Electronic voting: is this the way to go for future elections?

Abstract

Electronic voting (e-voting) is seen as a way of solving some of the challenges associated with traditional, paper-based voting, such as providing fast and seamless ballot tabulation and fewer unintentionally spoilt ballots. It is argued that e-voting could mitigate low voter turnout and low participation by young people, who tend to find paper-based voting tedious and prefer much shorter voting systems such as e-voting. The present study draws on desktop research, findings from the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) Voter Participation Survey (VPS), and key informant interview data to assess whether e-voting may be a viable option for use in electoral processes in Africa, and in South Africa in particular. The research concludes that if e-voting were to be implemented by countries across Africa, including South Africa, the transition process would take several years, and would require careful planning and testing.