now simpler thanks to technology. In the past, in order to cast a ballot, a person had to go to the polls on election day. There are several absentee and early voting alternatives available now, making it simpler for more people to vote. Also, there are now numerous options to register to vote, enabling a much larger population to take part.
Additionally, in recent years, technologies ranging from social media to big data analytics have been used to influence election outcomes. It seems obvious that technology will continue to play a significant part in elections as we move forward in time. Here are just a few instances of how technology is altering the electoral landscape:
Social Media: Facebook and Twitter are two examples of the social media sites that have evolved into crucial tools for political campaigns. They give a means to interact with the electorate, promote campaign messages, and connect with potential voters.
Big Data Analytics: Big data usage skills are increasingly being used to determine whether a candidate wins or loses an election. Huge data sets can be analyzed to help campaigns pinpoint the voters who are most likely to back their candidate and send them targeted messaging.
Voting Machines: Voting machines are getting more and more sophisticated, including features like blockchain technology and biometric authentication. This enables safer and more effective voting systems that may help thwart election fraud.
These are just a few instances of the influence that technology is having on elections. We may anticipate even more changes in the future, brought on by cutting-edge technologies.
Elections are becoming more and more dependent on technology in a society driven by technology. As a result, certain nations are setting the bar when it comes to utilizing technology to influence elections. The top nations pioneering technology-driven elections are listed below:
USA: The use of technology in elections has long been pioneered in the United States. The United States has long been in the forefront of using technology in elections, from early voting systems to online registration. Even some components of US elections are now being powered by blockchain technology. This action is thought to improve the election's security and transparency.
Estonia: Another nation that is setting the bar high for electoral technology use is Estonia. The nation pioneered the use of internet voting and has since made further advancements. Blockchain technology and other cutting-edge innovations like artificial intelligence are currently being investigated by Estonia for use in its elections.
Australia: Another nation using cutting-edge technology in its electoral process is Australia. For many years, the nation has been experimenting with electronic voting, and recent experiments have demonstrated that it can be an effective way to conduct an election. To further enhance its already impressive electoral system, Australia is also looking into other emerging technologies like blockchain and artificial intelligence.
These are just a few of the nations setting the bar for electoral technology use. With the constant development of new technologies, more nations will probably start using this as regular procedure.
The growing usage of technology will influence how elections are conducted in the future. As a result, voting will be more accurate and secure, and there will be more accountability. The voting process can be enhanced by technology in a number of ways. For instance, computerized voting methods can improve accuracy while lowering errors. By enabling voters to cast ballots from their homes or on mobile devices, they can help simplify the voting process for citizens.
Election openness and accountability can both be improved with technology. For instance, tracking donations and expenses can be done via internet platforms like blockchain. This would make it far more difficult for candidates to receive unauthorized or hidden contributions. Ultimately, thanks in large part to the growing use of technology, elections are going to look very different from the past. The procedure will become more precise, safe, and transparent as a result of this adjustment, which is certain to have a lot of advantages.
In conclusion, elections in a technologically advanced society will face both chances and difficulties in the future. Voting technologies are being developed and put into use, allowing more individuals to vote remotely, securely, and quickly while also producing more accurate results. Increased voter turnout, better decision-making transparency, and significant value addition could result from this. In the long run, this technological transformation can guarantee that our election system is impartial, safe, and representative for years to come. The future? Future election coordination may be modeled after an AI-powered robot.
Implementing Technology for Election Administration
There are a few factors to take into account while implementing particular technologies for the administration of elections, some of which are universal to technology implementation and others which are more unique to the electoral process:
Elections can involve a lot of risk. They must be professionally carried out, exposed to public scrutiny, and there is little tolerance for error. Many election systems are utilized for the first time on Election Day, which means they must function well or the entire election could be at risk. This is in contrast to other applications of technology, where systems can be introduced gradually with prolonged testing and deployment timetables.
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The upgrading of current technology against the introduction of new technology must be taken into account by an election management organization. To avoid paying a lot of money for relatively small changes, thorough analyses are required. Continually using the current system could be preferable depending on the application.
This prompts people to think about how affordable it is to use new technology. Studies evaluating the costs and savings of adopting technology must take into account not just the upfront expenses of purchasing materials and equipment, but also the expenditures of implementing the new system, hiring more personnel, and the requirement for continuing maintenance and management. (This will probably require getting a second financial commitment through the appropriate government budgetary process.)
The sustainability of the technologies under consideration is another factor. [With the majority of applications, it is necessary to make sure that the technology chosen can be used for long periods of time, including multiple elections. Employing technology that can be soon rendered useless or obsolete could end up being costly and unsustainable in the long run.
With some technologies, short-term obsolescence is practically unavoidable due to their quick rate of change. In this situation, it is crucial to research current technological norms and trends in order to put defensive measures in place that can lessen the impact of future systems or versions as well as technical incompatibilities. An excellent illustration of how quickly "state-of-the-art" technology can become outdated is the processing capability of personal computers. As a result, it is crucial to find vendors who guarantee upward compatibility to enable the seamless transfer of data from an old to a new machine.
To maximize the utilization of resources, other options, such as renting equipment rather than buying it, may be taken into account.
Other considerations, such as the local physical environment and infrastructure, need to be taken into account in order to decide whether it is appropriate to adopt new systems with new technology. For instance, it might not be wise to set up a wide area network of personal computers in a nation with erratic power supplies because such a network needs a dependable power source. The selection of an acceptable technology may also be limited by high humidity levels or by amounts of dust or sand.
Security concerns are also present. The technology must protect the security of the data at least as effectively as the analogous manual methods it is replacing, especially for systems used for recording, tallying, or transmitting voting results.
All of the stakeholders who are likely to be impacted should be consulted before new technologies are deployed. The EMB team must be ready and willing to make the modifications.
Political parties, candidates, members of parliament, and members of the media should be contacted if the change will have an impact on them, as would be the case, for instance, if an electronic voting system is under consideration. Before committing to the new technology, the applicable election laws and rules must be discussed and agreed upon as new technology may also demand revisions to them.
Time frames for implementing new technology need to be carefully studied and defined:
EMBs frequently underestimate the time needed to adopt a new system. Even though the system might be deemed ready at election time, there is a higher chance that one of its critical processes would fail if insufficient time is given to implementation or if it is rushed. Elections in a Latin American nation were called off in the late 1990s because the new voting system was not ready on election day.
Another danger is aiming to accomplish too much too soon. Instead of attempting to incorporate new technology all at once, in a single step, it is preferable to do it gradually, even throughout a series of election events.
Following the selection of a new system, an implementation strategy must be created that includes anticipated results, deadlines, responsibility distribution, checklists, standards, and quality controls, as well as training sessions for users and support staff. If at all possible, starting with a pilot project to evaluate the new system on a smaller scale might be beneficial.
Pilot systems can be successfully tested after which full-scale system implementation preparations can begin. One of these preparations is a "load test," which involves simulating a real-world scenario as closely as possible to test the system.
Finding out who will use the system and in what capacity is another crucial stage for the effective installation of a system using new technologies. This information will help you plan the right training sessions. It might be required to just train affiliating staff in the case of systems utilized solely by EMB personnel. Different training sessions, one tailored to the staff and the other to the outsiders, may be required where the system is used by both EMB staff and outsiders.
For instance, if an electronic voting system is implemented, EMB staff members may need to receive training to serve as trainers who will then instruct poll workers on how to assist voters. A significant communications campaign may also be launched to educate voters on the new technology and system. The implementation plan needs to include time for user training. The hazards follow; both new and old technologies have the potential to fail. The risk of failure can be greater when implementing new technology than when using tried-and-true solutions.
Why should I be concerned?
Final Thoughts
Therefore, it is crucial to have backup plans in place. This frequently entails setting up manual backup procedures that can go into effect quickly after the technology fails. To enable a switch to a manual count whenever the electronic system malfunctions, for instance, plans must be in place where ballots are being counted electronically. A suitable back-up system must be included in the architecture of computer systems as well. Examples include the usage of mirrored servers, automation of data backups, and off-site storage facilities for regular data backups.
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