he voting process in our country has been under constant revision since its inception more than 200 years ago. The process is evolving again, in a way that may reverse the trend that places the United States 137th in voter turnout worldwide.
The rapid spread and convenience of the Internet could revolutionize voter turnout in this country. It is the logical place to engage people politically. Several states are exploring the possibility that Internet voting could improve turnout - but Massachusetts is not among them.
Despite its reputation as the incubator of cutting-edge technology, the state will miss the chance to test an Internet voting system when polls open on Tuesday. Voters will cast their ballots in the presidential primary in the same manner they have for decades.
Meanwhile, other states are taking the lead. In Arizona, voters in the Democratic Party cast their ballots over the Internet - the first legally binding public election with an option to use the Internet. In California there is a referendum initiative on Internet voting. There have been mock Internet elections in Iowa and Virginia, and the Washington State Legislature has established a task force for Internet voting.
As a supplement to traditional voting methods, Internet voting could improve voter participation. A look at the historical context of our voting process and current technological developments demonstrate that Internet voting offers important possibilities.
In early American elections voters indicated their preference for a candidate by a show of hands or by depositing beans into a box. For much of the 19th century, political parties distributed ballots that were pre-marked for their candidates. Voters were thus only able to vote straight party-line tickets.
In 1888 Massachusetts was the first state to adopt the Australian Secret Ballot - an official ballot printed at public expense on which the names of all the candidates appeared. This ballot was distributed at polling locations and allowed citizens to vote in secret. Other states followed our lead and established the secret ballot several years later.
Since that time, the voting systems throughout the country have undergone numerous types of revisions. Paper ballots were replaced by voting machines to ensure accuracy and prevent errors or misconduct by local election officials. More recently, we have seen the introduction of postcard mail-in registration, vote-by-mail absentee ballots, and, in some states, the implementation of computerized touch-screen voting systems.
The time has come to evaluate how technological advances and innovations can be applied to improve our democracy. The fast pace at which the Internet is becoming available makes it a logical medium to engage people politically.
Already, we have seen huge increase in on-line contributions to political campaigns. The successes of Senator John McCain's bid for the Republican presidential nomination are due in part to his pioneering tactic of using the Internet to raise money and reach young and independent voters.
The federal government is beginning to recognize the need to close the ''digital divide'' that separates lower income people who do not have access to the Internet. President Clinton announced in his State of the Union a $100 million federal investment to provide Internet access to lower income Americans.
In Massachusetts, Mayor Thomas Menino is committed to providing computer and Internet access in all of Boston's schools. Internet access could only help increase voter turnout in the city where only 24.5 percent of the 243,184 registered voters went to the polls last fall.
However, even if most Americans have access to the Internet there are still legitimate security concerns of casting a secret vote from a personal computer. These concerns include voter authenticity, ballot secrecy, and the prevention of fraud through multiple voting.
These concerns will become increasingly easier to address as digital signatures and identification become commonplace. The technology for digital signatures currently exists and some states have already created laws to make digital signatures over the Internet legally binding.
Soon, digital identification will become necessary for consumers as companies rely on this type of signature for consumer transactions over the Internet. When this form of identification becomes a common aspect of every-day life, election officials will be able to verify the identity of a voter and safeguard against efforts to cast multiple votes.
But will Internet voting increase participation? Based on recent studies there is evidence to suggest that Internet voting could have a positive effect on turnout. Two major groups of low-propensity voters - the young (18-25 years old) and busy professionals who have difficulty finding time to participate are the most Internet-savvy segments of the population. When Internet voting is available, it is reasonable to conclude that voting among 18- to 25-year-olds would rise above the typical 15 percent who now typically cast ballots.
Internet voting would also serve as a convenience to groups of individuals for whom requesting absentee ballots from town halls might serve as a barrier to voting - namely expatriates and military personnel stationed oversees. And as corporate demands for last-minute travel continue to increase, the need for Internet voting will become more evident.
Incumbents rely on predictable voting patterns. There is tremendous security knowing exactly who is going to show up to the polls and how they will vote. Internet voting will open up the democratic process to voices that are not currently heard.
Unnerving? Sure it is. But can you imagine how the elected officials in Massachusetts felt when they allowed the first secret vote in 1888?
Patricia H. White is president and founder of the Massachusetts Voting Internet Project.
