File this under 'things you thought you knew but didn't.' A report released this week on the potential for Internet voting has concluded allowing online ballots likely won't result in more people voting, or more young people voting, or cheaper elections.
What it could do, the expert panel concludes, is make it easier for hackers to find out who you voted for, harder for anyone to audit results afterwards and make it much more susceptible to largescale fraud.
Score one for old-fashioned pen and paper.
The report, conducted for B.C.'s chief elections officer, was prompted by concern over falling voter turnout.
Typically only 30 to 50 per cent of voters turn out to cast their ballots come election time.
Theoretically, online voting has the potential to change those numbers.
But interestingly, in jurisdictions where it's been tested, that's not what happened.
People who didn't vote before still didn't vote - including youth. Those who would have voted anyway just found it more convenient.
But in exchange for convenience, there are many risks - including making it fairly easy for hackers to alter election results.
If there's a take away from the report, it's that technology is not a panacea.
Voting isn't hard. But it requires engagement. That's what politicians must address if they wish for a bigger turnout at the ballot box.
But this isn't the end of the discussion. The public has until Dec. 4 to make its views known. You can find the report and an opportunity to comment - where else - online at internetvotingpanel.ca.
