A Secure and Decentralized Blockchain-Based Electronic Voting Framework with Smart Contract Enforcement

Abstract

Electronic voting systems require satisfaction of security, transparency, and voter privacy to ensure fair and trustworthy election processes. Traditional centralized voting architectures suffer from limitations such as single points of failure, limited auditability, and vulnerability to data manipulation. This paper proposes a secure and decentralized electronic voting framework based on block chain technology to address these challenges. The proposed system integrates cryptographic authentication, role-based access control, smart contract automation, and distributed ledger storage to ensure tamper-resistant vote recording and transparent election management. The architecture employs a hybrid design combining secure database management for authentication with block chain-based transaction storage for immutable vote recording. Smart contracts enforce election rules, including voter eligibility verification, single-vote constraints, and automated vote tallying. Off-chain storage mechanisms are incorporated to improve scalability while maintaining data integrity by cryptographic hashing. Comprehensive testing, including unit, functional, integration, performance, and security evaluations, demonstrates reliable system operation and successful prevention of unauthorized access and duplicate voting attempts. Experimental results confirm that proposed framework provides secure vote handling, transparency, and auditability while preserving voter anonymity. The proposed approach offers a practical and scalable solution for next-generation decentralized electronic voting systems.