Editorial: Time for more discussion of internet voting

Tuesday’s turnout for the primary election in Southwest Florida was notable in several ways.

It was historic in modern times for a Collier County primary. Turnout hit 32.4 percent, with more than 61,900 ballots cast. That compares with 21 percent turnout in the 2014 primary. In the 2006 primary, it was an even more anemic 17.5 percent.

Lee County’s turnout in Tuesday’s primary didn’t quite match Collier’s, with 28.8 percent of 408,457 registered voters in Lee casting ballots. Even so, that was an improvement over 23 percent turnout in Lee’s 2014 primary.

While it’s pleasing to see turnout increase, we’re compelled to note that two-thirds to three-quarters of the glass still wasn’t full in both counties. Two of three registered voters in Collier stayed away. Nearly three of four potential voters in Lee didn’t participate.

This wasn’t a meaningless election. There were important and competitive local, state and federal races on the ballot.

Trends have changed

We’re also compelled to point out a notable shift in the past decade.

Mail balloting used to be for people who would be away on election day or couldn’t get to the polls. Early voting then rose in popularity this decade to where mail balloting, early voting and election day turnout each equally accounted for about a third of the vote total.

This year in the primary in Lee, more than 81,500 of the votes came via mail, with some 9,800 during early voting and about 26,400 at the precincts on election day. That’s nearly 70 percent of Lee voters who made their decisions from the comfort of home.

In Collier, among about 61,900 total voters, some 34,000 of the ballots came via the mail, or about 55 percent.

The future?

The emerging trend seems to reflect voters not wanting, or able, to travel to a voting location. So we suggest it’s time to start a serious conversation about preparing for the future in voting – casting ballots electronically.

Truth is, electronic voting already is with us more than some may realize.

Computerized scanners quickly tally votes, to the degree that Collier and Lee results were posted on websites less than an hour after the 7 p.m. closing time at precincts.

Drivers used to haul ballot equipment to a centralized counting station, but now results are transmitted electronically from precincts. Soldiers serving in remote locations overseas already are sending ballots in electronically.

Bloomberg Business Week reported in December that governments in 42 countries use software from the same company in Spain to conduct electronic elections, noting electronic voting was considered more secure than the risk of ballot tampering while in physical transit to a counting station.

A recent posting by the National Conference of State Legislatures organization notes “many states are allowing certain voters to submit their absentee ballots electronically ...  (via fax, email or web portal) … most often reserved for voters who fall under the federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act.”

The organization’s report notes five states allow some voters to turn in their ballot via a web portal and 21 states have provisions for some voters to use email or fax in returning theirs.

Out in cyberspace?

Certainly, the internet remains a scary place to some in Southwest Florida. Yet for other generations of voters, conducting important business online is second nature.

Already today, we can fill out our income taxes, pay bills, do our banking and manage Social Security accounts online.

Do we think hackers would be after a single voter’s ID? Or do they want bank and credit card information? The security of election office servers is far more important to worry about in safeguarding votes than any individual’s personal computer.

We’re not advocating changing to internet voting immediately, just suggesting it’s time for a serious discussion of its future.

One of the first steps in our view is a national database to be sure nobody can vote in more than one state in the same election.

The voting game is changing. Internet voting may be the next game changer to improve turnout.