An Algorithmic Failure Beneath the Secret Ballot

Authored by Max Springer The secret ballot is one of the load-bearing walls of democracy. In Georgia, as in most states, this allows you to know whether your neighbor voted, but never who they voted for. This simple guarantee allows for transparent elections while deterring voter intimidation. Yet, in multiple states including Georgia, that guarantee is actively at risk. To keep the published record anonymous, ballot scanners shuffle the electronic records randomly before releasing them. But a s...