Universities are institutions which have long served as bastions of democratic culture and thought – something we hope will continue long into the future. But, when carrying out their elections and votes via the Internet, why should they prioritize integrity and security? In this edition of The Ballot, we make the case for why universities should invest in fully verifiable online voting technology.
Academic Research Backs Up Verifiable Voting
Amongst others, one word we often associate with universities is “research.” After all, research conducted at universities often paves the way for epoch-making discoveries and inventions, with the Internet itself being no exception.
When we say fully “verifiable voting,” we are referring to end-to-end verifiability, a property of online voting systems which enables all processes occurring during an election to be checked for accuracy and proper functioning. Without repeating previous editions of The Ballot in full, the academic consensus in computer science circles is that no online voting system can be fully secure without being fully verifiable.
In essence, by urging the adoption of fully verifiable voting technology in universities, we are merely encouraging universities to follow the advice of their distinguished faculty. Aside from a research paper last year which demonstrated the robustness of Electa in the face of non-fully verifiable competition, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, The National Academy of Science, and the German Federal Office for Information Security all reach the same conclusion: full verifiability is a necessary part of secure online voting.
Online is where students are – and securing their experience is paramount
No matter the institution, the Internet plays a large role in the academic lives of university students today. Things that once required a physical presence or paper – signing up for classes, submitting assignments, and even attending class itself – have increasingly moved online, a trend catalyzed further by the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, university students today spend upwards of four hours daily online on school-related activities.
No university would dare entrust sensitive student data to less-than-secure online learning or registration platforms, and rightly so. Yet, as many universities have moved their student elections online, we are concerned that many noteworthy institutions are not demanding the same level of security from their voting platforms as they would with other university software.
In essence, providing online voting to students is about meeting them where they already are, making elections more inclusive and accessible. Additionally, introducing fully verifiable online voting is a unique opportunity to educate all students about what it means to uphold election integrity online, including the concept of end-to-end verifiability. However, with greater participation comes greater responsibility, and universities must ensure that no election’s integrity risks being compromised.
Secure online voting is as much about the future as the present
Universities aren’t just places where students come to expand their minds – they are also where many of us learn what it means to be citizens. Since being a democratic citizen is as much about doing as it is believing, universities are also where many of us learn to translate our beliefs into action through joining groups, organizing events or protests, and voting.
According to a study conducted by the Danish think tank Mandagmorgen, a key reason why people end their participation in “everyday democracy” (as described above) has to do with a change in their life situation, such as graduating from university. What this means is that, with every graduating university class, thousands of once-engaged democratic citizens often end up seeing voting or organizing as no longer worth their time.
As part of securing a vibrant, democratic future, it is crucial that universities recognize that democratic engagement must not end with a student’s graduation. By making student elections and votes more accessible and transparent, students will not only feel more confident that their voices are heard, but will also carry this engagement and enthusiasm with them into the working world. After all, research shows that those who participate in student councils, meetings, and elections as youth are far more likely to be engaged in democratic politics as adults.
This article was originally posted as the April edition of Assembly Voting’s monthly LinkedIn newsletter, The Ballot. To see older editions, subscribe, and stay up to date with what we’re up to, head to the homepage of The Ballot on LinkedIn here.
