Bawaslu Highlights Concerns Over E-Voting Proposal: System Already Abandoned in Germany
The Indonesian Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) has highlighted concerns regarding the discourse on implementing e-voting in Indonesia’s general elections. Bawaslu noted that the e-voting system has already been abandoned in Germany, where the Constitutional Court ruled in 2009 that e-voting was unconstitutional.
“In Germany, e-voting has been abandoned. Why did the German court stop using it?” said Bawaslu member Totok Hariyono in West Java on Thursday (3/9).
He stated that the essence of democracy is that every member of society must be able to monitor the election process. If e-voting is implemented, not all citizens will be able to exercise this oversight.
“The substance of democracy is that every citizen must be able to monitor the process. Even those who are not IT experts must be able to oversee it. Whether e-voting is necessary or mandatory given Indonesia’s current conditions is a significant and interesting discussion,” he added.
Another Bawaslu member, Lolly Suhendi, stated that the implementation of e-voting requires comprehensive studies, including considerations of Indonesia’s geographical conditions.
“E-voting must be prepared thoroughly. In this context, there must be a complete study. For instance, if it is implemented, the discussion should consider a gradual rollout rather than all at once, given Indonesia’s geography,” she said.
She also noted that the application of technology in elections should provide convenience for the public rather than creating difficulties.
Furthermore, Lolly mentioned that Bawaslu is currently preparing substantive proposals for the revision of the Election Law. “Bawaslu is currently preparing substantive proposals for the revision of the Election Law. Whether e-voting is one of them is still in process. Bawaslu is attempting to capture various existing issues to propose changes,” she said.
Previously, KPU RI member Betty Epsilon Idroos suggested that implementing an e-voting system could potentially address various challenges in election administration. In her presentation, Betty emphasised that e-voting studies should not only focus on digital technology utilisation but also on regulatory readiness, institutional capacity, human resources, infrastructure, cybersecurity, and public trust.
According to Betty, the evaluation of the 2024 Election revealed several ongoing challenges, including high logistical costs, potential human error in counting and recapitulation, lengthy recapitulation processes, limited access for overseas voters, and the need for improved accessibility for persons with disabilities.
To address these challenges, e-voting is seen as having the potential to provide a more efficient voting and counting process through digitalisation, automated voter validation, faster recapitulation, and a digital audit trail that can be verified.
“E-voting has the potential to reduce logistical costs, accelerate the counting and recapitulation of votes, expand access for overseas voters, and improve accessibility for persons with disabilities through more adaptive interfaces,” Betty stated recently.