Early Requirements for Mechanical Voting Systems

Abstract

The problem of setting the requirements for voting systems is as old as democracy. With the advent of voting machinery in the 19th century, the problem became more difficult. In most cases, it was the technologists who set out to formally articulate requirements. In many cases, these are clearly stated, as such, in patent applications of the era. Sadly, some of these requirements have been repeatedly forgotten in subsequent years. By the early 20th century, several authors produced concise summaries of these requirements, but their efforts reflect strong vendor bias.