GW has been recognized for having one of the most politically charged campuses in the nation, so it is fitting that GW graduate students are working to improve America's voting system.
Stefan Popoveniuc and Ben Hosp worked with students from across the Unites States and Canada to develop Punchscan - a system that allows voters to verify their tally on a paper receipt to keep for their records to confirm that the electronic machine counted their vote.
The project began when Popoveniuc, a computer science graduate student in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, approached acclaimed computer scientist and inventor David Chaum and suggested that the two collaborate.
"It all started with (Chaum) giving a presentation at GW. By the end of the presentation I went up to him, and said 'I know your work, and I know what you're doing,' and it went from there," Popoveniuc said, adding that the team of students assembled and began developing Punchscan last February.
After the 2000 Presidential election fiasco in Florida with hanging chads and paper ballots, some states switched to electronic voting systems. While the hanging chad problem was solved, some voters questioned the validity of the machines because of the lack of a paper trial proving a vote. Punchscan solves this problem.
Upon casting a numbered ballot, voters receive a receipt proving their vote choice. Results are immediately displayed in an online system in which your vote can be verified and the voter can ensure his or her vote was counted.
Popoveniuc said the team started out as just himself and Hosp and eventually grew to include other students from Maryland, California and Canada.
Though the team of students who developed Punchscan worked together for more than eight months, the group met for the first time at a press conference for their new voting system in early November.
"Until that point, we had relied on conference calls once or twice a week," Popoveniuc said. "Everyone was there, and we discussed what we had done that week, the progress we had made and the direction we were taking."
Stefan Popoveniuc and Ben Hosp worked with students from across the Unites States and Canada to develop Punchscan - a system that allows voters to verify their tally on a paper receipt to keep for their records to confirm that the electronic machine counted their vote.
The project began when Popoveniuc, a computer science graduate student in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, approached acclaimed computer scientist and inventor David Chaum and suggested that the two collaborate.
"It all started with (Chaum) giving a presentation at GW. By the end of the presentation I went up to him, and said 'I know your work, and I know what you're doing,' and it went from there," Popoveniuc said, adding that the team of students assembled and began developing Punchscan last February.
After the 2000 Presidential election fiasco in Florida with hanging chads and paper ballots, some states switched to electronic voting systems. While the hanging chad problem was solved, some voters questioned the validity of the machines because of the lack of a paper trial proving a vote. Punchscan solves this problem.
Upon casting a numbered ballot, voters receive a receipt proving their vote choice. Results are immediately displayed in an online system in which your vote can be verified and the voter can ensure his or her vote was counted.
Popoveniuc said the team started out as just himself and Hosp and eventually grew to include other students from Maryland, California and Canada.
Though the team of students who developed Punchscan worked together for more than eight months, the group met for the first time at a press conference for their new voting system in early November.
"Until that point, we had relied on conference calls once or twice a week," Popoveniuc said. "Everyone was there, and we discussed what we had done that week, the progress we had made and the direction we were taking."
