Online voting could undermine trust in post-war elections, says Violetta Dvornikova
11 March 11:00
The idea of online voting for Ukrainians living abroad will not be implemented in the post-war elections due to risks to the legitimacy of the results.
This was written in her blog by the head of the European Association of Women of Ukraine, public figure Violetta Dvornikova, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
According to her, she had previously publicly warned about the possible threats of remote voting to trust in the electoral process.
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“When I first publicly stated that online voting for Ukrainians abroad could call into question the legitimacy of the post-war elections, the reactions were mixed. Some supported me, some did not agree (in this case, without clear arguments, as a rule),” she writes.
Dvornikova noted that after the statement by the head of the Central Election Commission, Oleg Didenko, it became clear that the position of Ukrainians who were forced to leave the country because of the war had been heard.
“But after the statement by the head of the Central Election Commission, Oleg Didenko, who emphasized that ‘internet and postal voting are too dangerous, especially in the context of post-war elections,’ I can cautiously say that we have been heard,” she says.
The public figure stressed that the problem is not in rejecting technology, but in the need to ensure unquestionable trust in the election results after the war.
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“I want to make it clear once again: this position is not about fear of digitalization. We live in a digital age, and Ukraine has proven that it can be technologically progressive. But elections are not a service or an app. They are the foundation of trust in the state,” Dvornikova emphasizes.
According to her, online voting in conditions of war and constant cyber threats can create risks of external interference, manipulation, and loss of secrecy of the vote.
“Rejecting online voting is not conservatism. It is a state position,” the public figure is convinced.
At the same time, Dvornikova stressed that millions of Ukrainians abroad want to participate in the elections, so the state must provide them with secure voting mechanisms, in particular by expanding the network of polling stations outside Ukraine.
