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VeritasVote
Open. Auditable. Verifiable.
VeritasVote is an open-source, end-to-end election platform for secure in-person voting. It provides a modular architecture for both hardware and software, enabling election jurisdictions, researchers, and manufacturers to build transparent, auditable, and verifiable voting systems using standardized components. Every vote is backed by a voter-verifiable paper ballot, cryptographic integrity protections, and reproducible open-source software.
Unlike proprietary voting systems, VeritasVote is designed around public trust through transparency. Every hardware design, software component, security protocol, and manufacturing specification is openly available for inspection, verification, and improvement by the community.
Objectives
- Open hardware and software
- Air-gapped operation
- Voter-verifiable paper ballots
- Cryptographically verifiable elections
- Transparent audit processes
- Reproducible software builds
- Modular architecture
- Long-term maintainability
- Accessibility for every voter
- Vendor-neutral deployment
System Architecture
VeritasVote separates the platform into independently maintainable modules.
Election Management
│
Ballot Definition
│
Polling Station
│
Voting Terminal
│
Paper Ballot
│
Encrypted Cast Vote Record
│
Tabulation
│
Auditing
│
Election Certification
Hardware Architecture
Hardware is divided into interchangeable modules.
Core Hardware Modules
Compute Module
Responsible for:
- Secure boot
- Election application execution
- Hardware monitoring
- Local storage management
- Cryptographic operations
Touchscreen Module
Provides:
- Ballot presentation
- Accessibility controls
- Multiple language support
- Touch input
- Visual verification
Ballot Printer Module
Responsible for:
- Human-readable ballots
- QR code generation
- Spoiled ballot printing
- Ballot serial generation
- Paper verification
Ballot Box Interface
Provides:
- Ballot insertion detection
- Ballot acceptance confirmation
- Secure ballot storage
- Ballot accounting
Secure Storage Module
Stores:
- Election configuration
- Cryptographic keys
- Encrypted cast vote records
- Audit logs
- Event logs
Power Management Module
Provides:
- Battery backup
- Graceful shutdown
- Power monitoring
- Low-power alerts
Tamper Detection Module
Responsible for:
- Enclosure monitoring
- Seal validation
- Intrusion detection
- Hardware event logging
Accessibility Hardware Module
Supports:
- Audio ballots
- Headphones
- Sip-and-puff devices
- Accessible buttons
- Alternative navigation devices
Optional Hardware Plugin Modules
Smart Card Reader
- Poll worker authentication
- Election official credentials
Biometric Poll Worker Authentication
- Fingerprint authentication
- Multi-factor authorization
Receipt Scanner
- Ballot verification
- Poll worker validation
UPS Expansion Module
- Extended battery runtime
- Automatic power monitoring
Environmental Monitoring
- Temperature sensors
- Humidity sensors
- Hardware health monitoring
Diagnostic Display
- Service information
- Maintenance mode
- Hardware diagnostics
Software Architecture
Each software component is independently versioned.
Core Software Modules
Election Management Engine
Responsible for:
- Election configuration
- Poll management
- Precinct configuration
- Election lifecycle
Ballot Definition Engine
Provides:
- Ballot templates
- Candidate configuration
- Referendum management
- Language support
Voting Application
Responsible for:
- Ballot rendering
- Voter interaction
- Vote validation
- Ballot review
- Ballot confirmation
Accessibility Engine
Supports:
- Screen reader
- Adjustable text
- High contrast
- Audio guidance
- Keyboard navigation
- Multiple languages
Cryptography Engine
Provides:
- Vote encryption
- Digital signatures
- Hash verification
- Threshold cryptography
- Key management
Secure Boot Manager
Responsible for:
- Image verification
- Firmware validation
- Integrity measurements
- Boot verification
Audit Engine
Generates:
- Audit logs
- Chain-of-custody records
- Event history
- Verification reports
Cast Vote Record Manager
Responsible for:
- Encrypted vote storage
- Ballot indexing
- Record integrity
- Export packages
Tabulation Engine
Provides:
- Vote counting
- Result aggregation
- Public reporting
- Export formats
Risk-Limiting Audit Engine
Supports:
- Random sampling
- Statistical verification
- Manual recount support
- Audit reporting
Device Management
Responsible for:
- Hardware discovery
- Health monitoring
- Diagnostics
- Configuration management
Logging Framework
Records:
- Security events
- System events
- Administrative actions
- Election events
Optional Software Plugin Modules
Electronic Poll Book Integration
- Voter lookup
- Check-in workflows
- Poll synchronization
Election Results Portal
- Public result publishing
- Live reporting
- Downloadable reports
Observer Dashboard
Provides:
- Election monitoring
- Audit status
- Device health
- Chain-of-custody tracking
Geographic Reporting
- Precinct maps
- District reporting
- Geographic analytics
Translation Packs
- Community language packs
- Regional terminology
- Accessibility localization
Advanced Accessibility Plugins
- Eye tracking
- Switch devices
- Voice navigation
Hardware Manufacturer Drivers
Supports:
- Alternative printers
- Display controllers
- Secure storage devices
- Scanner hardware
Cryptographic Provider Plugins
Supports:
- Multiple audited cryptographic implementations
- National cryptographic standards
- Future cryptographic algorithms
Reporting Plugins
Generate:
- PDF reports
- CSV exports
- Election summaries
- Audit packages
Research Sandbox
Provides:
- Experimental algorithms
- Prototype interfaces
- Academic research support
Security Features
- Air-gapped architecture
- Secure boot
- Immutable operating system
- Read-only root filesystem
- Memory-safe application code
- Cryptographically signed software
- Threshold cryptography
- Tamper-evident hardware
- Hardware intrusion detection
- Dual-record voting
- Voter-verifiable paper ballots
- Public cryptographic verification
- Reproducible builds
- Risk-limiting audits
- Comprehensive event logging
Technology Stack
Hardware
- ARM-based secure compute platform
- Capacitive touchscreen
- Thermal ballot printer
- Tamper detection sensors
- Secure storage
- Battery backup
- Accessibility peripherals
Specification Branding License (SBL)
Standard
- Fully AGPL-3.0+ compliant system
- Copyleft enforced for network deployments
- Required attribution:
- Roxanne Ardary
- https://www.roxanneardary.com/
Optional
- Specification Branding License (SBL)
- Attribution-free commercial deployment
- Pricing based on scale, usage, and deployment scope
- https://roxanneardary.com/veritasvote/
License & Notice Requirements
VeritasVote is released under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 or later (AGPL-3.0+).
By contributing to this project, you agree that your contributions will also be released under this license.
Please note the following:
- All contributions must comply with the AGPL-3.0+ terms.
- Under Section 7 of the license, all redistributions, forks, and derivative works must preserve attribution to: Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com.
- VeritasVote specificiations are free to use with attribution. A Specification Branding License can be negotiated upon request.
- The project’s notice.md file tracks attribution requirements and contributor acknowledgments.
- Any update that adds new contributors or modifies attribution should also update
notice.md. - When submitting a pull request, ensure that any new files maintain the attribution headers where applicable.
- Network-deployed versions of this software must also remain fully AGPL-3.0+ compliant, including exposure of source code modifications when applicable under the license.
For full legal details, please refer to the AGPL-3.0+ license and the project’s notice.md file.
Notice – VeritasVote
Attribution Requirement: Under Section 7 of the AGPL 3.0+ license, all redistributions, forks, and derivative works, including network-deployed versions of this project, must provide attribution to Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com.
Contributors
This file tracks contributors and their specific contributions to the project.
- Roxanne Ardary, roxanneardary.com – April 8, 2026
Created the repository for VeritasVote. Established the open-source voting machine framework including hardware specifications, software architecture, cryptographic protocol design, and documentation. - [Add other contributors here] – [Date]
[Describe contribution in one sentence]
License – VeritasVote
This repository is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 or later (AGPL-3.0+).
Key Points:
- You are free to use, modify, and distribute the code.
- All redistributions, forks, and derivative works or network-deployed versions must also be licensed under AGPL-3.0+ and provide attribution to Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com as required under Section 7 of the license.
- The software is provided “as is,” without warranty of any kind.
For the full license text, see GNU AGPL-3.0 License.