Colloquium Details
Electronic Voting
| Author: | Erik Nilsson University of Oregon |
|---|---|
| Date: | October 21, 2004 |
| Time: | 3:30 |
| Location: | 220 Deschutes |
| Host: | Sarah Douglas |
Abstract
Over the last four years, voting technology has received unprecedented attention by the media, academia, legislatures, and ordinary voters. It is now widely recognized that the limitations of our voting technologies present a danger to democracy, and improvements must be made. However, opinions diverge on the real nature of the problem, and the best course of action. As another startlingly close presidential election approaches, the danger to democracy is immediate. Not only do the two candidates represent divergent courses for the country, but the possibility a second election that generates only weak legitimacy for the winner has dire potential.
A reasonably comprehensive understanding of the problem requires an understanding of how elections are administered, the kinds of technologies elections require, and how technology is applied to elections. Technology adoption for elections has mostly been the repurposing of existing artifacts, practices and ideas. Most of the problems we find today can be traced to inappropriate repurposing.
In response to these problems voting technology has now become the focus of research. Some insights point to improvements, but research techniques can also be inappropriately repurposed to elections questions, leading to less useful results.
Voting seems initially simple, but quickly raises many complex questions. Sorting out the complexities of elections is of critical importance to the well-being of America and the world.
Biography:
Erik chairs the Working Group on Voting Technology (vote-wg) of Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR) . Erik's almost two decade involvement with vote-wg and CPSR includes writings on elections technology, user-interface design, and security. He was among the first to call for voter-verifiable paper ballots on "touch screen" voting machines, taking this position in several papers with Bob Wilcox in the late 1980's. IN 1994, in connection with CPSR, he worked for the election commission in South Africa, during the historic elections that brought Nelson Mandela and the ANC to power. His experiences in South Africa were the subject of an article in Wired Magazine. Erik is currently the director of CPSR's involvement with TechWatch a project of Verified Voting. The Election Verification Project will produce a web based national system for reporting election incidents that compromise voter's rights.
Erik is president of Insilicos <insilicos.com>, a biotech startup concentrating on proteomics and metabolomics software. His professional background of 20 years includes programming, project management, engineering management, and executive management. Erik received a BS degree in Computer & Information Science from the UO in 1986.