High-tech powerhouse with paper slips: why does Israel still vote like before?

Israel, the startup nation, continues to vote using paper slips and envelopes, while in the digital world you can manage a bank account from your phone. The article examines why the system does not switch to computerized voting, presenting the advantages of the traditional method: protection against cyber attacks, the ability to physically recount, and maintaining voting secrecy. The Central Elections Committee emphasizes that the method is anchored in law, simple and accessible, and prevents cyber threats. However, the method has an environmental cost: over 7.3 million voters, plus a 30% buffer, lead to the printing of millions of slips, and after the elections over 40 tons of paper and cardboard will be recycled.

Israel, known as the startup nation, continues to hold its Knesset elections using the traditional method of paper slips and envelopes, and has not switched to computerized voting. The article examines the reasons for this, presenting the advantages of the old method: protection against cyber attacks, the ability to conduct a physical recount in case of dispute, and maintaining voting secrecy. The Central Elections Committee explains that the method is anchored in law, simple and accessible, and prevents cyber threats or election tampering through technological means. However, the method has a significant environmental cost: the law requires printing slips for over 7.3 million eligible voters, plus a 30% buffer, leading to the printing of millions of slips, envelopes, and election materials. After the election cycle, over 40 tons of paper and cardboard will be recycled. The article notes that while Brazil, India, and Estonia use digital means, about 84% of democratic countries still rely on paper slips, some having returned to paper from electronic voting due to cyber concerns.