West Virginia First Blockchain Voting U.S. State

West Virginia has launched a pilot program in collaboration with in two counties that utilizes blockchain technology through a government sponsored app to grant easier and more secure access to absentee voting for military personnel.

Voting’s Future

This is not the first time West Virginia has pushed the voting practices towards technology adoption. Currently military personnel can cast absentee ballots by mail, fax, or email. By email, the process requires access to a desktop computer, and is only available in 5 of the state’s 55 counties.

Blockchain Benefits

“Secure Military Mobile Voting Solution” was put created in a joint effort between the Office of the Secretary of State of West Virginia, and four non-partisan organizations – Voatz, Tusk/Montgomery Philanthropies, New America and the Blockchain Trust Accelerator.

With this new mobile access voting project, all that is needed is access to an apple or android mobile device. It will grant use of this application only to personnel living in Harrison County or Monongalia County. However, the benefits are far superior to the addition of email absentee voting, and should see increased use over time.

• Secure and accurate
• Elimination of human error
• Anonymize votes
• Faster results
• Increased trust in institutions
• Auditable
• Transparent

Private organizations in the medical field are also making the push for adopting blockchain technology for these benefits with medical records.

Voatz

This is the technical background for the project – a technology start-up based in Boston Massachusetts. Their mobile voting technology has been used successfully in Town Meeting Voting and Participatory Budget Voting. West Virginia will be the first federal employment of the process.

Tusk/Montgomery Philanthropies

This organization has two goals – reducing hunger and increasing voting. They work towards adequate access to food for those in need through projects such as funding for school provided breakfasts. They are pursuing advances in voting access by piloting projects that improve accessibility to voting for military personnel.

New America (Blockchain Trust Accelerator)

This group identifies as a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy institute. They continually pursue projects that will reach to the highest ideals of American freedom.

The Blockchain Trust Accelerator aims to create projects utilizing blockchain technology that are focused on benefits to society as a whole.