‘Online voting isn’t ready for high-stakes elections’

Online voting is often considered a way to improve voter turnout and security. But according to Dr Steve Kremer of the French Institute for Research in Computer Science and Automation, computer scientists have got a long way to go before they make it a viable alternative to pencils and paper.

He is researching ways of making e-voting secure under a project called SPOOC.

Why would we want to vote online?

‘In many countries, participation in elections has gone down in recent years. There is a hope that online voting could revive this, because voters wouldn’t have to go to a polling station. Young people in particular do everything now via the internet. They could get an email, and vote immediately from home – it would be more convenient.

‘But online voting is not a simple replacement for traditional voting. There are various possibilities, advantages and shortcomings, and those are what I’m studying.’ […]

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