Alberta & Barcelona – September 22, 2014 – Scytl, the worldwide leader in online voting and election modernization technology helps the PCAA make voting for a new Party leader more accessible for everyone, including those who live in rural areas, those overseas and others unable to get to a polling station. For the first time in its history, PCAA members were able to vote from anywhere using a laptop, smart phone or other mobile device.
When the previous Leader of the PCAA resigned, the Party had to quickly prepare for the election of a new leader. Instead of using traditional paper ballot voting, the PCAA made a groundbreaking decision to enable a more efficient voting channel: online voting. After a rigorous selection process, Scytl Online Voting was selected as the technology to support the new voting channel based on its innovative technology and leading-edge security capabilities. With the successful implementation of solutions used in over 100,000 electoral events, Scytl was able to work with the PCAA to provide a secure online and telephone voting system.
“Key to the successful execution of the PCAA 2014 Leadership election was having a partner to help efficiently and securely deploy the new online voting channel. Scytl provided the technology that allowed the online voting system to work flawlessly and enabled us to enfranchise our accredited voters. The onsite Scytl team supported us every step of the way,” says Jim McCormick, President of the PCAA
Given security was a top priority for the PCAA, Scytl Online Voting was selected based not only on its security best practices, but its global track record of full end-to-end security never once being compromised (ie: the detection and neutralizing of cyber-attacks is key to the security framework, as was demonstrated real-time during the election.) Scytl´s comprehensive security framework ensures the privacy of the voter in parallel with the security, integrity and auditability of the voting process.
Since this election was the first one held by the PCAA using electronic voting technology, confidence in the security and performance of the Scytl system was critical. The Scytl system was audited by independent auditors designated by PCAA as well as other global auditors. Ballot secrecy is guaranteed through end-to-end vote encryption from the voter’s device through to the voting servers and mixing process. In addition, other security measures are employed throughout the ballot chain including the use of cryptographically chained logs to track all the actions carried out by the system administrator, ensuring the election is tamper free.
“I’ve been a huge proponent of online voting and knew it was the way to go for the 2014 PCAA leadership election. Any time you take a breakthrough leap like we did, you have to expect that people will be watching. The experience with online and telephone voting was very positive. Scytl was an outstanding partner providing excellent support from the first test through to the closing of the election. We may be 111 years old, but the use of online voting demonstrates and we are most definitely a 21st century political party,” says Troy Wason, Calgary Vice President of PCAA.
The actual vote casting experience was very positive not only for PCAA accredited members, but also for the teams responsible for the results tally, audit and publication. The vote mixing and results reporting took less than 90 minutes to complete on the night of the election vs. the time and resources required in previous elections. In the past, ballots had to be recounted and re-validated due to human error. Electronic tabulation, however, now eliminates human error and counts faster than an army of volunteers. In less than 90 minutes of the race’s closing, the final results were tabulated, audited and a new party leader was identified.
“The PCAA leadership and Scytl team had a great working relationship. Although I was cautious about online voting at the start, this experience has made me a true supporter,” says George Vanderburg, MLA Whitecourt-Ste. Anne.
“We are pleased to have been able to work with such a forward-thinking organization as the PCAA and to enable voter access and convenience via the use of innovative tools such as Scytl Online Voting. As early adopters of online voting technology, PCAA is a true leader and change agent for other organizations and government entities looking for new ways to enfranchise voters and make voting more accessible for everyone,” concludes Brian O’Connor, General Manager Scytl North America.
About Scytl
Scytl is the global leader in secure election management and electronic voting solutions. Specializing in election modernization technologies, Scytl offers the first end-to-end election management and voting platform, providing the highest security and transparency standards currently available. Scytl has capitalized on its more than 18 years of research to develop election-specific cryptographic security technology protected by more than 40 international patents and patent applications, positioning Scytl as the company with the largest patent portfolio of the industry. Scytl’s solutions have been successfully used in more than 35 countries throughout the world over the last 10 years, including Canada, the United States, Mexico, Ecuador, the EU, France, Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the UAE, India and Australia. Scytl is headquartered in Barcelona, Spain with strategic offices in Canada, the United States, Peru and Greece as well as field offices in the UK, Ukraine, Australia, Malaysia and Brazil. https://scytl.com
Scytl Media Contacts
Leticia Barcia
Senior Director Marketing Communications
leticia.barcia@scytl.com
+34 934 230 324