'Serious concerns' that e-voting will lead to more spoilt votes

Last updated at 00:23 20 June 2007


Computer experts have raised "serious concerns" over the use of electronic voting technology, a report released reveals.

The Open Rights Group said it is opposed to the introduction of e-voting and e-counting after it oversaw last month's local elections.

It added that voting systems tested on May 3 - including voting by phone and the electronic counting of ballot papers - had led to a large numbers of spoilt votes in the Scottish Parliament elections and confusion at counts for English local authorities.

The report records "chaotic scenes", with counts slowed by malfunctioning scanners and software errors, as well as fold marks, perforations and tears making papers unreadable.

Laptop computers used for voting in Swindon

proved "unreliable", while online voters in Sheffield "had trouble casting their votes", it added.

Telephone voting systems caused particular difficulty to the elderly and housebound - the groups they were intended to help.

The ORG also raised concerns that e-voting elections were "open to error and fraud" because the mechanisms for recording votes are hidden away, making public scrutiny impossible.

The lack of reliable "audit trails" meant that there was "no meaningful way to verify that voters' intentions had been accurately counted".

The report concluded: "E-voting and e-counting technologies have a poor track record."

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