Why in 2025 do we still vote with paper and pencil instead of online? Let’s think: i referendum of 8-9 June in Italy they recorded avery low turnout: only the 30% Of those entitled, he went to the polls, with a transversal abstention that maintained the outcome very far from the quorum. Yet on social media the participation of the population seemed total: everyone talked about it, everyone had something to say, there were post everywhere, stories, memes, videos, indignation. It seemed that the whole of Italy was in turmoil. And then he wonders: «But if we are more active online than in the seats, because you don’t vote directly on the web? »
Maybe it would also be more comfortable, maybe more people would participate. The question basically is legitimate, but the answer is certainly more complex and mainly involves Our security. On the other hand, someone has already tried and the results are as interesting as it is unexpected.
Online voting attempts in other countries
THE’Estonia To date it is the only country in the world where the online vote has become routine, already from the far 2005. In 2023 more than half of the voters voted via the internet, also comfortably from home, with an integrated system in the digital identity card. Comfortable, quick, efficient. Think: it is a system that even allows you to turn up several times; The last vote expressed is valid.
All apparently beautiful, but the BUT There is and is great.
In fact, despite this, the 40% of Estonian citizens do not trust the system. Why? Because it is not said that it is infallible. A group of international experts analyzed the platform and discovered that, with the right tools, a hacker attack is not impossible. So far it has not happened, for heaven’s sake. But already the mere fact that it could happen questions everything, because democracy is not only voting but it is also trusting the vote.
Also the Swiss He tried, especially with those who live abroad. In certain cantons, almost one expatriate out of two voted online. Works? Yes. But, surprise, he has not increased the turnout. Those who did not vote before, continued not to vote. In addition, some systems have been suspended after safety problems emerged in public tests. Today we go on, but calmly only in very controlled contexts. In short, no mass online vote.
There France He had given the green light to the online vote for citizens abroad; Then came 2017, a hot year for international cybersiculia and the government made back. The reason? Too high risk of IT interference. The country of the Alps therefore preferred to interrupt the practice.
In United States The vote via the web only in very specific cases, mainly for soldiers abroad and disabled people. In West Virginia, for example, they used a platform called Voatz. Result? Withdrawn after a short time, after the experts found serious problems of security and traceability. Even in the USA, despite being among the most digitized countries in the world, we do not trust the online vote for the federal elections. Basically, public opinion does not perceive quite guarantees.
Why is electronic vote so difficult to implement?
The answer, after all, is simple: because it is not enough for it to be comfortable. It must also be safe, fair and universal and today, these conditions are not yet there. The first big problem is the computer security. An online voting system must be attack proof: hacker, external interference, manipulations and even if the central server was armored, who ensures that the elector’s computer is not infected with malware? A virus could alter the vote, without anyone noticing.
Then there is perhaps the most delicate theme of all: anonymity and verifiability. Let me explain. In the paper vote it is clear: the vote is secret, but it is verifiable. If needed, the cards are confirmed. In digital instead … or guarantee absolute anonymity – and then you can no longer demonstrate if the vote has been recorded correctly – or you create a traceable system, but at that point you risk violating the secrecy of the vote. As they say in Naples: it is’ nava tarantell! (Personal translation: it’s a nice paradox).
And again: who guarantees that you are not influenced From a family member, an employer, or who has just promised you 50 euros to vote on a certain candidate? “It also happens in the vote on the polling stations” – you will say; Yes, but the moment of the vote remains behind the curtain, alone.
In short, in the vote perception counts how much reality. Even just the suspicion of an error, a bug, an intrusion, can be enough to delegitimize everything. And if we do not trust the system, we don’t even trust the result.
In Italy what separates us from the digital vote?
In Italy, today, The online vote is not allowed by law. To introduce it they would need:
- A constitutional reformto adapt the principles of secrecy and freedom of the vote to a digital context.
- A’National Technological Infrastructurereliable, transparent, evaluable by third parties.
- A safe and universal digital identification systemlike an active electronic identity card for everyone
- And above all, one digitally ready population. It is not enough to give a smartphone: you need digital education, awareness. In Italy, over 13 million people have low or null digital skills. Bringing the vote to the web today would inevitably exclude a part of the population, creating an elitist system, and therefore, by definition, non -democratic.
So yes, online vote is a real possibility, and perhaps one day we will get there. But today we are not ready yet. For now, that sign on the card is still the most solid form of democracy we have.
