The lack of competition in the United States has resulted in insufficient innovation in the elections industry which has dampened voter confidence in election systems.
A more competitive industry would foster the development and implementation of auditable technologies that can restore confidence in elections. The recent announcement by Microsoft that it has developed voting software is a welcome addition to the industry that will help drive innovation.
Some of the specific elements as described in media reports of the new Microsoft offerings have been incorporated in Smartmatic technology for the past fifteen years and will be included, along with other advancements, in systems that we are introducing in the United States. Smartmatic is proud of its advanced elections technology which has enabled election officials on five continents to process 4 billion auditable votes without a security breach.
Since the first election in which Smartmatic provided voting solutions, Smartmatic has deployed technology that allows voters to validate their votes via a printed copy of their electronic votes. This technology enables voters to track their votes from the moment they are cast throughout the entire voting process, and until it is reflected in the final tally.
Knowing how critical trust is to election integrity, Smartmatic systems generate multiple copies of every data point, both in electronic and paper-based forms, creating a very rich audit trail. In addition, Smartmatic encourages its clients to verify the integrity of system components, from source codes, to consolidation centers and even in post-electoral audits.
Smartmatic, which has already been engaged by the largest voting jurisdiction in the United States, Los Angeles County, to develop its Voting Solutions for All People (VSAP) system, looks forward to continuing to introduce its advanced technology to the United States for the 2020 elections.