WinterGreen Research and GBA seek to launch a blockchain voting app

WinterGreen Research and the Government Blockchain Association (GBA) seek to launch a blockchain voting app. A report unveiled this news on April 23, noting that these parties seek to roll out this application before for the upcoming US elections in November. Reportedly, this application would leverage the blockchain to make fraud detectable.

According to WinterGreen Research president, Susan Eustis, the current COVID-19 pandemic will help drive the adoption of the blockchain-based voting system.

In the report, Eustis said,

“We anticipate that the digital voting app will roll out quickly, just as the telemedicine market was eclipsed by virtual care delivery from Cisco WebEx and Zoom. Physicians went from doing 200 televisits per year to 36,000 per week within the past month. The same market driving forces impact voting as impact healthcare delivery.”

A training course for election officials

Per the publication, the implementation of a blockchain voting app would require state-to-state approval. While this seems like a long-shot, Eustis noted that she has already held discussions with state-level officials and is optimistic. As such, she predicts that the government will adopt this system before the presidential elections, which are scheduled for November 3.

Eustis added that WinterGreen Research has also prepared a training course for the election officials. This will ensure that the voting process runs smoothly.

Commenting on this, Eustis said,

“The WinterGreen Research team has prepared to start training election officials at the local level within a couple weeks. Virtual voting is the best of any recommended solutions for social distancing and mitigating the spread of COVID-19.”

The application will leverage a private blockchain network

According to Eustis, WinterGreen Research has not yet decided which blockchain network will power their application. However, she noted that they are currently exploring several private blockchains. She added that the organization would unveil the developer soon. 

The GBA will reportedly work on the blockchain standards for the app. On the other hand, WinterGreen Research will be responsible for training election officials should the government adopt the app. 

Do you think the COVID-19 pandemic will compel the US government into adopting a blockchain-based voting app? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.