Political activity and voters’ trust in the digitalization of the electoral process

Abstract

The role of the state in the formation of trust institutions is undeniable, but in practice we have to face a number of difficulties. The introduction of new mechanisms and tools for electronic voting leads to the transformation of familiar algorithms in the electoral system. These changes inevitably affect all participants in the electoral process. This study is the result of a long discussion among many scholars and practitioners about the impact of electronic voting on voters’ political engagement and trust in the voting process. The purpose of the study is to analyze the indicators of political activity (turnout) of voters as one of the criteria of the level of their confidence in modern technical means of counting votes — ballot processing complexes (BPCs). The object of the study is the electoral system of the Leningrad region in the context of electoral campaigns from 2014 to 2020, grouped by level: federal, regional and local elections. The main method is content analysis of scientific publications and mass media, normative analysis of legal acts, subsequent comparative and cross-system analysis of the information obtained. The experience of using BPCs presented in the article can be assessed both positively and negatively. The practice of using means of fixed electronic voting demonstrates a positive trend and opens a wide space for further digitalization of the electoral process, especially given the high “digital readiness” of the Russian population. A regularity was observed in the decrease of voter turnout at polling stations where BPCs were used for the first time. With further operation, the situation evens out due to the “habituation” of participants in the electoral process to the digital formats of elections. Because of the low overall level of trust in the institution of elections, any innovation in the electoral system leads to significant changes in routine processes and requires careful study and time for gradual implementation and adaptation.