[EAI Roundtable] Measures to Ensure Election Fairness Through Technology and the Role of the Association of World Election Bodies

YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSJ6hgjEgos

1. Ensuring Election Fairness Through the 2023 Nigerian General Election

Professor Kang Woo-chang of Korea University argues that by utilizing the latest technologies, it is possible to reduce fraudulent practices in candidate registration and vote tabulation processes, as exemplified by the Nigerian general election. This can serve as a method to ensure electoral transparency in developing countries. While acknowledging the concern that such technologies could be misused by groups dissatisfied with election outcomes, he forecasts that the role of technology is likely to grow, especially in contexts where trust in election officials is lacking.

2. The Role of A-WEB and the National Assembly in Supporting Transparent and Participatory Elections

Kim Seung-yeol, Advisor to the Secretary-General of the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB), Kim Hyung-mo, Director of the National Democratic Institute (NDI) Korea Office, and Lee Woong-yong, Secretary-General of the Election Commission of Yeon-su District, Incheon City, discussed the financial and operational challenges arising from A-WEB's inability to secure international organization status. The importance and feasibility of obtaining such status to secure financial support were also emphasized. As potential solutions to these challenges, National Assembly Member Kim Young-bae, EAI Senior Fellow Lee Sook-jong, and National Assembly Member Huh Eun-ah proposed the establishment of a bipartisan democracy caucus and the revival of financial support for electoral bodies.

Video Transcript

To my knowledge, this is done separately in most countries. In the United States, there have been major issues, primarily because the verification of voter eligibility is not adequately conducted. This leads to individuals voting in precincts where they are not registered or engaging in ballot stuffing. After the representative election concludes and the results are tallied, there have been instances where committee members or other officials report results different from the actual count, thus manipulating the figures. These two methods, among various issues, have been pointed out as the most significant problems. The focus was on how to overcome the problems arising from these two processes through the introduction of technology. Broadly, two systems are introduced: the first is the issuance of voter cards, known as 'Voter Identification and Verification Access System' (VIVAS). About a month before the election period, when voters register, a voter card is issued. This process requires capturing the voter's photograph, facial biometrics, and fingerprints. Another aspect is...

The characteristic of this VIVAS machine is that it actually handles voter records for only about 800 people. It is not connected to the internet in real-time. It operates like a USB drive, and this data must be brought to the actual polling station for matching. If there is a malfunction or if more than 800 people need to vote, the question arises whether two or three additional machines would be prepared. There were many doubts about whether such a system would work, but in practice, I observed that it functioned much better than expected. The second system is what we call 'Ireland Result Entry,' where the election results are entered into the VIVAS machine immediately after the representative election concludes. These results are then automatically transmitted to the local election office. This transmission occurs after the results are sent.

After the vote count is completed, the results from the ballot papers are organized and scanned for a double-check. The results are directly preserved, and the scanned papers are then reported again. This method aims to prevent fraud by manipulating numbers, which has been a concern in some countries. However, I did not encounter any such issues; it was a valuable experience.