People’s Veto in the Digital Age: How Online Referendums Can Extend Participation Beyond Elections

The idea that citizens should have direct power to hold government accountable at all times gave rise to referendums. They remain as one of the most powerful expressions of direct democracy. From constitutional reforms to independence votes, referendums allow citizens to weigh in on major national decisions between election cycles.

In many democracies, citizens are increasingly turning to them as a way to influence policy and hold elected officials accountable beyond elections. Taiwan, for example, has seen a growing number of recall elections in recent years, the latest of which is set in July 2025. Recall elections and referendums share a key characteristic: they enable the electorate to exercise direct power over government.

In the digital age, this “people’s veto” is undergoing a quiet transformation. Spurred by new technologies and shifting expectations of civic participation, online referendums and recall elections promise to give the electorate an even louder voice in governance.

The emergence of secure online voting opens the door for a more agile form of direct democracy. Already, countries like Estonia and Mexico have successfully implemented internet voting, proving it’s possible to preserve both access and integrity in a digital format. As these technologies improve, it’s not hard to imagine a future where referendums, recall elections, and other citizen-led initiatives are conducted more frequently and conveniently—without requiring voters to visit physical polling places.

Such a future could lead to more responsive governance. Citizens could vote on key issues from their homes, participate in digital deliberations, and trigger recall votes when a critical mass of dissatisfaction is reached. When designed with robust safeguards—identity verification, cybersecurity, audit trails—online tools could make it easier for citizens to directly shape the direction of their communities and countries.

But this vision also comes with a caveat. The ease of digital engagement must not come at the expense of thoughtful debate. Populist waves, viral misinformation, or visceral decision-making could distort outcomes if checks and balances are not built in. Moreover, fair thresholds for initiating referendums and recalls must be determined and upheld to prevent their misuse or overuse.

Ultimately, the evolution of referendums reflects a more fundamental shift: citizens want more say, more often, and more conveniently. By harnessing the right digital tools and learning from real-world examples, democracies can move toward a future where direct participation becomes not just more feasible, but more meaningful. When used thoughtfully, such digital “people’s veto” serve as important safety valves in a democracy.

As the world reimagines democracy in the digital age, referendums may no longer be the exception—they could become the norm.

Democracy Day: Developing countries use technology to empower their citizens

Developing countries are now beginning to realize the power of technology in helping them deliver services more efficiently and provide their citizens with the tools needed for them to get involved in government initiatives more – especially in elections.

Asia and Africa are blazing the trail in this trend.  In the past ten years, countries such as India, Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe have rolled out innovations to improve the transparency, security, precision and reliability of their elections, positively impacting their democracies by committing to the objectives of the 2030 Agenda, the theme for Democracy Day 2016.

In India, the authorities have focused on a plan to improve their education system through e-government, guaranteeing better management and attention to the students in the country’s schools.
On the other hand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited startups and investors to join the efforts to develop automated voting machines that meet international security standards (such as printed voting vouchers), adding mechanisms that make voting easier and more accessible.

Governments in Africa have shown an approach focused on technology that modernizes electoral registries and makes voter authentication more effective.  Uganda successfully tried out a biometric system that was deployed at the polling centres, considerably reducing the possibilities of fraud.

The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission is analyzing the implementation of biometrics for the 2018 elections, in order to improve the electoral system by making it more inclusive and reliable.

The free world needs to adapt to the rapid advancements in technology and learn to harness its great power if it is to solve the many challenges confronting democracies nowadays.

The Philippines sets a new record in election automation

On May 9, over 45 million voters elected their local and national Philippine authorities using 92,509 vote counting machines. This represents the largest deployment of vote counting machines ever. 

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) and Smartmatic, who previously organized successful elections in 2010 and 2013, showed again the enormous benefits of election automation and what the technology deployed could mean for the Asia-Pacific region.

To guarantee transparency and the proper functioning of the system on Election Day, several audits, certifications and tests took place during the months leading up to the election. The source code used to run the automated platform was audited for 8 months by a group of experts, which included political party representatives, election watchdogs and authorities.  Additionally, a US-based company SLI Global certified that the source code worked as intended. 

During the voting hours every voter was given a vote receipt showing the selections registered by the system to allow him/her to make sure it was correctly registered. It is important to note that, as a paper-based system, the voter-marked ballot was already a robust auditing mechanism.

This extremely high level of auditability allowed political organizations to check that results matched the will of the voters at the polls, and accept the outcome of the elections.

With this new successful election, the Philippines proved that they are at the leading front of the worldwide trend towards election technology adoption.

The future of democracy is digital, and the Philippines have proved it.  

Perception of Electoral Integrity Index

Learning about the Du-Vote internet voting system

Proponents of Internet-based voting systems for official government elections continue to gain support in countries all around the world. Considering that so much of our daily lives is conducted online, including online banking and secure business transactions, it only makes sense that many voters would want to have the same level of convenience and security when exercising their democratic right to vote.

When voting in person at an official polling station, voters are typically asked to authenticate their identity in some form. They are also checked against the official electoral roll of registered voters. Since this involves some necessary interaction with an election official, the public perception is that this kind of voter identification is more safe and secure. By contrast, a person who uses Internet voting can cast his or her ballot from the privacy and convenience of the home, workplace, or even from a mobile device. Who is there to verify the identity of the voter?

While the I-voting system of Estonia continues to lead the way with its infrastructure of validated citizen identification cards, a different system is being developed by researchers from the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom. This system, dubbed Du-Vote, borrows much of its inspiration from the secure infrastructure and controls used by online banking.

One of the major concerns cited by critics and detractors of Internet voting is that election officials have no real way of validating the hardware on which the voter casts his or her ballot. This is stark contrast to the level of control an electoral commission would have over the development, deployment and use of electronic voting machines at traditional polling places. The machines belong to (or are being rented by) the electoral officials. With Internet voting, the citizen casts his or her ballot from a personal device, like a computer, tablet or possibly even a smartphone.

The Du-Vote system overcomes this concern by using independent hardware devices that are then connected to the end user's computer. Lead researcher Professor Mark Ryan explains that the system uses a “credit card-sized device similar to those used in online banking... you receive a code on the device and type it back into the computer.”

How is this advantageous? The credit card-sized device is fully controlled and vetted by election officials. It is made to be as secure, private and confidential as possible, just like with online banking. The security device is independent, so even if the home or work computer of the voter has been compromised with viruses and other security threats, the legitimacy and integrity of the security device is maintained. And because the security device is so much more specific in its purpose, it is far less susceptible to being compromised.

Many people may be concerned about the security of Internet-based voting and these issues are clearly worthy of debate. Even so, online voting could have the somewhat paradoxical effect of better securing elections than their more traditional paradigms and, at the same time, it could help to encourage greater voter turnout too.

The Du-Vote system has only been under development for two-and-a-half years and the researchers say they need further testing before the system can be suitably deployed. Current estimates are that it may be ready in time for the 2025 general election in the United Kingdom. That's in line with the more optimistic view of SRI International senior computer scientist Jeremy Epstein. He states that secure e-voting is at least 10 years away, but his more conservative estimate is more like 20 to 30 years. He calls for two-factor authentication, for instance, among other concerns.

More on the Du-Vote system will be presented next month at the 28th IEEE Computer Security Foundations Symposium in Verona, Italy.

School in Northern India embraces the future of e-voting

A lot has been said about bolstering the level of political engagement among today's youth. Many young people from all around the world can feel as if they have been disenfranchised, ignored by the current politicians who focusing much more on the needs and issues of the older demographic. Many youth can feel as if the political climate is irrelevant and corrupt, feeling as if their actions, their voices and their votes simply do not matter. This needs to change, as today's youth will be tomorrow's leaders.

Interest in politics and the democratic process must start from a young age, engaging the fertile minds of children and teenagers. Just as there has been an increased push in encouraging children to participate in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) subjects, there should be a similar push to get them involved in the present and the future of the political process. And for a lot of today's youth, this means that the political process must also be modernized and brought up to speed with current technology. The traditional paper ballot can feel archaic and irrelevant, while e-voting processes can feel relevant and meaningful.

And indeed, this philosophy has been wholeheartedly supported by at least one school in Northern India. At the DC Model Senior Secondary School in Sector 7, Panchkula in the Northern area of India, students were able to elect their school council representatives using modern electronic voting technology. Candidates made their speeches in front of the student body, convincing them why they should be elected into student government. The students, as well as non-teaching staff, were then able to exercise their democratic right by e-voting.

The political process used at this secondary school is not unlike the e-voting systems used in formal governments in places such as Estonia. The voting students had their identities authenticated using their I-cards and then proceeded to cast their digital ballot. It is important to instil this interest in the power and responsibility of the vote in young people so they can best participate in local, state and federal government when they become of age too.

As the world's single largest democracy, India is also home to a growing number of young people who are passionate about and engaged in the political process. The electorate in India is youthful and tech-savvy and the democratic process needs to mirror and support this growing desire for modern technology. Voters should be able to register in an electronic manner, just as they should be able to cast their ballots digitally and the ballots should be counted electronically too. The entire process can benefit greatly from the intelligent and well-audited implementation of technology. Even for Indians who are living abroad, remote e-voting infrastructure should be in place.

Several key lessons can be taken away from the recent experience of the senior secondary school in Panchkula and these can be applied to other schools all around the world.

First, the political atmosphere of the school should be one that encourages meaningful and respectful political discourse among its students. Public speeches and debates empower the candidates to define and express their platform.

Second, the vote does not need to be collected through the more traditional means of raising hands or submitting paper ballots. Embracing e-voting technology is more efficient, more cost-effective, and more relevant for today's youth.

Third, this also demonstrates that if a humble school in India can afford to implement a robust and reliable e-voting system, there is no reason why proper governments and electoral commissions cannot do the same.

The future of politics is in the hands of today's young people. Let's arm them with the technology they need and desire for the safest, most secure, and most engaging democratic process possible.

How e-voting can improve viability and visibility of minor parties

In the book titled Improving Electoral Practices: Case Studies and Practical Approaches, published by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) in 2014, several fascinating perspectives are given about the democratic process in some countries around the world. These provide profound insights into how elections can be improved in all regions. A prime example of this is in the notion of improving the viability of minor parties in major elections.

Using the United States as a well-known example, the political process can feel incredibly polarizing. There may be some minor parties and independent candidates in American elections, but the conversation is dominated by the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. Individual opinion and perspective is not a black-and-white issue; opinions fall on a wide spectrum and minor parties can help to better represent the near infinite shades of grey.

Also, by providing the electorate with the opportunity to support candidates and parties that more closely align with their own viewpoints, the votes are then spread out over more parties. This forces members of opposing parties to work together, forming coalition governments for the greater good of the people, rather than engaging in a more adversarial approach to politics.

In the fourth chapter of the International IDEA book, Byoung Kwon Sohn explores the political situation in Korea. Today's challenge is to enhance “the quality of democratic politics and processes” in the country, particularly in increasing the representation of women and minorities in the formal political process. It may have started with women's suffrage in other countries, but it must continue with the active participation of women in the official decision making too. This is in a country where the social status of women is largely on par with that of men.

The political reforms of 2004 smoothed the progress in increasing Korean women's representation in politics, including the first female prime minister in 2006. This built on earlier movements that began in the mid-1990s, like the efforts of the Women's Solidarity for a Quota System and other women's citizen groups.

Something that makes the Korean party system unique is the fact that the political parties are frequently shuffled, disbanded and created, even though they may consist of largely the same individuals with the same political leanings. What's more, strong region-based voting makes it difficult for minor parties to garner enough support to elect members to the National Assembly.  The old one-ballot system was replaced by a two-ballot system that allowed for more proportionate representation.

In the Improving Electoral Practices chapter about Tunisia, written by Amor Boubakri, efforts to improve inclusion of marginalized social groups are explored. Even though a newly independent Tunisia in the late 1950s was founded with universal suffrage, the “new elite” moved down a path of political exclusion. Electoral fraud ran rampant and citizens were offered a false democracy.

This eventually sparked the revolution of 2011, which then provided the opportunity for political reform. This helped to overturn the majoritarian system that had dominated the country for over five decades, providing for a more equitable representation of political parties. Where opposition parties failed to win any seats in the past, they were finally having their voice heard. Inclusion and representation of women, youth and people from marginalized regions continues to improve. 

If there is to be better representation of minor parties in democracies around the world, a valuable step to achieve it could be the modernisation of electoral processes with technology. Using touchscreen machines or electronic ballots, more parties and candidates could be more easily accommodated than with traditional paper ballots. The same can be said about online voting. When combined with citizen-led campaigns and widespread political reforms, the results of elections can better mirror the true will of the people, regardless of social status, region, gender or political leaning.

Poorly implemented e-voting systems should not deter advancement

A couple is walking down the street, looking for a place to have dinner. They spot a rather dodgy-looking Japanese restaurant that happens to have a terrific special on sushi. Despite some hesitation, the couple decides to eat there. The food isn't good. The service isn't good. And one of them gets horribly sick afterwards. Given this experience, would it be fair for this couple to swear off of sushi entirely for the rest of their lives? Or was this experience only indicative of the poor quality of fish and food handling at this specific restaurant?

You might be wondering why a hypothetical story about a man and a woman eating dinner at a Japanese restaurant is appearing on a blog that discusses electronic voting technologies and innovations around the world. It is because many “experts” and “analysts” are just as quick to jump to these sorts of conclusions in regards to e-voting and i-voting technology based on isolated incidents. A negative e-voting experience in one jurisdiction should not lead to the absolute dismissal of e-voting in its entirety.

As with any developing or even established technologies, e-voting is certainly not without its challenges. Issues have arisen in Ireland and Canada, for instance. In the instance of Brockton, Ontario in Canada, there have been reports of voter fraud. However, many of these problems could have been prevented and mitigated if the proper precautionary steps were taken beforehand. And even if they were not, these incidents can serve as lessons for the future implementation of e-voting and i-voting technology in other elections around the globe.

There are many factors that come into play when implementing an e-voting system and governments are advised to follow the E-Voting Readiness Index proposed by Robert Krimmer and Ronald Schuster of the Competence Center for E-voting and Participation in Vienna, Austria. There need to be systems and infrastructure in place to best handle a suitable and reliable e-voting dynamic as part of a major election.

Indeed, a robust and properly supported e-voting infrastructure is ultimately more reliable and more secure than its analog counterparts. However, an e-voting system that has not been properly audited throughout the process and one where vendors have not been suitably vetted and tested can lead to many problems. Governments should only work with reputable vendors with proven track records, ones that have clearly demonstrated their ability to run secure, reliable, accurate and transparent elections elsewhere.

To uphold the integrity of the democratic process, several criteria for choosing e-voting technology and e-voting vendors must be followed. A wise and informed decision must be made based on accessibility and transparency, for instance, in addition to cost-efficiency and accuracy. In an effort to stay within budget, some jurisdictions may opt for less-tested vendors and solutions, but this can prove to be more costly in the long run and it can result in errors and issues. A proven vendor with a proven solution can help to instil greater confidence in e-voting among the voting population and this can help to encourage further development in improving the system.

It begins with the administration and ensuring that the electoral process itself is a debate that is suitably addressed among government officials. The decision cannot and should not be taken lightly. And this is why conferences like EVOTE 2014 in Austria are so valuable, as it facilitates the open discussion among international governments regarding how best to implement what electronic voting technology in their own elections. By leveraging their combined expertise, fewer problems will be experienced by all and the number of poorly implemented e-voting systems will fall to the wayside in favor of more robust, reliable and secure technologies.

The ongoing push for e-voting in the UK by 2020

The United Kingdom has a long and storied history that is steeped in tradition, but hanging on to the past for tradition and nostalgia's sake alone could potentially be quite harmful for maintaining a modern democracy in the generations to follow. The case has been made again and again that e-voting, Internet voting or some combination thereof should be introduced in the United Kingdom for its elections moving forward. 

This isn't only coming from analysts, pundits and journalists either. A recent report by the House of Commons on the state of UK voter engagement has made the recommendation that pilot projects for electronic voting and online voting should be launched in parliament and that the option for Britons to vote online should be widely available by 2020. That gives legislators and government officials five years to put the system in place and have it ready for the mass public. 

As has been cited before, Internet voting could provide several benefits, one of the most notable of which is to encourage more engagement by young people in politics. Nearly everyone is already on the Internet on a daily or a near-daily basis, but they may not necessarily be as motivated to vote. By offering an online option, they may be more inclined and this will help to improve overall voter turnout while still offering in-person options on Election Day using paper ballots or, better still, direct-recording electronic voting machines (DRE). 

E-voting and i-voting could encourage higher voter turnout particularly among youth voters, many of whom are increasingly disinterested and discouraged by the political world. The simple act of digitizing elections and allow for online voting could make politics relevant for this important demographic once again. Columnist Richard Wood of Here Is The City Politics also cites the cost savings in the reduction of printing paper ballots, as well as well as the reduction of the impact on the environment as a result. 

There are challenges to overcome, to be sure, including maintaining the security and integrity of the vote, but the benefits are numerous as well. Edie Lush of British publication The Week is also a supporter of e-voting and i-voting in the UK. In particular, she outlines how an electronic-based voting system—whether that involves online voting, electronic voting machines, or electronic ballot counting machines—could expedite the election process significantly. 

She uses the recent election in the Philippines as a prime example of this. It once took 40 days before the election results could be reported, but after e-voting was implemented, the full tabulation was completed in a mere 48 hours. She asks why the UK cannot be “as smart as the Philippines” in this regard. Like many others, Lush also cites the glowing example of Estonia with its innovative and trend-setting system of electronic voter verification and online voting. 

It was once said that the sun never sets on the British Empire. The United Kingdom is a great world leader, but if it does not modernize its elections with electronic and online technologies, it could become a relic of the past rather than a glowing prospect of the future.

Remote e-voting mandated for non-resident Indians

When the discussion turns to the administration of an election and the different voting paradigms that are available, most people envision a traditional polling place where voters must arrive in person to cast a ballot. There are several different technologies that can come in to play here, from traditional paper ballots to direct-recording electronic voting machines to electronic ballot counting systems. However, it is just as important to consider what systems are in place for voters to cast their ballots remotely and from abroad.

This is precisely what is happening right now in India, the world's largest democracy by population, as the country's Supreme Court has officially ruled that the Central government must enable e-voting for Non Resident Indians (NRIs) in just a few weeks. The motivation is an obvious one: with a significant number of eligible voters living or working internationally, election officials are morally obligated to provide some means for NRIs to exercise their democratic right.

While some 11 million Non Resident Indians have been granted the right to vote as of 2010, the current system requires that they be physically present in their constituency on the actual voting day in order to cast a ballot. This can be incredibly cost-prohibitive for NRIs living and working abroad as it would not be financially viable to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on travel expenses simply to cast a single ballot.

The Election Commission's recommendation to validate and approve postal ballots has been accepted in letter and spirit, but a full e-voting based system would be far more effective and more efficient. However, that is not what is currently being implemented.

Instead, the system that will allow overseas Indians to cast their ballots from abroad is set up as thus: they will receive a blank postal ballot via e-mail from election officials. The NRIs must then download the paper, print out a physical copy, fill it out manually, and send it back through regular postal mail to the polling official in their constituency.

This is a positive first step, but it is hardly complete. First, it is incredibly challenging if not utterly impossible to positively verify the identity of the voter. Since the blank ballot is sent via e-mail, someone may be able to intercept or duplicate equivalent copies to fill out on their own. Second, because the delivery of the ballot is still through the post, it is vulnerable to all the pitfalls that accompany the regular postal system. The ballot can be lost, misplaced or delayed.

For elections in India to truly move forward in an age of increasing digitization, voting for NRIs should also be far more digital in nature. The ballot can be submitted via a secure web portal, for instance, as has been the case with the shining example in Estonia. And like Estonia, a reliable and secure system needs to be in place in order to adequately confirm the identity of voters. At minimum, these two criteria should be a part of larger plans for remote voting in Indian elections moving forward.

And to this end, the ruling by the Supreme Court in India to mandate e-voting for non-residents could help to catalyze similar movements in other countries around the world. By requiring the option for expatriates and remote workers to cast their votes from abroad, India may encourage other democracies to require the same. This is a significant step forward for modernizing democracy.