Architecting a scalable e-election system using Blockchain technologies

Abstract

The ability to vote in state elections represents a basic right and expressing the vote is a civic obligation. However, the pandemics of COVID-19 showed us how such a simple process for a citizen may generate indirect barriers in expressing the electoral options. The risks of getting in contact with the virus made the classical voting method infeasible in times of crisis. Thus, a new opportunity arises, anticipated since 2016 by the Eurobarometer - the need to provide methods to vote over the Internet. Currently, in the European Union, only Estonia can provide citizens with such services. To overcome the current situation, we propose an architecture of a highly scalable e-election system implemented over the blockchain technology. The aim is to provide a general viable solution and to reduce the time to market, as a quick response to the current situation. The latter aspect is ensured by the Hyperledger Fabric, a permissioned, highly customizable, and integration-focused blockchain implementation. The paper provides a qualitative solution evaluation covering essential security aspects (e.g., resilience to Sybil Attack) and performance measurements (block sizing, state database performance). The contrast established with other platforms, is the simple but tamper-proof architectural view, focused on isolation and distribution of functions.