A recently Smartmatic research underlined the connection between inconvenient voting processes with outdated technologies and decreased voter participation. A stunning 81% of respondents felt changes needed to be made to the US voter experience and voting system, meaning that a majority view the current voting system as inefficient and discourages Americans from voting.
The same research also points out three priorities for voters, with 33% stating that the most needed change is to “incorporate online remote voting,” 28% declaring that “US voting technology should be updated to be ‘user-friendly,’” and 20% believes that “the voting process should be made more efficient by reducing the amount of time necessary to cast a vote.” Even President Obama himself referenced the challenges facing voters when he called for voting to be made easier, not harder, for all Americans, during his final State of the Union address.
Considering that the most recent presidential elections were all decided by margin points, a significant voter turnout can define the future of U.S. In fact it’s strange that in a country where you can do almost everything online, the voting system, a pillar of any democracy, still relies on outdated technology or even paper. So, it’s not a matter of if but when. The entire election process needs to be modernized and bring the U.S to the 21st century.
