US 2003/0158775 A1 · Secret-ballot systems with voter-verifiable integrity

Abstract

An election system provides, in one example, each voter with multiple physical “layers” that the voter is able to choose between. The voter takes part of the layers as a kind of receipt and the other layers are retained and/or destroyed the system. The actual vote is not readily revealed by the layers taken by the voter, thus protecting against improper influence. In the voting booth, when all the layers are combined, however, the voter is readily able to verify the vote. Moreover, posted images of the layers not taken by the voter can be used to compute the election results in a way that is verifiable by interested parties. The results cannot be changed without substantial probability of detection and privacy of votes can be maintained unless a number of parties are compromised or collude.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method for conducting an election including at least two voters and at least one election official entity, the improvement comprising the steps of:

allowing at least one of said voters to make a voting decision between at least one of plural votes;
providing each of said voters with a composite receipt that at least encodes in a substantially recognizable way said election decision between said at least one of said plural votes of the voter;
allowing each of said voters to select a portion of said composite receipt to keep, the portion of the composite receipt kept substantially obscuring at least said election decision of the voter;
processing by said at least one election official entity of information contained substantially in said receipt portions kept by said at least two voters to produce results of said election;
and
proving by said at least one election official entity substantially to at least one other entity that said information contained in said receipt portions kept by said voters was properly included in said results of said election.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Secret-ballot systems with voter-verifiable integrity

Life of this patent

Secret-ballot systems with voter-verifiable integrity

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20