Elections

Elections are a valuable asset to strengthen democracies. The right to vote in order to choose the leaders of a country is the cornerstone of any democracy. In order to organise reliable and transparent elections more countries are deciding to implement advanced biometric technologies into the election process. This will improve the present voter register and will assure the uniqueness of a voter.

HSB is a trustworthy partner with experience in biometric elections in English and French speaking African countries. HSB sees different steps in the electoral process where our solution can be an added value. It is possible to select specific steps of your choice:

1. Registration
2. De-duplication
3. Managing Voter Data
4. Verification on election day
5. Result transmission

Next to providing the system several services will be provided such as training and consultancy.

Registration

The registration part of the election process is the most vital part. Using HSB’s software, it is ensured that the highest possible quality is captured. The biometric information will be captured next to the biographic information and possible identity proofs. This information will be used to create or enrich an identity of the voter.

The registration software is running on Windows or Android and excels in registration quality, speed and user friendliness. The registration data is secure while being saved on three different local locations. The software is flexible and works with many hardware components of your choice. HSB makes use of safe and proved transfer protocol to ensure the data is received at the central location.

HSB offers next to the standard offline module the possibility for the online voter registration software. This software connects directly with the Voter Management Software (VMS) to perform updates and to do new registrations all day long.

De-duplication

Once the registration data is received at the central location, the de-duplication process starts. The de-duplication process matches the biometric data of the voters against each other. This process is time consuming and required processor power. If a match is found this record is saved and stored as a possible match. The possible matches can optionally be processed by the adjudication solution.

To speed up the de-duplication several decisions can be made.

• For example the amount of fingerprints which is matched per person can be decreased. Instead of using all ten fingerprints of the person only four fingerprints will be used for de-duplication purposes.
• If there is assured that during the registration the fingerprint positions are not swapped the fingerprint position can be used as a pre-filter. For example the right index finger of the identity can be matched against all other right indexes in the database.

The result of the de-duplication process is a clean voter database where everybody is only registered once.

Adjudication

Adjudication is the process by which an authorized operator manually determines or judges if a match found is really a duplicate and/or decides which record is used as the source in the administration. In the case of multiple possible matches, the operator will get all the results in one screen to do the judgement. This is a separate application, which should not be confused with the standard duplicate result from the system.

Managing Voter Data

In the VMS all the data of the voter will be gathered and stored. The VMS is an online web portal which can be installed in the local architecture of the Electoral Commission. The operator of the VMS can access the portal via a browser of preference. Based on the authorization profile of the user different tasks can be performed, such as;

• Add voter
• Update voter
• Remove voter
• Approve changes
• Approve external suggested alterations
• Freeze of the voter list
• Creation of the voter list per polling station

In the VMS the voter can be searched via the voter number and the exact name. The system provides a clear and understandable overview of all the data of this particular voter. Next to the biographic and biometric data the scanned documents can be reviewed. Using this system the operator has the information required to take the appropriate action.

Verification on election day

On Election Day the voters can be authenticated before the actual voting takes place. A biometric verification helps the operators to be able to authenticate the voter itself and if he or she already voted. After a successful authentication the voter will proceed to the actual voting.

There are several ways to verify the voter using biometrics;

• Biometrics stored on the verification device
• Biometrics stored on the voter card
• Biometrics incorporated in the voters list

Based on the result of the biometric authentication, or the backup procedure, the voter can continue.

The verification device in combination with the corresponding verification software is focused on stability, transparency, robustness and user friendliness. The software can be customized based on the wishes and requirements from the customer and originating from the specific local Election laws.

Result Transmission

Once the Election Day is ready it is important to get the results out as fast as possible. HSB came up with a solid and transparent solution to send the results from the different polling stations towards the central system. The central system is able to identify issues and is able to share the results in the in different graphics.

Collecting and transmitting the voting results

Once the ballet boxes are opened for counting a labour intensive job will start. It is crucial for a democratic country that counting the votes is correct and transparent. To digitalize the process, next to the hardcopy process, the speed and the transparency will be increased. Next to that the physical risk of transporting the votes is left out.

Step 1: Complete the vote results in the app

• Including validation rules (example that the total sum of votes needs to be correct)
• Optional completion done by two persons

Step 2: Collection of proof

• Document scanner to capture the manual result sheet(s)
• and optional other proof

Step 3: Transmitting the data

• Transmit preliminary vote results in first package
• Transmit vote results plus proof in second package

Next to completing the voting results proofs must be added. A photo and/or audio proof can be attached to the voting results. The device to capture the voting results and proofs can either be a dedicated device or the device of an operator by using the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) method. A simple smartphone/tablet is sufficient.

Receiving and presenting the voting results

With the solution the accurate results are obtained rapidly, presented transparently, and documented in a legally valid form.

The solution supports the electoral administrators charged with determining the results of the election by providing automated procedures with all the checks required under the relevant electoral legislation. By means of extensive real-time status monitoring, the returning officer or other electoral bodies are continuously being informed about progress in the counting of votes.

If special cases are encountered (such as a tie), these are automatically recognized by the system and the returning officer is called on to act in accordance with the relevant legal requirements, e.g. using a casting vote or other tie-breaking method.

Key functions for results and publication:

• Support for processing in the electoral bodies and polling stations
• Collation of the results
• Plausibility checks of all returns and results
• Hierarchical concepts of rights and roles
• Determining the elected candidate or the distribution of seats for parliamentary elections
• Production of statistics, reports and legally valid final documentation
• Live presentation of the results
• Publication of the results in various media and platforms

Read more about our completed and current projects