# Blockchain-Based E-Voting Mechanisms: A Survey and a Proposal +
## 1 Introduction  
Electronic voting (e-voting) systems represent a significant technological advancement in modernizing the electoral process. E-voting systems are characterized by their use of electronic mechanisms not only for casting, but also for accurately counting votes. The diversity in these systems shows in their varying architectures, counting styles, and security protocols. However, despite their advancements, these systems face a myriad of challenges, including security vulnerabilities, scalability issues, and a lack of transparency and reliability in the vote tallying process. These challenges highlight the need for innovative solutions to enhance the integrity, efficiency, and trustworthiness of e-voting systems. This paper explores the integration of innovative technologies and methodologies within e-voting frameworks to address these issues. We focus on the role of blockchain technology, which presents a promising avenue of study for reinforcing the security and transparency of e-voting systems. Blockchain is composed of an immutable decentralized ledger which allows e-voting systems more security and transparency through the ledger's auditability. We study the diverse ways in which blockchain can alleviate the existing flaws in e-voting architectures and create a more secure, transparent, and efficient voting process. We extend the study to incorporate advanced counting methodologies, innovative architectural designs, and robust cryptographic security measures, all aimed at enhancing the electoral process. Additionally, we scrutinize the architectural designs of several blockchain-based e-voting systems to analyze their operational efficacy in resource-constrained environments. We determine that the systems which employ lightweight protocols requiring less computational power and storage are optimized for energy and network efficiency, and those that implement data aggregation techniques to reduce the amount of data needed can conserve bandwidth and storage on IoT devices. Counting styles in e-voting systems are another area of focus. Traditional counting methods face challenges in accuracy and speed, which are critical in electoral contexts. This paper delves into advanced counting methodologies like the Borda count and Condorcet method, utilizing their potential to provide a more accurate and representative election outcomes. The integration of these methodologies into e-voting systems can significantly streamline the vote tallying process and enhance the reliability of election results. In Section 5, we further explain how these different counting methodologies can be used in different situations and how this can bolster the voting process. Our contribution in this paper is two-fold: First, we surveyed blockchain-based e-voting mechanisms that have not yet been compared in other survey papers and scrutinized each design to see if the design was able to be used in resource constrained environments. Second, we propose a novel approach to integrating blockchain technology with advanced voting methodologies. Our unique methodology includes the simultaneous use of the Borda count and Condorcet method in parallel branchchains. Our novel voting methodology ensures cross-verification of results to enhance accuracy and robustness. Our innovative design approach not only addresses the traditional challenges faced by e-voting systems but also introduces a new dimension of reliability and efficiency in vote tallying. The remainder of this paper is organized as follows. In Section 2, we give an overview of existing survey papers on blockchain-based e-voting systems. Next, in Section 3, we perform a comparative analysis of various blockchain based e-voting designs. In Section 4, we describe the background technologies used in our proposed design. In Section 5, we present our novel design of a new e-voting system based on an amendable and correctable blockchain which utilizes Borda count and Condorcet method in parallel chains for vote tallying.