Internet Voting in Sweden
The Swedish Election Technique 2000 Commission recently presented its final report. Here, it is suggested that experiments with internet voting are carried out to gain more experience with the use of technology in elections.
Summary of the Commission’s conclusions
The point of departure is that a system of electronic voting ('e-voting') via the Internet must fulfil the following five basic requirements:
- Only people eligible to vote should be able to vote.
- It should be possible to use one’s vote only once.
- Ballots should be absolutely secret.
- It should not be possible for a vote cast to be changed by anyone else.
- The system should ensure correct tallying of votes at all levels (voting district, constituency and area).
The Commission presents an e-voting system for Internet (online) voting that should be capable of fulfilling these requirements. Before it is tested in an election, however, extensive trials should be carried out. Only after such trials can a final decision be taken as to whether the procedure is applicable in a real election.
Technology and Administration in Election Procedure, Final Report from the Election Technique 2000 Commission, Stockholm, Swedish Government Official Reports, SOU 2000:125 (Ministry of Justice).
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