This article explains what the electronic ballot is, how the voting process works, what its concrete advantages are for electoral authorities and citizens, and which real-world experiences demonstrate its capacity in highly complex processes.
What is the electronic ballot
The electronic ballot is a voting system in which the citizen continues to vote in person, at a polling station and inside a voting booth, but instead of marking a pre-printed paper ballot, uses an electronic terminal to select their choice.
The result of that selection is printed on a physical ballot that remains in the voter's hands for verification.
In the most advanced models, such as the Electronic Single Ballot (BUE), that same ballot also stores the vote information on an RFID chip, enabling faster and more accurate counting, fewer manual counting errors, and the possibility of recounts and cross-audits between the printed and digital records.
The electronic ballot does not replace paper voting. It enhances it with technology to gain traceability, speed and transparency.
How the electronic ballot works
Although there are variations across jurisdictions, the electronic ballot voting flow follows a consistent sequence.
Voter check-in
The polling station authority verifies the citizen's identity, as in any traditional election.
In jurisdictions that have digitized this stage with solutions such as Notebox, reading the identity document and verifying the voter in the electronic roll takes seconds.
Handing over the blank ballot
The voter receives a blank electronic ballot, ready to be used in the voting terminal. At this point, the ballot contains no information.
Selection at the terminal
The citizen enters the booth, inserts the ballot into the terminal and selects their preference on the touchscreen. They can choose a full ticket, split their ballot where allowed, or cast a blank vote. The interface lets them review their selection before confirming it.
Printing and recording the vote
Once the selection is confirmed, the terminal prints the chosen options on the ballot in legible form and, in models with an RFID chip such as the BUE, electronically records the same information on the digital medium embedded in the ballot.
Verification by the voter
The citizen removes the ballot, reviews it visually and, in systems that allow it, can hold it up to a reader to check that the electronic information matches what is printed.
If they detect an error or wish to change their vote, they can void the ballot and repeat the process with a new one.
Depositing in the ballot box
Once satisfied, the voter folds the ballot and places it in the ballot box, preserving ballot secrecy. From the citizen's perspective, the process is identical to a manual election.
Counting
When voting closes, ballots can be read electronically for a fast count. At the same time, it is always possible to recount ballot by ballot on paper, guaranteeing a physical audit independent of the electronic system.
Advantages of the electronic ballot
The electronic ballot offers concrete operational benefits for both electoral authorities and citizens.
Clarity for the voter
The screen guides the voter step by step, reducing casting errors such as invalid marks or selections that are not allowed.
Options are presented in an orderly way, with the ability to view full tickets or by category, which makes ballot splitting easier in systems that allow it.
Reduction of invalid votes
By validating the selection before printing, the system prevents incorrectly marked or incomplete ballots. This has a direct impact on reducing invalid votes and post-election litigation.
Elimination of ballot distribution problems
One of the most frequent challenges in elections with party ballots is the logistics of printing, distributing and restocking each political force's ballots.
The electronic ballot eliminates this problem by using a single blank ballot for all voters, reducing the risks of ballot theft or shortage, mass printing costs and conflicts linked to restocking in the voting room.
Faster and more accurate counting
Electronic reading delivers preliminary results faster than manual counting.
When the electronic ballot is integrated with transmission solutions such as Turing, tally sheet data is digitized at the polling place itself and transmitted securely, significantly speeding up the publication of preliminary results.
Traceability and audit
Each ballot keeps both a physical and an electronic record. This enables manual recounts station by station, cross-checks between paper and digital records, and audits by political parties, electoral bodies and independent observers.
The traceability of the entire process is documented without compromising ballot secrecy.
Adaptability
The slate of candidates can be updated on the terminals without reprinting millions of ballots.
The same scheme can be used for general elections, party primaries, referendums and other participatory processes, adapting to the regulatory requirements of each jurisdiction.
Accessibility
The touchscreen interface of the electronic ballot makes it possible to include an assisted voting module for voters with visual or motor disabilities, with complementary tactile controls and dedicated templates for blind voters, guaranteeing that any citizen can vote independently and in secret.
Security and trust in the electronic ballot
Incorporating technology into elections raises legitimate questions about security and vote integrity. The electronic ballot is designed to answer these questions through concrete mechanisms.
Voter identification takes place outside the terminal and the ballot contains no personal data, guaranteeing the separation between identity and vote.
The ballot does not link the voter to their choice: it only carries the preference cast, ensuring the non-traceability of the ballot.
The dual record on paper and in digital format allows the paper to act as the source of truth in case of dispute, while the electronic record speeds up counting and enables additional controls.
Both the system's software and hardware are auditable by political parties, experts and oversight bodies, according to the rules of each jurisdiction.
When the electronic ballot is implemented with robust certification, audit and training processes, it becomes an instrument that strengthens trust rather than weakening it.
Providers holding international certifications such as ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27701 offer verifiable assurance that their management processes meet recognized security and privacy standards.
Real cases of the electronic ballot
The electronic ballot has proven its capacity in real electoral processes of varying scale.
Paraguay 2023: first presidential election with an electronic ballot
In 2023, Paraguay became the first country in the world to elect its president using an electronic ballot system.
The BUE technology developed by COMITIA was implemented at national scale, continuing the electronic voting adoption process the country had begun in 2021.
The results were significant in terms of counting speed, error reduction and satisfaction among electoral authorities.
Tierra del Fuego 2025: BUE combined with remote voting
In November 2025, the Argentine province of Tierra del Fuego held its first internet election, combining BUE for in-person voting with Invote for remote voting.
This case demonstrated that different electronic voting modalities can coexist in the same electoral process, broadening participation without compromising security.
Common implementation pattern
In all these cases, the success of the process followed a consistent pattern: pilots and prior testing before scaling, training of polling station authorities and technical operators, clear communication to citizens on how to vote with an electronic ballot, and active participation of parties and oversight bodies in audits and drills.
The electronic ballot as an evolution of the electoral process
The electronic ballot does not aim to replace the democratic logic of in-person, secret voting.
It seeks to update it in the face of electoral processes with fragmented party systems, large numbers of categories and lists, citizen demands for faster results, and the need for traceability at every stage of the process.
The BUE, developed by COMITIA, embodies this vision: a system that combines the familiarity of paper with the advantages of digital, offering electoral authorities a modern, auditable tool designed to sustain public trust in every election.