Electoral Commission exploring how technology can simplify voting process

The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) has told a House of Representatives committee that it's trying into the simplest way for its officers to employ technology to seem up the standing of voters at successive federal election in function of the dated paper-based technique presently utilized.

The Joint commission on Electoral Matters detected on weekday from executive agency representatives, UN agency explained that the govt agency is "progressing a series of technical amendments" with the Department of Finance as a part of its plan to modernise the executive agency.

The committee has been trying into the 2016 federal election, a part of that considerations why there have been around fourteen,000 votes omitted as a result of electoral roll discrepancies.

According to member Liberal MP mountain Ferdinand Joseph La Menthe Morton, wherever technology is used via Electronic Certified Lists (ECLs), there's a forceful distinction in inaccurate pick ballots: eleven.2 p.c of overall votes ar partly omitted wherever no ECLs ar used, versus a mistake rate of simply zero.19 p.c wherever they're used.

"Why cannot we've electronic roll operation, not the total wiz-bang ECL, for the availability of absent and pre-poll?" Ferdinand Joseph La Menthe Morton asked.

The committee detected that in the recent Queensland election, each elector was mail-clad out a card that had a singular barcode thereon, that they dropped at polling booths to vote. voters then had their card scanned by the polling workers, that not solely marked their name off, however additionally written their ballot type at the purpose of issue for those that were pre-polling. There was associate degree eighty p.c turnout rate for folks transportation those cards.

"They haven't got associate degree higher House, so that they did not have to be compelled to print a metre-long ballot at purpose of issue," the executive agency commented.

"There were no complaints regarding waiting," it added, noting that this technique is pricey and therefore the Electoral Commission of Queensland received funds from the government to create it happen.

"It is pricey and complicated, and that we need to work inside a security atmosphere that's a fancy security atmosphere, notably given what's occurring globally with IT security.

"We try to figure with the opposite states and territories ... to speak to them regarding however we would do this, and that we try to analyze obtaining much more ECLs together with operation.

"We're observing the simplest way of leapfrogging a elector card."

In 2007, the executive agency had a national fleet of palm pilots, that it had been victimization for operation and was shared with state and territory electoral commissions.

"It was pretty low-tech, however it had been effective," the executive agency aforementioned. "For no matter reason, that technology died a few years past and that we were ne'er able to agree as a gaggle a way to move forward."

The executive agency discovered that it'd shortly be heading to tender to seek out a seller to organize associate degree app for voters to examine their registration standing on. The app may fulfil identical perform as ECLs, the executive agency aforementioned, however would even be almost like a boarding card wherever those not technically savvy may print their own registration card.

The executive agency aforementioned it's additionally keen to explore the potential for the app to be utilized by declaration-issuing officers to mark off names and hand voters a ballot paper.

"If you are utilized as a declaration-issuing officer, your level of enquiry can have to be compelled to be deeper to seek out that person on the roll," the executive agency explained. "The challenge is giving the declaration-issuing officer a deeper level of enquiry into our registration information."

But with funding not allotted for any such initiative, the executive agency has had to contemplate the concept of "bring your own device" (BYOD), that is fraught with security considerations.

"If a elector will transfer associate degree app to seem up their election details as they enter a booth, why cannot we've identical app downloaded onto a tool owned , rented, to the employee to permit folks to seem up their registration details at these thirteen,000 points as a priority?" Ferdinand Joseph La Menthe Morton asked.

In response, the executive agency highlighted that it's one factor to square during a queue and appearance up your own details, however that the protection implications in giving access to thousands of cubicle officers have to be compelled to be taken terribly seriously.

AEC federation David Lang aforementioned {one of|one among|one during all|one amongst|one in every of} the items his agency is exploring is means to|a way to} give the ECL operation in a completely different way, with BYOD being one potential technique.

"Can we, victimization technology, secure that and build it still usable on a spread of devices in order that you would not have to be compelled to have a specific device to fulfil that operation requirement?" he aforementioned.

"To be able to do this [covering 100% of pick booths], you'd have to be compelled to have property to the web, in order that would mean it'd need to be a set as a result of we do not have web coverage everyplace in Australia."

The executive agency aforementioned ECLs ar a verified technology, and it is smart to own a fleet of kit that's out there to be used all told federal and state elections.

Where alternative technology initiatives ar involved, one factor the executive agency was affected with out of the last ACT election was the availability of video-based coaching, with every polling officer issued a portable computer with pre-loaded coaching on investigating and packaging the votes and managing the spot.

"What we're observing is our own video-based coaching, that we might raise our [officers] to transfer on their own device before the event, have that out there to them and their workers at the polling places -- i do not have the money to issue eight,000 laptops for coaching functions," the executive agency aforementioned, noting it hasn't however worked through the supplying.