Online election transparency is critical to its success as a viable method of secure voting. Transparency can be accomplished through several avenues, such as independent auditing, publicly-accessible election procedures, and voter verifiability.
Thankfully, ElectionBuddy has a plethora of online voting system resources to help organizations understand how online voting is more secure and transparent than other methods. With that in mind, let’s dive into how transparency can be strengthened using the methods mentioned above.
Gaining the public's trust requires that voters understand how elections are conducted. Organizations should strive to involve their members in creating election rules and procedures. Voters who feel the process of creating the rules involves their input are more likely to have greater faith in the system as a whole.
Certain organizations have a vested interest in keeping the creation of election procedures inside committees. However, even these organizations stand to benefit from educating the public regarding the rules surrounding an election.
This way, voters who do not feel that the procedures are fair can elect representatives they believe will change them. Voters should always have a hand in how elections are conducted, be it through designing the process or by voting.
When it comes to election transparency, receipts serve as an important record. Fortunately, online systems manage these receipts digitally. When an election takes place online, voters are notified that their vote is counted.
This typically comes in two different forms. One is through the online voting portal itself, and the other is in the form of an email that confirms their vote, explains who and what was voted for, and confirms it was added to the total. Most crucially, these receipts maintain voter anonymity, which is a cornerstone of free and fair elections.
Without guaranteed anonymity, voters may feel pressured to vote one direction or another. True anonymity allows a voter to vote with their conscience rather than with the public's desires or out of fear of potential repercussions.
Rather than having to wait days or weeks for results to be finalized, online ballot counting offers instantaneous results. These should be made visible to the public or members of an organization as soon as possible. Any waiting period allows time for rumors or speculation to spread regarding the integrity of the vote.
Whenever necessary, an organization should bring in the help of outside auditors to verify the accuracy of results. Thanks to online voting’s digital breadcrumb trail, auditing is faster than ever before. This carefully-kept record allows auditors to quickly identify issues and trace them back to their origin.
Online voting allows illegitimate results to quickly be discounted while ensuring that valid ballots remain part of the overall count. This is one of the most effective ways to increase trust in the democratic process.
Online elections help to eliminate the hurdle of convenience, as the poll is simply each voter’s computer, but without public trust, elections are doomed to dwindle in popularity. By moving elections online, the process becomes more transparent, which can slowly help restore faith in their security and significance.
To further this goal, ElectionBuddy offers a secure, transparent, and easy-to-use online election platform. It is completely scalable for tens, hundreds, or hundreds of thousands of voters. No matter how large the vote, ElectionBuddy can handle it while providing unmatched transparency for both organizations and voters.
Users can browse candidate profiles, vote with confidence, and view results instantly. The money and time savings that ElectionBuddy provides can be put back into the organization's coffers. This money can be used to further educate members and the public about the organization's mission and expand its membership.
Online elections have been revolutionary in making voting easier and more secure, but that doesn’t matter if the process isn’t transparent. Check out ElectionBuddy’s tools today and see how we can help ensure your next election is as simple and safe as possible!
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