Located in the Northeastern edge of Europe, Estonia is small in dimensions. Yet, having a landmass of around 45 000 km2 and a population of under 1.5 million people never prevented it from embracing progress. After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, this Baltic country chose the path of digitalization and, today, it is internationally recognized for its top-tier e-governance system and wide availability of public e-services.
A pioneer service that has been available for Estonian citizens since 2005, and is yet to be implemented in most nations, is i-voting – the process of voting in an election through the internet.
The concept of “i-voting” is more than just electronic voting – it means being able to vote remotely, from any place in the world, as long as there is online connection. Electronic voting, by itself, can simply mean voting through electronic methods. Brazil, for instance, has been using an electronic voting system ever since 1996, which consists of standalone electronic machines that allow citizens to cast their votes. Estonia, however, decided to take one step further and let its people vote from their computers and phones.
At the moment, Estonia and the United Arab Emirates are the only countries where the i-voting system is available nationwide for every election. Russia and Australia allow i-voting for some provinces, while Canada does it for local elections and South Korea directs it at certain institutions. Additionally, several countries have i-voting as an exclusive option for citizens living abroad – it is the case of Armenia, Ecuador, France, Mexico, New Zealand, Oman, Pakistan and Panama.
Estonia’s pioneer example shows that, in fact, i-voting has a very positive impact for citizens living abroad. From 2007 to 2023, the number of Estonian citizens voting from abroad for the Riigikogu (Parliamentary) Elections increased from 2265 to 9090. In 2015, 2019 and 2023, most of the voters in foreign countries embraced i-voting (79.9 percent in 2023).
However, all Estonian citizens can vote remotely – not just those living in other places. Since its implementation in 2005, the i-voting model has become increasingly popular. Despite having a poor start (there were only 1.9 percent of i-voters among participating voters during the 2005 Local Elections), i-voting is becoming the preferred option for more and more people. Just for local elections, the 1.9 percent from 2005 grew to 15.8 percent in 2009, 21.2 percent in 2013, 31.7 percent in 2017 and 46.9 percent in 2021. So far, the elections with the greatest i-voting turnout were the 2023 Riigikogu Elections, in which more than half of the participating voters chose i-voting – 51.1 percent.
The reason for this? It is very simple – voting from home (or from anywhere of our liking) is just more convenient. The i-voting process takes an average time of less than two minutes, much less than the process of walking, driving, or taking public transport to a physical voting table and perhaps waiting on a line. Saving such time and energy can be particularly precious for parents of young children, people with mobility problems, or workers with tight schedules. I-voting is not just a fancy innovation – it is genuinely something that makes voters’ lives easier.
However, i-voting can offer even more benefits, mainly less spending and less reliability. Regarding spending, physical voting requires many logistical and equipment costs that i-voting does not. For instance, during the 2011 Estonian Legislative Elections, i-voting allowed time savings of around 11.000 working days, which would correspond to around 540.000 euros. In terms of reliability, electoral data ends up being more unequivocal, especially during counting.
Estonia has understood the wide possibilities i-voting could bring more than twenty years ago. The UAE was inspired to implement its example nationwide. A few other countries are already looking at it as an option for their citizens abroad. Nevertheless, most places are still stuck in archaic paper, physical ballots, which delay and complicate elections. It is time to embrace progress, make voting simple and, like Estonia, take two steps forward.
* Beatriz Santos is the Chief Communications Officer (CCO) at We Are Innovation. She is based in Lisbon, Portugal. Beatriz started publishing articles through her University newspaper and eventually moved to national and international reach outlets, including the well known Portuguese outlets NOVO and Observador. Her professional career includes international communications experience with the ATREVIA agency and the European Parliament. She also has two published books and is an essential part of the Students For Liberty organization in Portugal. With a focus on positive change and global cooperation, Beatriz actively seeks partnerships across the globe to promote innovative initiatives.
Source: We Are Innovation
