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Electronic, Internet-Based Voting

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Abstract

E-voting, and in particular Internet-based remote voting, has been a controversial topic since its early beginnings more than a decade ago. For instance, many proponents of Internet voting argue that the introduction of an online voting channel would help to reverse the decline in turnout rates. Despite all the hypothetical benefits, however, an essential condition of voting is that the process rules out any possibility of fraud. Yet, as this chapter shows, it is questionable whether this prerequisite can actually be fulfilled by Internet voting due to security concerns. Due to its interdisciplinary nature, an investigation of e-voting requires a comprehensive approach that considers technical, legal, social and political aspects. Chapter 4 of this book tackles this challenge and is structured in two main sections: First, e-voting is approached from a theoretical perspective and the legal, technical, political and social issues that should be considered are presented. Second, an analytical framework comprising the five dimensions of history and background, motivation, legal context, organizational context and socio-political context is applied to in-depth case studies of Estonia, the Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland. These case studies provide empirical evidence and the subsequent discussion allows a comparative and contextualised investigation of Internet voting and conclusions to be drawn with reference to the European perspective.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Strictly speaking, the form of voting covered in this chapter is ‘remote Internet voting’. If not stated otherwise, ‘e-voting’, ‘Internet voting’, ‘I-voting’ and ‘online voting’ is used synonymously with ‘remote Internet voting’.

  2. 2.

    Eurostat 2015: http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?dataset=isoc_bdek_di&lang=en [accessed July 23, 2015].

  3. 3.

    Eurostat 2015: http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?dataset=isoc_ci_in_h&lang=en [accessed July 23, 2015].

  4. 4.

    http://www.legaltext.ee/text/en/X60031K4.htm [accessed July 23, 2015].

  5. 5.

    https://www.riigiteataja.ee/en/eli/514112013007/consolide/current [accessed July 23, 2015].

  6. 6.

    http://www.legaltext.ee/text/en/X60009K6.htm [accessed July 23, 2015].

  7. 7.

    http://www.legaltext.ee/text/en/X0013K1.htm [accessed July 23, 2015].

  8. 8.

    http://www.legaltext.ee/text/en/X60044K3.htm [accessed July 23, 2015].

  9. 9.

    Constitutional Judgment 3-4-1-13-05, http://www.nc.ee/?id=381 [accessed July 23, 2015].

  10. 10.

    http://www.legaltext.ee/et/andmebaas/tekst.asp?loc=text&dok=X30081K6&keel=en&pg=1&ptyyp=RT&tyyp=X&query=digitaalallkirja [accessed July 23, 2015].

  11. 11.

    Since the first parliamentary Internet election in 2007, the advance Internet voting period has been extended from 3 to 7 days.

  12. 12.

    http://www.vvk.ee/voting-methods-in-estonia/engindex/ [accessed July 23, 2015].

  13. 13.

    Identification via digital ID works similar.

  14. 14.

    http://wijvertrouwenstemcomputersniet.nl/Wij_vertrouwen_stemcomputers_niet [accessed July 23, 2015].

  15. 15.

    The Norwegian Ministries have been restructured in 2014, therefore the MLGRD is now part of the Ministry of Local Government and Modernisation.

  16. 16.

    Bodø, Bremanger, Hammerfest, Mandal, Radøy, Re, Sandnes, Tynset, Vefsn and Ålesund.

  17. 17.

    Bodø, Bremanger, Hammerfest, Mandal, Radøy, Re, Sandnes, Tynset, Vefsn, Ålesund, Larvik and Frederikstad.

  18. 18.

    See http://www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/kmd/prosjekter/e-vote-trial/about-the-e-vote-project/legal-framework.html?id=604656 for all relevant legal documents [accessed July 23, 2015].

  19. 19.

    Neuchâtel was the first canton to allow Internet voting for Swiss abroad in 2008.

  20. 20.

    Federal Chancellery 2015, online: http://www.bk.admin.ch/themen/pore/evoting/08004/index.html?lang=de [accessed July 23, 2015].

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Correspondence to Kerstin Goos .

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Goos, K., Beckert, B., Lindner, R. (2016). Electronic, Internet-Based Voting. In: Lindner, R., Aichholzer, G., Hennen, L. (eds) Electronic Democracy in Europe. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27419-5_4

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