Oracle underpins 'apathy-busting' e-voting trial

Oracle's 9i database is at the heart of two e-democracy trials taking place in St Albans and Crewe & Nantwich which will allow constituents to cast their votes online in the May local elections.

In St Albans, residents in two wards will be able to cast their votes in one of four ways, in what is claimed to be the most ambitious multi-channel e-voting project yet conducted in the UK.

They will be able to vote over the internet, via an internet-enabled kiosk situated at the polling station and local Sainsbury's supermarket, over the telephone, and by post.

In Crewe & Nantwich, votes can be cast either via the internet or in the traditional manner at a polling station.

The technology for both trials is based around the Oracle 9i database and application server architecture which has been tailored to provide secure and uninterrupted e-authentication, e-voting and e-counting facilities across internet and telephony channels.

BT is the hosting partner for both trials, providing broadband telephone connections and voice recognition software.

The lead councillors in St Albans District working towards e-democracy, Julian Daly and Dreda Gordon said in a statement: "The e-voting trial is a very exciting opportunity for St Albans district with particular appeal for our younger voters and large commuter population.

"We're confident that many St Albans residents will welcome the opportunity to vote in a manner that suits them, at a time that suits them. You only need consider the phenomenon of the recent Pop Idol and Big Brother polls to realise that the public is comfortable with alternative ways of voting, such as by telephone."

Alan Warburton, assistant chief executive at Crewe and Nantwich added: "There is a clear requirement for both central and local government to tackle the issue of declining election turnout levels, in particular amongst young people. There is a strong argument that the ability to vote remotely and electronically will go a long way towards reversing this trend."

St Albans District Council and Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council are among 30 local authorities taking part in the trials, which are being funded and supported by the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions. A number of voting methods are being tested across the country, from postal-only voting to more innovative, fully e-enabled pilots such as at St Albans.

Voting will take place on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 April 2002 and the results will be announced nationally on 2 May 2002.