Is technology used for identifying voters at polling stations (electronic poll books)?
Spain
Organic Law 5/1985 of June 19 of the General Electoral Regime (last amended in 2015)
Título I, Capítulo VI, Artículo 85: 1. El derecho a votar se acredita por la inscripción en los ejemplares certificados de las listas del censo o por certificación censal específica y, en ambos casos, por la identificación del elector, que se realiza mediantedocumento nacional de identidad, pasaporte o permiso de conducir, en que aparezca la fotografía del titular o, además, tratándose de extranjeros, con la tarjeta de residencia.
2. Los ejemplares certificados de las listas del censo a los que se refiere el párrafo anterior contendrán exclusivamente los ciudadanos mayores deedad en la fecha de la votación.
Regarding the limited use of electronic identity verification (Head of Electoral Co-operation Unit, Deputy Directorate General of Internal Policy and Electoral Processes, Ministry of the Interior):
The electronic National Identification Document can only be used for electronic identification, as elector in the corresponding electoral board, in those electoral boards where the Electronically Managed Electoral Board (EMEB) is implemented. http://infoelectoral.mir.es/web/guest/mesa-administrada-electronicamente
In the Electronically Managed Electoral Board the computer (used as a tool for EB members to undertake their tasks on polling day. Important: It is not an electronic voting system). This includes the Electoral Census of that Electoral Board (SD Card). Data is deleted once the counting of the votes has finished.
The Electronically Managed Electoral Board (EMEB) is a set of information technology provided to make it easier for polling station staff to carry out their duties on Election Day.
Each Electoral Board comprises of a president and two members, as well as of two substitutes for each of these positions. The main task of the EBs is to administer voting and counting on Election Day. EB members do not receive special training, although they are provided with a training manual. Furthermore, the Ministry of the Interior, for every nationwide election or referendum, launches a special website, which among other things offered a presentation of the EBs’ functions.
The EMEB is a system, designed by the Ministry of the Interior, supervised by the Central Electoral Commission and the Congress of Deputies (Constitutional Committee), which makes the most of the ICTs to improve electoral management and it is adapted to the Electoral Law provisions: no legal reform was needed. It consists of a laptop, with a National ID Card reader and a 3 G modem, a printer, and an optical barcode reader(to read the barcode of the Electoral Census certificates of the postal votes counted at the Electoral Boards).
At 08:30 AM on Election Day the “president” of an Electoral Board provided with the EMEB, inserts in the lap top the USB memory stick that contains (encrypted) that polling station electors’ list, provided by the Electoral Census Office.
The EB opening form is filled out electronically and then printed and signed. Data is directly captured from the electronic electors’ list. An electronic copy of the EB opening form it is electronically send to the Centro de Recogida de Informaci?n (Data Collecting Center)
When electors cast their vote, if the elector identifies him/herself with other ID document than the electronic National ID the Electoral Board members will search his/her data (i.e. search by name, surname or NID number). If the elector has an electronic National ID, s/he inserts it into the card reader device and introduces the security pin. Once the vote has been cast, the software automatically includes the voter’s name and National ID number in the numbered voters’ list. This list is also printed.
Each envelope that contains the postal vote includes: the electoral envelope with the ballot paper the elector chose, a copy of the ID (only in Out of country voting) and a certificate issued by the Electoral Census Office. This certificate had a barcode to identify the elector. The optical barcode reader allows for the reading of those data and the identification of the voter in the electors’ list.
After poll closing the counting of the votes begins. The vote counting sheet / form that contains preliminary results is automatically filled out; the incident report form is filled out and data is electronically sent. The USB memory stick and the laptop hard disk are erased.
MESA ADMINISTRADA ELECTR?NICAMENTE (ELECTRONICALLY MANAGED ELECTORAL BOARD/EMEB).
1. MAE flash presentation: http://www.infoelectoral.interior.es/web/guest/mesa-administrada-electronicamente
2. Ppt MAE EMEB may 2011: http://www.interior.gob.es/documents/10180/1209011/MAE+Mesa+Administrada+Electr%C3%B3nicamente+-+Elecciones+Locales+22+mayo+2011.pdf/fd3c5527-b31a-4dcb-8db5-d2b470947ad5
3. Press information: Elecciones al Parlamento Europeo 2014: http://elecciones.interior.es/documents/11435/15795/DOSSIER+DE+PRENSA+-+EPE+2014.pdf/3d1b5d99-f1c5-4b86-9f1d-fca433de1532
4. e-book: Ministerio del Interior. Direcci?n General de Política Interior:' Modernizaci?n de la gesti?n electoral. La progresiva aplicaci?n de las nuevas tecnolog?as a las elecciones'
Most polling stations still rely on paper lists.
However, the Electronically Managed Electoral Board (MAE) (which allows the electors to be identified using the e- National ID) is a system only used in several Electoral Boards at every electoral process (binding pilot). The Ministry of the Interior plans to increase the use of the MAE system, but it is not used across the entire country yet.
The EMEB is a system, designed by the Ministry of the Interior, supervised by the Central Electoral Commission and the Congress of Deputies (Constitutional Committee), which makes the most of the ICTs to improve electoral management and it is adapted to the Electoral Law provisions: no legal reform was needed. It consists of a laptop, with a National ID Card reader and a 3 G modem, a printer, and an optical barcode reader (to read the barcode of the Electoral Census certificates of the postal votes counted at the Electoral Boards).
At 08:30 AM on Election Day the ?president? of an Electoral Board provided with the EMEB, inserts in the lap top the USB memory stick that contains (encrypted) that polling station electors? list, provided by the Electoral Census Office.
