The Central Election Commission stated that the most important element of the digital infrastructure for the upcoming Saeima elections — the electronic online voter register — has already been created and is in the final testing stage. A month ago, there were concerns that the system would not be ready in time.
Preparation for the elections to the 15th Saeima is proceeding as planned, and the key electronic system necessary for conducting the voting is already ready. This was announced by the chairman of the Central Election Commission, Maris Zviedris.
We are talking about the online voter register, which the CEC calls the most important technical element of the entire electoral infrastructure.
According to Zviedris, various scenarios were considered about a month ago in case the system could not be prepared by the established deadlines. However, the situation has now changed.
"The most important task has been completed," said the head of the CEC, noting that the testing of the register is planned to be completed in the coming days.
The commission emphasizes that other digital solutions for organizing the elections are being implemented according to schedule.
The module for submitting candidate lists is already operational. Although its launch occurred later than initially planned, the system is already being used by political parties for registration, and in the coming days, the official submission of candidate lists will begin.
According to Zviedris, the absence of complaints from the parties can be considered a good sign.
"This is the biggest compliment," he noted.
By the end of June, it is planned to complete the development of several other important components, including electronic logs of the election process and protocols for counting votes.
At the same time, the CEC acknowledges that some secondary functions may be refined after the main work is completed.
"Overall, the bicycle will be assembled, and individual parts will be refined later," the chairman of the commission metaphorically described the situation.
For voters, this means that preparation for the October elections is gradually reaching its final stage. After the systems are created, attention will be focused on training the people who will work with them.
From mid-July, the CEC will begin in-person seminars for municipal electoral commissions across the country. These will involve not only representatives of the commission but also software developers. Training is planned to be conducted in all municipalities of Latvia by the end of August.
The commission also reported that no additional "dress rehearsal" of the systems is planned, as testing is already in its final stage.
At the same time, the CEC reminds that from September 28, residents will be able to cast their votes in advance at any polling station. This option will be available until election day.
The current situation is particularly noteworthy as the government had to urgently change its approach to the development of electoral systems last spring.
At the end of April, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to transfer the creation of the electoral platform to state enterprises LMT, Tet, and LVM, terminating the contract with the previous developer, RIX Technologies. Authorities explained this by the need to ensure state security and guarantee the timely preparation of systems for the elections.
Now the CEC is confident that critically important digital solutions will be ready on time and will not hinder the conduct of the Saeima elections scheduled for early October.
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