Democracy is regarded as the best way to provide a voice to the people and is the preferred way to change governments by peaceful means. The foundation of any democracy is the right to vote which is fundamental. A nation cannot be termed as truly democratic until its citizens have the right to choose their representatives through free and fair elections.
This article is an attempt to look into the ongoing debate around Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and election technology in Pakistan, given its socio-political context and also to analyse international best practices to delve upon the critical questions needed for introduction of EVMs in Pakistan’s electioneering process.
Pakistan’s history of the elections process reveals that there are multiple challenges which need to be addressed if the existing paper ballot voting system is to be shifted to electronic voting including EVMs.
One of the main obstacles in deciding whether electronic voting may be adopted or not is the lack of consensus amongst the stakeholders due to varied reasons. Politicians are divided with divergent views regarding use of EVM because of possible manipulation of the technology by the powerful quarters in favour of one political party or the candidate.
Secondly, the technical breakdown or disruption of the system or a part of the system across the business flow, from start to results compilation is also considered as an election result manipulating tool. During the 2018 elections, the results were delayed from 85,000 polling stations to the ECP headquarters due to the ‘malfunction’ of the Results Transmission System (RTS). Consequently, an endless discussion on elections being free and fair or otherwise was triggered among the political gurus, ECP and NADRA.
Controversy around the consensus among stakeholders leads the path to heated debates on media which one way or another informed or misinformed the public. Screen and print media have remained polarised while discussing the issue of electronic voting. Key questions such as election security, foreign powers’ access into Pakistani elections and navigating international laws in the United Arab Emirates, UK, USA and Canada for facilitating electronic voting for elections in Pakistan were not thought through. The sheer number of the overseas Pakistanis, with 8.6 million NICOP holders was highlighted as a game changer and drove the debate previously on EVM.
The current legal apparatus doesn’t offer sufficient support to ECP and the government machinery to undertake this digital voting transition. After the amendments of the year 2022, Section 103 of the Election Act 2017 restricts EVM to byelections and thus rules out the usage in the general elections. Therefore, implementation of EVMs in the electoral process is presently available only for by-elections and in pilots. Revision of the corresponding election laws, bye-laws, rules, policies and procedures governing the electioneering process including legal framework of appellate election bodies remains a challenge (Goldsmith & Ruthrauff, 2008). The legal structure should allow for thorough auditing of both election results and the processes leading to those results. It should clearly outline the steps to be taken if discrepancies in results are detected during audits or if irregularities in the process come to light. The election authority bears the responsibility of ensuring that the technology used has undergone proper certification. The legislation should specify the institutions authorised to provide certifications, establish the duration of the certification period, and outline the requirements for obtaining certification.
The cost of conducting elections through EVM is higher than the conventional mode of paper ballot elections. The overall EVM’s ecosystem is not only the procurement of machines and acquiring indigenous or readymade technology from abroad but it also requires a mandatory establishment of infrastructure in the country for storage and continuous upgradation.
Pakistan’s adult literacy rate has been oscillating between 56 percent to 59 percent for the last five years, and this does not contribute positively towards the e-readiness of the public. For the year 2023, the literacy rate of the country has been recorded at 58.9 percent, which reflects that the remaining 41.1% who have a right to vote, would struggle in understanding the change from paper ballot to EVM. The sheer magnitude in turn, makes it difficult for the resource constrained government authorities to educate them on the subject. Irrespective of the level of literacy, the e-readiness in Pakistan may also be gauged by the reluctance in the usage of the Digital Vote Recorder by the Senators, in the Senate Hall of Pakistan. The Digital Vote Recorder is adequately supported by the Senate Rules, 2012 and Senators have the basic exposure and formal education but they have not used it since a decade, as they are either not tech savvy or uncomfortable with the use of gadgets.
The voter of Pakistan who has allegiances on the basis of baradari, cast and sect, or goes through voter intimidation and influence of the political elite has seldom tried to understand comprehensively the benefits or disadvantages of the prevalent paper voting method. The voter is driven mostly by his/her own set of realities, whether it is clan based or poverty. Asking them to think consciously about the mode of casting vote and instilling acceptability for EVM is still a challenge as they have voted for elections, year after year with limited understanding and personal pre-poll considerations.
Stakeholders such as ECP, political parties, public, non-profit organisations, national and international observers, judiciary and media are mainly apprehensive about the safety, security and transparency related to the use of EVM. The reluctance of ECP may also be attributed to the persistent capacity issues of this independent, autonomous, permanent and constitutionally established federal body.
EVM has been discussed as irrelevant to Pakistan’s context. Moreover, it is thought to strengthen centralised rigging in our situation. There is a trust deficit for EVM because of uncertainties attached to the associated huge costs of the machine, customised storage, periodic maintenance and security requirements. Further, many EVMs lack audit capabilities while paper ballots provide a transparent means of verifying election results many EVMs lack in this area. Some EVMs incorporate a Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) for auditing electronic results, but these systems are generally more expensive and the used paper and printing does not last long.
While technical and security apprehensions have also been a major hurdle for deploying EVM, winning the public’s confidence for a change from paper ballot to electronic voting is also a persistent challenge. However, the Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) , comprising approximately 25,000 members, has been able to introduce biometric voting in the annual elections since 2015. Initially, only thirty five percent members opted for electronic voting but with pilots running with the option of paper and electronic voting, this percentage grew to hundred percent in a span of four years.
The LHCBA is getting the machine audit once a year and the option of a paper ballot also remains available for older members who face biometric issues. Interestingly, members of LHCBA who have sixteen years of formal education are also found hesitant towards biometric voting, as every year volunteers are invited from the IT department of the University of Punjab to assist the members with technology during the bar elections. Further, as members from nearly twenty districts travel for the elections of LHCBA to Lahore, therefore to curtail the travelling inconvenience, it is currently being planned to cover one or two districts through internet voting. It is important to mention that the electronic voting system has not been without technical glitches for Lahore Bar Association as well, for the elections of 2017-2018 were postponed and rescheduled due to defects in the IT system.
Election processes in Pakistan mostly end up being controversial, resulting in political deadlock, protests, sit-ins and sometimes violence. Persistent allegations of poor execution, lack of transparency and rigging resulted in the experimentation of electronic voting solutions, including EVM in Pakistan. The EVM technology may not be the ultimate solution for holding free and fair elections but this can help ECP in tackling the polling day issues and post polling activities. Technology has its challenges which would require persistent attention, being the only way forward.
