Internet Voting

5 Pages 1254 Words

It is no secret that our country’s democratic elections are plagued by various ills. Between low voter turnout, a lack of worthy candidates, and debacles like the one witnessed in the presidential election of 2000, people are searching for a cure. Online voting is definitely not the answer. The ability to vote online will only create more problems for an already faulted process. A switch to internet voting would result in a lack of security in elections, a lack of privacy and honest voting, and most importantly a lack of access to voting.

Proponents argue that e-voting is a revolution that might kindle renewed interest in voting, especially among the young, and help raise the shamefully low voter turnout that plagues American elections.

I, too, was initially enthusiastic about the prospects for Internet voting. But after researching the issue I have come to think that internet voting should probably be avoided at least for the near future.

There are three broad categories that have to be clearly distinguished. Type I systems are county-controlled, with the computers and software used for voting under the full control of election officials. In this category would be Internet voting machines at traditional poll sites on Election Day.

The Type II system is one involving computer voting kiosks, similar to ATM machines. The kiosks would be located at convenient places around the county and open to voters for days or weeks prior to election day, allowing many more locations and much more time for voting than we now have. These systems would also be monitored by election officials, but would be located in less traditional places, such as malls and airports or train stations.

Type III systems are those where election officials do not control the machine used for voting. Systems that permit voting from home, school or office computers, or ...