US Gives Electronic Voting Another Try, But Will It Work This Time?
We've sent people to the moon, learned how to tranmist data at the speed of light, and even mapped the world inside of a browser. But voting electronically? Still working on it. Even more disappointing is the fact that less-developed countries like Brazil have eclipsed our efficiency in voting by several orders of magnitude.
Thankfully, we're quick to learn from our mistakes, and reports are pointing to better, more secure methods of electronic voting for the upcoming election than in previous years. Unknown to most, one of the reasons a unified and stable electronic voting system has taken so long to arrive in the US is that states regulate voting -- not the federal government. This, in turn, leads to a lack of standards, and ultimately a system that's more complex and confusing than it needs to be. Sounds a lot like the tech industry, doesn't it?
Still, despite the progress towards better systems, some still prefer the tried-and-true paper method. "This year, paper voting has eclipsed electronic voting, and I consider that to be progress," said Kim Alexander, president of voter advocacy group California Voter Foundation, to Reuters. It's an interesting take, for sure, but we're still waiting for the day when we can vote with our iPhones through our Facebook pages. [From: Reuters]
Thankfully, we're quick to learn from our mistakes, and reports are pointing to better, more secure methods of electronic voting for the upcoming election than in previous years. Unknown to most, one of the reasons a unified and stable electronic voting system has taken so long to arrive in the US is that states regulate voting -- not the federal government. This, in turn, leads to a lack of standards, and ultimately a system that's more complex and confusing than it needs to be. Sounds a lot like the tech industry, doesn't it?
Still, despite the progress towards better systems, some still prefer the tried-and-true paper method. "This year, paper voting has eclipsed electronic voting, and I consider that to be progress," said Kim Alexander, president of voter advocacy group California Voter Foundation, to Reuters. It's an interesting take, for sure, but we're still waiting for the day when we can vote with our iPhones through our Facebook pages. [From: Reuters]
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