Voting is a prime example of a system of collective choice that could be vastly improved by taking advantage of SSI to support making those collective choices over distance. Shannon Appelcline, the long-time editor-in-chief of the Rebooting the Web of Trust (RWOT) series of SSI conferences and a technical writer for Blockchain Commons, explores this topic in depth by outlining the problems with distance voting to date, considering the possibilities of true voter agency, and detailing how SSI fits into this new vision for open democracy.
The wonder of democracy is that members of a city, region, or country can vote to personally decide how their society is governed—through either direct or representative democracy. However, managing votes isn’t as easy as it sounds, particularly in the ever-more-remote world of the twenty-first century.
In-person voting works relatively well because it’s easy to block double voting when you can physically connect each individual person to a specific identity. When a state requires physical presence, it can verify identities by checking preauthenticated voter logs or comparing handwriting or signatures. Even if a state doesn’t have sophisticated civic records, it can use other physical means to minimize double votes, such as inking thumbs with indelible ink. In-person voting also has other benefits, such as reducing coercion or undue influence that could otherwise corrupt democratic ideals.