Why can't we vote online?

[Syringer]

The whole ballots issue is very outdated, and I see no reason not to go with an online system. It'd be pretty simple, you register to vote, get a unique passcode or something..then come election day, enter it in and the candidates/propositions you want to vote for.

It would create a huge surge in voting population in my opinion, especially among the young population who do not want to wait hours in a line in order to cast their ballot, and would vote right after checking their myspace comments page.

If you think security/fraud is an issue, then well, Florida should be a lesson to show that the old fashioned ways are not foolproof at all. Plus, it'd be easy to monitor voting action and detect anything that goes wrong and then correct them afterward.

 

[evetstech]

1. Hackers
2. Computer Illiterate people
3. Hackers

 

[gigapet]

it would be even easier for them to rig the vote!!! good call.

 

[notfred]

for(int passcode = 0; passcode < 4294967296; passcode++){
submitVote("Al Gore", passcode);
}

 

[FoBoT]

i wouldn't be able to hang Chad

 

[Poulsonator]

We can't even vote right using booths...how could we do it right online?

 

[pontifex]

yeah, they can't even get something as simple as a hole punch right or even count properly and you want them to be able to do it online?

 

[fitzov]

I guess online banking is screwed.

 

[Zee]

i guess fafsa is screwed too.

 

[SaturnX]

Need to be wary of those l33t h4x0rs

 

[kranky]

Online voting would indeed be simple. After that, we disagree.

If you think it would be easy to monitor votes, and detect and correct problems, you're dreaming.

People need to realize the problems that would absolutely result from online voting. Do you realize how high the stakes are? You would have the most highly skilled hackers in the world working to either ruin the system or else manipulate it.

You'd have people who can't operate the Enter key suing because something went wrong with their attempt to vote and they were "disenfranchised". You'd have people paying other people for the use of their passcode. You'd have any number of other issues that would cast suspicion on the results, and if you think we have a lot of election results tied up in court NOW, wait until that happens.

Frankly, I'm glad people won't wait in line to vote. These are usually the same people who will do anything to get out of jury duty, as they have no sense of obligation associated with citizenship. All the people who can't be bothered to head out to vote just increases the importance of my vote.

There is certainly fraud now, but the system keeps it under control. With tons and tons of places for people to vote, there's a comparatively small number of total voters at any one polling place. So if there are 4,000 eligible voters for a polling place, and 2,000 bother to show up, even the most blatant fraud can't give someone a 2,500 vote lead from that district. There's a record of the number of people who physically showed up.

Do it online, and magically you'll see voter "turnout" rise up to the 90% level. That will mean 40% of the votes are fraudulent instead of the 5% or so it is now.

 

[Syringer]

Originally posted by: pontifex
yeah, they can't even get something as simple as a hole punch right or even count properly and you want them to be able to do it online?

What would you rather do, drive out to a cold, rainy location packed with hundreds of other people, wait in a 4 hour line to go through a 2 minute process, and then have to wait for 70 year old volunteers to sort out through the tens of thousands of ballots...or have it all done electronically?

 

[Syrch]

what about the infrastruction behind it...that many million of people loggin in at once? How many servers would you need?

 

[JS80]

Minorities would be disenfranchised...

even liberal UCLA hasn't taught you a damn thing?

 

[FoBoT]

ok, for a serious reply

the main problem is that voting is controlled at the county level

there are somthing like 3000+ counties in 50 different states. so you have a bunch of different rules and funding mechanisms involved.

unless you pass a federal constitutional amendment to federalize voting, it isn't going to happen across the board.

my county won't even pave the roads, you think they'll pass a tax to get online voting? :laugh:

 

[kranky]

I would like to know how long people have actually waited in line to vote. In the dozens of elections I've voted in, I think the longest I ever had to wait was 15 minutes.

 

[Syringer]

Originally posted by: evetstech
1. Hackers
2. Computer Illiterate people
3. Hackers

You speak as though fraud does not exist in the current system, and that the current system does not confuse the sh!t out of people either.

No one would force anyone to vote online, the 60-year-old geezer can still head down to the ballot boxes and cast his/her vote, and the 19-year-old myspace user who would not vote otherwise can just do it online in mere minutes.

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: kranky
Frankly, I'm glad people won't wait in line to vote. These are usually the same people who will do anything to get out of jury duty, as they have no sense of obligation associated with citizenship. All the people who can't be bothered to head out to vote just increases the importance of my vote.

Good post kranky. The part I highlighted is what I think is the most important. I don't WANT people to vote simply because it is easy. I want people to vote who care enough to go out of their way to vote. We aren't a democracy, we shouldn't pretend we are either. A large subset of caring/interested/knowledgeable voters is better than everyone voting.

You could also make this political as well. I think studies have shown that republicans would get a huge boost in votes if it was online. Of course democrats won't allow this.

 

[Syringer]

Originally posted by: kranky
I would like to know how long people have actually waited in line to vote. In the dozens of elections I've voted in, I think the longest I ever had to wait was 15 minutes.

In my college town, during the '04 elections there were hundreds of people at various locations and they had to extend voting hours because there were so many people waiting.

 

[FoBoT]

Originally posted by: kranky
I would like to know how long people have actually waited in line to vote. In the dozens of elections I've voted in, I think the longest I ever had to wait was 15 minutes.

i have voted in the last six presidential elections and various local/state elections in between

i don't recall ever waiting more than ~10 minutes

 

[Syringer]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: kranky
Frankly, I'm glad people won't wait in line to vote. These are usually the same people who will do anything to get out of jury duty, as they have no sense of obligation associated with citizenship. All the people who can't be bothered to head out to vote just increases the importance of my vote.

Good post kranky. The part I highlighted is what I think is the most important. I don't WANT people to vote simply because it is easy. I want people to vote who care enough to go out of their way to vote. We aren't a democracy, we shouldn't pretend we are either. A large subset of caring/interested/knowledgeable voters is better than everyone voting.

You could also make this political as well. I think studies have shown that republicans would get a huge boost in votes if it was online. Of course democrats won't allow this.

Why would republicans get a boost? Most young people are democrats, and they are the lowest represented group when it comes to voting..so if there is an online portion it certainly would increase that young group by a tremendous amount, thereby helping the democrats.

 

[TheNinja]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: kranky
Frankly, I'm glad people won't wait in line to vote. These are usually the same people who will do anything to get out of jury duty, as they have no sense of obligation associated with citizenship. All the people who can't be bothered to head out to vote just increases the importance of my vote.

Good post kranky. The part I highlighted is what I think is the most important. I don't WANT people to vote simply because it is easy. I want people to vote who care enough to go out of their way to vote. We aren't a democracy, we shouldn't pretend we are either. A large subset of caring/interested/knowledgeable voters is better than everyone voting.

You could also make this political as well. I think studies have shown that republicans would get a huge boost in votes if it was online. Of course democrats won't allow this.

I also agree. I don't want it so easy to vote that people can just vote without any real effort or interest. Now instead of 20% of the population that cares enough to drive down the street and vote. You have 20% of educated voters voting and another %20 that vote just b/c it's easy and it only takes 2 seconds online.

If you are too lazy and don't care enough to go drive down the street and vote then your vote shouldn't matter. I might make an exception for the elderly and handicapped though.

 

[chuckywang]

The vote would be skewed towards the middle and upper class.

 

[Syringer]

Originally posted by: FoBoT
ok, for a serious reply

the main problem is that voting is controlled at the county level

there are somthing like 3000+ counties in 50 different states. so you have a bunch of different rules and funding mechanisms involved.

unless you pass a federal constitutional amendment to federalize voting, it isn't going to happen across the board.

my county won't even pave the roads, you think they'll pass a tax to get online voting? :laugh:

There can be several ways around this. We can start with just local elections in some areas to be held online, and see how that works and expand on that..or, as you say we can find a way to reform the national elections so that it can all be done online

The bottom line is, pretty much every other facet of our lives that's possible to do online is done online or in the process of being online, why not push the most fundamental right as a citizen to do so as well?

 

[Syringer]

Originally posted by: chuckywang
The vote would be skewed towards the middle and upper class.

Right, because now it's heavily skewed toward minimum wage farm workers and hardly anyone who drives a BMW casts a vote.