To strengthen election integrity, we should consider reforms that include paper ballots with watermarks and unique serial numbers. If we’re able to include serial numbers on our currency for verification and tracking, there’s no reason we can’t implement similar security measures on ballots. These features would help ensure the authenticity and accuracy of each vote, reinforcing trust in our electoral process.
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Adding there should only be paper ballots. Electronic voting is really vunlerable to cybersecurity and deliberate hacking issues.
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Enhance with voting requirements.
US Citizen only
Voter ID required
Paper Ballots only
Hand count only
No electronic machines
Results before Midnight election day
No drop boxes
Absentee ballots only with affidavit.
Full forensic audit within 30 days of election
Federal prison terms for voter fraud.
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They do it with paper currency to prevent fraud.
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this could be done with computerized token. would know if you voted or not, and would turn off if you voted
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I disagree with this strategy. As someone with 20+ years of experience in operations and technology, manual processes are rife with extensive human error.
We need better secured technology for electronic voting, robust cyber security to prevent unwanted intrusions, controls built in the prevent human intervention on changing votes, and standard audit practices to ensure all of the above has been followed throughout the whole election process.
I would also add the following rules:
- Keep early voting with the caveat all votes are tallied by 11:59PM election night.
- Set national dates and times for early voting and Election Day voting.
- Make Election Day a national holiday, where all citizens cannot work and have a paid day off.
- Mandate a media blackout during the election voting period. No results are to be reported until all polls are closed. Media can interview people as they exit the polls or individuals in line, but no news station can report results until every state is done on Election Day. This is to ensure any bad actors don’t do any last minute maneuvers to jeopardize election integrity.
- Make the audit processing of votes live streamed, so poll watchers and the citizens can ensure every vote is counted in accordance with the law.
- Data on the votes regarding who someone voted for is masked to any poll worker. Only the citizen who voted, the system and auditors can see and verify that information.
- Auditors must sign a legal document requiring them to fulfill their duties in an unbiased manner to uphold free and fair elections.
- Everyone who votes gets a receipt of who they voted for and can confirm their voting record on the system website that same day.
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Secrecy of your vote is a cornerstone of our election. Unique serial numbers violate that promise by providing a method to associate you with your vote.
I had suggested each person having a unique number assigned when they register to vote. No one would know your number but you and the clerk. When you get ready to vote, they could have the stack of ballots there and you could pick out your number and vote.
Unless you tell people your serial number how would that be an issue? They are not scanning the serial number before giving to you.
Just because you can’t think how to get someone’s ballot number doesn’t me someone with the will can’t find a way. The law says your vote is always secret. You open your mail-in ballot but don’t fill it out for a few days. The law does NOT say as long as you take every possible measure to protect it. Why do you think ballots have never been numbered in any state?
Proposal: Enhancing Election Integrity with Blockchain Technology
Title: Securing Democracy: A Blockchain-Based Approach to Transparent and Tamper-Proof Elections
Introduction:
Election integrity is foundational to democracy, yet debates around security, transparency, and accessibility persist. This proposal reimagines voting security by integrating blockchain technology, which offers unparalleled transparency and fraud prevention. By using cryptographic tokens as unique ballot identifiers, we aim to reconcile voter privacy with accountability while addressing critiques of manual and electronic systems alike.
The Ascent: Key Features of Blockchain Voting
1. Blockchain-Generated Cryptographic Tokens
Every voter receives a cryptographic token upon registration. This token acts as a secure, anonymized identifier that is unique to each individual and their ballot.
2. Decentralized Ledger for Transparency
Votes are recorded on a decentralized blockchain ledger, ensuring that every transaction (vote) is immutable, traceable, and independently verifiable without compromising voter privacy.
3. Enhanced Voter Privacy
Unlike serial numbers, blockchain ensures that voter identities are encrypted and anonymized, with only the voter and authorized systems able to verify their participation.
4. Multi-Factor Authentication for Access
Voters must use multi-factor authentication (e.g., biometric ID and unique PIN) to access their cryptographic token, preventing unauthorized use or manipulation.
The Summit: Peak Advantages of Blockchain Voting
5. Unprecedented Election Security and Transparency
Blockchain eliminates human error in vote counting, prevents vote tampering, and allows for real-time, anonymized auditing. Public confidence grows when results are verifiable by anyone, yet voter secrecy is fully protected.
The Descent: Practical Applications and Enhancements
6. Live Vote Audit and Media Blackout
Votes are tallied and auditable in real-time through blockchain but are kept hidden until all polls close. This prevents external influences during election periods.
7. Tamper-Proof Absentee and Early Voting
Blockchain ensures absentee and early votes are securely recorded, preventing double voting and enhancing trust in these systems.
8. Voter Receipts and Verification
Each voter receives an encrypted digital receipt of their vote, which can be verified against the blockchain ledger. This builds confidence without revealing how they voted to others.
9. National Standardization for Election Practices
Using blockchain establishes a uniform voting protocol across all states, ensuring consistency in security measures, accessibility, and transparency.
10. Reduced Cost and Complexity Over Time
While blockchain implementation may require initial investment, it minimizes recurring costs tied to physical ballots, manual audits, and fraud investigations, creating a cost-efficient system in the long term.
Conclusion:
By leveraging blockchain, this proposal modernizes election security, balancing the need for transparency, voter privacy, and fraud prevention. It addresses concerns raised by critics of both paper ballots and electronic systems, offering a revolutionary path forward.
##The Tree of Relief - Final Thought :
“In the roots of technology, we find the seeds of trust; in the branches of democracy, we nurture the fruits of freedom. Let transparency and security intertwine to ensure every voice is counted and safeguarded.”
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Okay so you want to keep all ballots secret but you don’t offer a solution for integrity I’m curious about your motivation. There’s already many implied federal and state laws that guarantee secrecy of the ballots you just have to enforce existing laws. Did you provide a solution for stopping fraud?
My point is that numbering ballots is illegal and doesn’t provide any integrity nor solve any fraud. Numbering ballots is simple but has never been implemented anywhere! More important, it does not address any integrity issue because you can’t verify the number against the voter nor anything else other than another ballot does not use this same number. This number proves absolutely nothing. No one can provide a solution without identifying specifics about the actual fraud.
They’ve been using this system for currency systems Fiat systems for a very long time to stop fraud. You’re not supposed to match the number with the voter just to track the ballot. Those midnight ballot dumps become worthless. You still haven’t given a solution yourself that’s better.
You can’t be serious that numbering stops fraud especially with currency. Watermarks, paper, ink and more are used to stop illegal currency. You say ballot dumps would be solved by number but you ignore those ballots are in an envelope with the voter’s name and potentially that number (voter number) you want. You don’t need a solution for a non-existent problem.
Show us how numbering of a ballot would prevent midnight ballot dump fraud. More important, it’s illegal to number ballots because they can be used to identify the voter’s choices.
I know why you do not use your real name.
What we actually know, Kenneth, is that you’re an idiot. It has been proven that numbering does not prevent fraud. It simply makes fraud provable once it has been identified. For instance, ballots were counted twice in Fulton GA despite each box of ballots (called batches) was numbered. Same with the banking industry where everything is numbered. 2 people must perform tasks where exposures are possible but when fraud is suspected the numbers become useful. As for numbers on ballots, I repeat it is illegal because it can be used to identify the voter.