Georgia modernizes polls, inches closer to EU membership

Georgia’s recent efforts to modernize its elections have the effect of nudging it closer to its goal of becoming a member of the European Union.

The EU has laid down 12 conditions that Georgia must meet before it can join the union, including the establishment of an independent judiciary, protection of human rights, and an intensified fight against corruption. In complying with such, Georgia must first ensure the proper functioning of democratic institutions, including free and fair elections.

In the last few years, the country has implemented several measures to boost the transparency and fairness of its electoral process, including the use of vote counting machines and voter authentication systems.

Irakli Kobakhidze, who heads the ruling Georgian Dream party, had announced a widespread use of electronic voter registration and voting system starting with the 2024 Parliamentary elections.

“The successful experience of voter registration and voting with modern technologies allows us to implement this initiative on a large scale from 2024”, Kobakhidze said, adding that “electronic voting will ultimately strengthen public confidence in the vote-counting process, ensure that more than 70 percent of votes are counted and results published within minutes after the closing of the voting process, and eliminate problems related to rigging exit polls and parallel vote tabulation.”

Over the past two years, the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Georgia has successfully used electronic vote counting technology and identity solutions in three different pilots in the cities of Batumi, Adjara, and Senaki.

Politicians have crossed party lines on the matter, with Aleksandre Rakviashvili, an MP from the Girchi opposition party calling the move a “step forward” for ensuring a fairer electoral environment. This is reflective of the overwhelming support for the movement – as much as 83% of Georgians want to be in the EU.

The use of vote counting machines has dramatically significantly reduced human error and manipulation in the vote counting process. With the machines being designed to count votes quickly and accurately, the need for manual vote counting, which can be prone to errors and disputes, is eliminated.

In addition to the use of technology, Georgia has also made significant efforts to increase the participation of women and other underrepresented groups in the electoral process. In 2020, the CEC established quotas for female candidates in local elections and introduced a range of measures to encourage women to stand for office.

As a result, the number of Georgian women in parliament jumped from 14 to almost 20 percent. In 2021, women representatives in local councils increased from 13.8 to 24 percent. Likewise, women received 31.4 percent of mandates in proportional lists (441 mandates in total) compared to 19.8 percent of mandates received in 2017.

Georgians still need to buckle down to work – there is still much to be done in ensuring the transparency and fairness of Georgia's electoral process. The CEC needs to act on reports of irregularities and voter intimidation during recent elections, and the developing democracy needs to adopt a whole-of-nation approach to fortify its institutions and legal framework if it is to attain its European aspirations.

Bulgaria's Voting Innovations Slash Invalid Votes Amid Disinformation Onslaught

The adoption of voting technologies in Bulgarian elections has notably enhanced the efficiency and accuracy of vote counting and tabulation, leading to a substantial decrease in the number of invalid votes. In the National Assembly elections on July 11, 2021, invalid votes constituted a mere 0.34% of the almost 2.8 million votes cast—a significant improvement when contrasted with the 2019 local elections, where the absence of voting machines resulted in an alarming 15% of votes being declared invalid. This advancement marks a considerable step forward in bolstering the integrity of Bulgaria's electoral process.

Since first implementing voting technology in 2014, Bulgaria has expanded the use of electronic voting machines with a distribution of roughly 9,500 devices nationwide as of recent elections.

According to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the implementation of machine voting in the 2021 Presidential and Early Parliamentary Elections was largely successful despite logistical challenges. Significantly, the OSCE's statement acknowledges that machine voting prevented the possibility of casting an invalid or blank ballot, emphasizing the effectiveness of this technology in fostering more valid voter participation.

International observers from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), also praised the impact of voting machines, describing it as "positive" and underscoring their role in eliminating invalid ballots, which has been an ongoing issue in prior elections.

However, the advancements in Bulgaria's voting technology landscape have been somewhat overshadowed by disinformation campaigns. Particularly during the 2021 elections, representatives from the GERB party made several allegations of machine manipulation without presenting any substantiating evidence. These unsubstantiated claims have fueled skepticism and have potentially hampered the public's trust in the efficacy and integrity of the voting machines.

The spread of election disinformation linked to voting technology in Bulgaria appears to be driven by political agendas. During the 2022 Bulgarian general election, Goran Georgiev of Sofia’s Center for the Study of Democracy closely observed the unfolding events. In a marked display of skepticism, GERB’s leader Borisov condemned the employment of voting technology and alleged, without presenting evidence, that unauthorized individuals had manipulated the voting machines. Georgiev highlighted the significance of this election, as it was the first in over a decade where GERB failed to secure a parliamentary majority.

Overall, while electronic voting machines in Bulgaria have demonstrated a notably positive impact on the electoral process, it is crucial for Bulgarian authorities and international stakeholders to address the challenge of disinformation to safeguard the progress made in modernizing elections.

Switzerland cancels online voting pilot

The Swiss government has suspended the use of online voting just months ahead of this year’ October parliamentary elections. The reason: technical flaws in the two e-voting systems currently in use.

Following a cross-party campaign, critics have announced they will be proposing a five-year moratorium on e-voting trials. The setback is concerning. Stalling technology development could prove detrimental to election participation, as many voters had grown accustomed to the convenience of online voting.

Even though the Swiss Federal Council has been a champion of e-voting, and has trialed remote electronic polling across multiple cantons for the past fifteen years, the deferral should not come as a surprise.

A similar situation occurred back in 2015, when the Swiss government decided to deny access to e-voting technology in nine cantons before the parliamentary polls.

The e-voting context is relevant

·      Only about 2% of Swiss voters cast their ballots online. The Federal Council proposed (2018) to make e-voting a third regular voting channel, alongside in-person and postal votes.

·      While the Council has suggested that two-thirds of cantons should offer it, opponents launched a people's initiative asking for a 5-year moratorium on e-voting and ongoing trials.

·      Over 90% of voters in Switzerland vote by mail. A more common voting option than in most countries around the world. Public trust in the postal service and other voting providers is usually at high levels.

·      A technical flaw concerning universal verifiability was discovered in the e-voting system that the postal service planned to roll out in four cantons for this year’s parliamentary elections.

·      Swiss Post acknowledged that the error in the source code had already been identified in 2017, and pledged to develop a new, updated version available from 2020. Regretfully, the correction was not fully implemented by the technology provider.

·      The government and the cantonal authorities are currently evaluating possible ways to move forward.

Affected audiences

The government resolution to drop online voting directly affects the expatriate community. The Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA) has requested the government to reconsider the decision and has taken a leading role in the introduction of electronic voting.

Over 180,000 Swiss expatriates are eligible to take part in votes. They usually vote by post, but the organization has denounced that the envelopes often arrive too late, violating their right to fully participate in the elections. Remo Gysin, OSA President, has called for online voting to be made available for all Swiss expatriates by 2021.

On the other hand, other stakeholders affected by the decision are the cantons which were subscribed e-voting. For instance, Fribourg, Neuchâtel, and Thurgau will seek compensation after spending money on making the system ready to voters in the October elections.