Mexicans residing in the country’s Federal District had the chance to choose, via e-voting, the future of the 2017 participative budget.
With a total of 200 spots throughout the city, and the addition of an online voting system which allowed people to vote from home, the electoral body opened the vote for a period of two days.
As a safety measure, pilot tests were carried out to guarantee the equipment’s performance. Moreover, those citizens who voted online were not included in the voter rolls used at the designated spots in the DF, in order to avoid duplicity in the voting.
This kind of experiences have been successfully tested in the Americas. In 2015 and 2016, the Chilean community of Maipú promoted the “Yo opino” program where citizens chose between several options to invest their public budget.
Using Smartmatic technology, Chileans could vote electronically both in situ and online.
These experiences in Mexico and Chile are a living example of how technology can make the dialogue between citizens and their representatives much swifter, and democracy more dynamic.
Source: Excelsior