You Vote, I Vote, We all Vote... for Blockchain
G'day mates! We’re taking a trip down under for this next one. Did you know Australia is one of the leading countries (continents? I never really know what to call that massive piece of land) in the blockchain/crypto industry? During a study abroad trip this past year, I had the opportunity to meet with and speak to a few phenomenal companies in the industry… read up my political babes!
This week, I’d love to introduce to you a company named Horizon State. Horizon State is a blockchain-based voting platform. Essentially, Horizon State makes use of a digital ballot system that is based entirely within the blockchain. The company focuses on the question:
“If democracy was designed with today’s technology, what would it look like?”
As the founder, Jamie Skella, put it – “This record of participation is decentralized – not owned by any government, institution, or individual – it is owned by the people.”
Here is a little break down:
Users can cast their votes directly via the platform.
The votes are recorded onto Ethereum’s public blockchain (Ethereum blockchain post is coming in the future! – not key to understanding Horizon State right now, don’t worry).
For conducting verification checks on each user, there is a small processing fee paid to the developers.
Each vote is sent directly to a specific campaign ID
The best part? There is no identifiable data being involved in the transaction! That means that the system does not carry any details about its participant’s… therefore, it’s completely private, secure, and anonymous!
Why does this matter?
Since last week was the celebration of our country (who else loves the 4th of the July??!) I thought this might be a good time to talk about how lucky we are to be able to vote freely… and safely. In America, we can vote for whoever and whatever we want. In some places, that is not the case.
Can you imagine living in a country where you can truly be killed if you don’t vote a certain way? It is a serious problem that is difficult to fix when one person or one group has sooooo much power.
Yes, it is worse than Regina George dictating who could and couldn’t wear hoop earrings…
So how are these dictators ever going to get out of “power” if people could be killed for voting against them? Well, if it was impossible to tell who was voting for whom… that wouldn’t be a problem.
Once again, we have another prime example of how blockchain is our Prince Charming, our Knight in Shining Armor, and is saving the day.
Granted, this entire system seems quite complex, especially if you don’t know how to operate a blockchain platform. Luckily, Horizon State thought ahead and made sure there is no knowledge or understanding of blockchain required for users to vote. For that, we can thank their highly visual interface and the mobile app that has been created.
How can you control who actual votes?
Now, for those of you thinking ahead, yes, don’t worry – there are filter mechanisms to identify eligible voters. On a large scale for national politics, it is required of authorities to check user backgrounds against the official electoral roll. If the election platform is being used for something smaller, access could be granted to specific people or groups based on criteria that would make them eligible.
Plus, with everything being digital, it is a huge time and money saver, includes data and analytics that can’t lie, and leaves less room for human error. I’m telling you, Horizon State has thought of it all.
So where exactly is Horizon State’s decentralized voting platform being used?
Well, umm… how about the UNITED NATIONS??! Yeah, they’re not messing around. While the company was founded in Australia (and already being implemented in many ways down under), it’s expanding quickly and globally.
The partnership with the United Nations’ Be Earth Foundation is being used to help “the intergovernmental organization (IGO) achieve of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using Horizon State’s technology.”
In addition, they’ve formed a strategic partnership with the world’s largest independent socio-religion organization, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), as well as with international FinTech firms to help the people of Indonesia.
Basically, Horizon State is helping people and organizations all over the map that need it most. Word on the street is that there might be some USA partnerships underway…. Read more on Horizon State news through their medium here.
One more time for the people in the back… BLOCKCHAIN APPLIES TO YOU! Bet you thought if you want a career in politics or law that you wouldn’t really need to know about all this 4th industrial revolution, disruptive technology crap, huh? Point proven.
You’re welcome for helping you get ahead of the game.
** P.S. Horizon State does a lot more than just putting voting on the platform. If you’re interested in learning more about what they do and how their tokens work, let me know and I can write a follow up article!
