(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – A majority of adults in the United States reject the possibility of taking part in an election through the Internet, according to a poll by TNS released by ABC News and Facebook. 54 per cent of respondents oppose a system allowing people to cast their vote for president and other political offices online.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – A majority of adults in the United States reject the possibility of taking part in an election through the Internet, according to a poll by TNS released by ABC News and Facebook. 54 per cent of respondents oppose a system allowing people to cast their vote for president and other political offices online.
In addition, 67 per cent of respondents believe it will take many years to develop an Internet voting system that is secure from fraud.
Estonia held a parliamentary election in March 2007. From Feb. 26 to Feb. 28, voters in the Baltic nation were allowed to cast ballots online. In all, more than 30,000 of the country’s 940,000 registered voters chose this option. Citizens used their state-issued identity card and two passwords to access a website.
Estonia Electoral Commission member Arne Koitmae explained the rationale, saying, "The goal is to make things easier for people, to increase participation. No one has managed to prove that e-voting actually raises participation, so that remains unanswered. But this gives people another possibility."
In 2000, deputy director of the Office of Elections for the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) Bill Kimberling dismissed online voting, saying, "The bottom line behind this push is money. The noise being made to begin Internet voting is vendor-generated because a lot of new software and hardware will be needed to make it happen. I don’t want to vote over the Internet and I don’t want anyone else to either."
Polling Data
If it could be made secure from fraud, would you support or oppose a system allowing people to cast their vote for president and other political offices over the Internet?
|
Dec. 2007 |
Jul. 1999 |
|
|
Support |
44% |
42% |
|
Oppose |
54% |
52% |
|
Unsure |
3% |
5% |
Do you think an Internet voting system could be made secure from fraud any time in the near future, or do you think it will be many years before that’s possible?
|
Dec. 2007 |
Jul. 1999 |
|
|
Near Future |
18% |
24% |
|
Many Years |
67% |
62% |
|
Never |
11% |
7% |
|
Unsure |
4% |
7% |
Source: TNS / ABC News / Facebook
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,142 American adults, conducted from Dec. 16 to Dec. 19, 2007. Margin of error is 3 per cent.
