Alaska is on course to be the first state in the United States to fully use blockchain technology to support its voting security system.
In a proposal under Senate Bill 39 by Wasilla Republican Sen. Mike Shower, incorporating blockchain technology in voting will increase voter confidence in the electoral system.
“I’m merely trying to find a way to make it tighter and better as we move into the 21st century, primarily about how we secure our elections so that people will have faith in the results, even if they don’t like them,” Shower said.
Picks for you
The bill proposes that voters should have an added security check-in verifying their identity through multi-factor authentication.
According to Shower, blockchain implementation will address the issue of databases where it will help the Division of Election identify individuals who should be removed from the voting rolls. He notes that the technology will streamline the process since the state has not been effective.
“We’re sending ballots to people who shouldn’t be on the rolls here in Alaska. So they can’t claim that we’re doing it as clean or as good as we should be. We can do it better,” Shower added.
Furthermore, the bill seeks to increase voter participation by allowing people to use their tribal IDs for voter identification. At the same time, the technology would help in fixing errors that would bar people from voting.
However, the bill’s first version was a center of controversy for ending automatic voter registration through the permanent fund dividend application. The new bill has eliminated the clause.
Blockchain voting dominates U.S. political scene
Initially, Oracle’s (NYSE: ORCL) Chris Miller had shared with the Senate State Affairs Committee that blockchain technology in voting was implemented in countries like Russia. In the U.S., a county in Utah enables several people to vote via blockchain technology.
The debate on blockchain technology in voting has dominated the U.S. political discourse, with proponents stating it will streamline the process. Other parties, however, believe blockchain technology has vulnerabilities if not implemented correctly.
