BPPT Develops E-Voting System for 2019 General Elections

Jakarta (Antara) - The Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) is currently developing an electronic voting (e-voting) system to be implemented in the 2019 general elections. The e-voting system applying information and communications technology, would be used in legislative elections, presidential and vice-presidential elections, as well as regional head elections, BPPT Chairman Marzain Iskandar said as quoted on the website of the Cabinet Secretariat, Sunday. E-voting is an election system that uses encryption to allow a voter to transmit his or her secure and secret ballot over the Internet. Marzain Iskandar explained that the e-voting system would have some advantages because it would make the counting of the elections' results faster, more accountable, and more accurate. It would also make every phase of the general elections more easily audited, he stated. The implementation of this system will not disturb the principles of direct, public, free, and fair elections because voting secrecy is guaranteed. The e-voting system will also lower the cost of general elections by 25 percent compare to that of the general elections using manual system, as the electronic voting system will eliminate ballot papers. He stated that the electronic voting system will use the electronic identification cards (e-KTP) as the identities of eligible voters. "So, citizens can just bring their electronic identification cards (e-KTP) to the polling stations. The cards will then be verified, and the residents can cast their votes by pressing certain buttons. In short, all processes will proceed effectively," he said. Other countries such as the US, Brazil, Norway, Germany, Venezuela, India, Canada, Belgium, Romania, Australia, UK, and Italy have used e-voting system in their general elections. The BPPT chief called on Indonesian law makers to produce a law introducing the application of e-voting system in the next general elections in 2019. (*)