Blockchain based technologies have various known use-cases and one of them has been under the radar of various governments and state controlled entities. Electronic online voting systems were not invented yesterday, but they usually share the same problems and vulnerabilities, which make them still too early to use. For this reason many countries still use paper and pen methods, even though using those doesn’t make them more immutable.

Not long ago, a story was shared about a 11 year old who managed to hack into a replica of Florida’s online voting system, which caused a lot of uproar and made people realize that we need better solutions. The Swiss city of Zug, also known as Crypto Valley, was one of the earliest adopters of blockchain based online voting systems, specially because the technology combats the main problems of the legacy ones. These systems are harder to tamper with, offer better accountability and can be easily validated by several parties. Users in Zug who also own an eID could already start voting on the city’s issues with the help of a smartphone app.

Now the Japanese city of Tsukuba is joining the race to deploy a blockchain based online voting system according to an article featured in Japantimes. The city located in the Ibaraki Prefecture is well known for its progressive approach towards new technologies and is also home to the Tsukuba Science City.

The system will allow the users to cast ballots with the help of a computer display after using their My Number card to identify themselves. The technology will help prevent fraud regarding the falsification of documents.

“I had thought it would involve more complicated procedures, but I found that it’s minimal and easy,” said a voter after using the new system.

Zug and Tsukubaka are not the only places that experiment with online voting currently, West Virginia has already made 2 successful trials with blockchain based mobile voting app Voatz. West Virginia’s Secretary of State Mac Warner insists Voatz is secure, dismissing the threats that affected the legacy online voting systems recently.