Paper voting most secure way to vote, says NSW electoral commissioner

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Paper voting remains the most secure and accurate form of voting, says NSW electoral commissioner John Schmidt.

Writing in the interim report of his review into technology-assisted voting (TAV), Schmidt recommended that paper-based voting remain the primary voting channel for the foreseeable future.

“Global experience demonstrates that TAV has inherent risks that, if they were to materialise, could impact the integrity of an election process, including risks around technical non-performance, transparency, verifiability of votes and cybersecurity,” Schmidt wrote.

“The threat environment has worsened over the past decade, particularly for internet-based election systems. These risks require management via complex controls.

“It is essential that any TAV systems are secure by design and are operated under robust risk-management practices.”

Schmidt stated internet voting may be feasible at a small scale for the 2027 election for NSW state and local elections for blind people or people with low vision.

The review noted the advantages of TAV, chiefly for overcoming barriers like accessibility, language barriers, and remoteness.

“A significant budget investment” would be necessary to implement such a platform, Schmidt said, for the initial infrastructure, as well as ongoing maintenance costs.

A TAV platform would also have to adhere to Electoral Act requirements, which are fairness, integrity, compulsory, transparency, and secrecy and independence.

DFAT’s submission to the review argued for increased TAV for overseas voters, lessening the reliance on postal services.

For the approximately 60,000 overseas voters, the commissioner said allowing this group to use internet voting would need to factor in how its size increases the risks to election validity.

“Including this class would introduce specific integrity risks around determining eligibility, given it would not be practicable to require any proof that electors were overseas on election day (such as geolocation or passport records),” Schmidt said.

Schmidt added as NSW elections have a set date (the third Saturday in March every four years), the certainty allows voters to plan ahead.

With the AEC having announced there would be in-person voting overseas for the upcoming Voice referendum, the NSW electoral commission will consult with DFAT on whether this would be available for the 2027 election.

Written responses to the interim report are due by September 14, with the feedback to inform the final report.