Romania has employed blockchain technology in its elections to promote transparency and clarity.
The South Eastern European country utilized the technology to monitor the electoral processes, including validating and counting the presidential votes. Romania is the first European country to utilize technology in this way.
All transactions can be viewed on the ledger made available online through the official website of the Permanent Electoral Authority in Romania (ROAP).
The electoral body developed a dashboard where citizens can track the results live on a public ledger. To maintain voter privacy, the dashboard conceals the name of the candidate for whom the voter voted.
ROAP Promotes Electoral Transparency and Accountability With STS
The voting system is a collaborative effort of ROAP and the country’s Special Telecommunication Service (STS).
According to STS, the system utilizes the European Blockchain Services Infrastructure (EBSI), with nodes scattered across 27 European countries.
In this context, nodes are computers or devices that keep the public records of the transactions in the blockchain.
“This modern technological implementation aims to strengthen the resilience of the electoral system in Romania by ensuring traceability and increasing confidence in data integrity,” STS explained.
Noteworthy, ROAP’s synergy with STS offers an extra layer of transparency and accountability to the system.
How Romania’s Blockchain Voting System Works
All data collected at the various polling stations are recorded as a transaction on the blockchain. Each transaction contains public information and a hash of private data.
This privacy is maintained from the beginning to the end of the process. With decentralization at the core of many blockchain processes, the network’s nodes are hosted by dozens of national and regional authorities and academic institutions.
Apart from ensuring decentralization, this action also alleviates opportunities for any alterations.
Other Countries to Follow Suit After Romania
The United States recently held its 2024 presidential elections, with a tough battle between the Republican and Democratic parties.
Former US president Donald Trump represented the Republicans, while the current Vice president Kamala Harris was for the Democratic party. Of the two, Trump demonstrated a more pro-crypto stance, which eventually helped him secure a seat in the White House.
With a more blockchain and crypto-friendly stance, America may consider adopting a similar voting system for its future election.
The post Romania Taps Blockchain Technology for Its Electoral Processes appeared first on TheCoinrise.com.