Feature 2026: Sealed Ballots Digitally and Locked Election Results

Sealed ballots and digitally locked election results ensure that no one sees sensitive results too early - not even the election officials. With sealed voting, NemoVote ensures that election results are only visible when the seal is deliberately and traceably opened.

Chapter

1. (TL;DR) In a nutshell
2. What sealed election results mean
3. How sealed voting works in NemoVote
4. Organizer roles: Control without access to results
5. Typical use cases for sealed results
6. Advantages for election committees and organizations
7. Practical example: Sealed elections in statutes
8. Why sealed voting is a technology issue
9. Conclusion: More control over the right time

Short and sweet

With sealed voting, election results are not automatically displayed at the end of the election, but remain digitally sealed - only visible when the seal is deliberately broken. NemoVote logs exactly who opened the result first and at what time, so that sensitive elections are even better protected and traceable.

What sealed election results mean: A unique function

In many elections, results may not be visible to everyone immediately after the close of voting - for example, because they are only to be announced in a specific committee, at a fixed time or together with other results. However, traditional online voting systems often display results automatically as soon as the election is over.

Sealed election results solve precisely this problem: although the digital system calculates the result, it deliberately withholds it until someone actively opens the seal. In this way, the analog moment of "opening the envelope" or "emptying the ballot box" is transferred to the digital world.

As far as we know, NemoVote is the only voting tool that can simulate a digital ballot box in this way.

How sealed voting works in NemoVote

With sealed voting, the results of an election are technically calculated after the polls close, but are not automatically displayed. Instead of clicking on "Show results" as usual, authorized users see a new option: "Break seal".

• To see the results, the person must consciously select "Break seal".
• A security dialog requires active confirmation that the seal should now be opened.
• Only then will the election results be visible - for exactly those roles that have been granted access.

At the same time, NemoVote logs who was the first to break the seal, at what time and in which role. This makes it transparent when and by whom the results were first viewed.

Organizer roles: Control without access to results

In some scenarios, election committees, admins or moderators should be able to organize everything related to the election - but should not be able to break the seal on their own authority. NemoVote uses an extended role concept for precisely this purpose.

• Instead of classic "admin" access, those responsible are given organizer access.
• Organizers can maintain voter lists, configure ballots and coordinate the process.
• The rights to "break the seal" can be deactivated in this role.

If desired, NemoVote can enable the right to break the seal only for very select individuals or in exceptional cases via support - for example, if an election committee expressly confirms the time at which the results are opened. This further strengthens the protection mechanism.

Typical use cases for sealed results

Sealed election results are particularly helpful when timing, neutrality or formal procedures play a major role.

• Multi-stage procedures: Cumulative results should only be visible once all partial elections have been completed.
• Committee elections: Results should only be announced in plenary, not beforehand in a small circle.
• Board elections: The election committee jointly decides when the results are to be opened and announced.
• External election management: Independent service providers can provide technical support for the election without seeing the result before the election committee.

Advantages for election committees and organizations

Sealed voting creates additional layers of security around the announcement of results - without unnecessarily complicating the election process.

• Controlled moment when results are opened: The time can be deliberately chosen - both technically and organizationally.
• More trust: No one can view results "by mistake" or "in passing".
• Traceability: It is clearly documented who opened the seal and when.
• Better separation of roles: Organizational roles remain organizationally strong without access to sensitive results.

Practical example: Sealed voting at GO!

Although the feature itself was developed early on, it had been on the back burner for almost five years - i.e. since the early days of NemoVote. Only when our customer Reference: GO! onderwijs van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap actively requested Sealed Voting for an election did we finalize the function and put it into production.

GO! uses Sealed Voting because more than 100 partial elections were held over a period of around two weeks. Only after all partial elections had been completed were the results to be merged and shared. Sealed Voting was the decisive enabler for this - without digitally sealed results, the statutes could not have been implemented in this form.

Why sealed voting improves election technology

At first glance, sealed voting seems like a small UI change - but there is actually an important principle behind it: digital systems must not only imitate analog protection mechanisms, they must reinforce them.

• Digital elections are often faster and more transparent, but also more sensitive in terms of early information.
• Technology must not force electoral boards to see results immediately just because they are already technically available.
• With Sealed Voting, NemoVote brings the "seal" - a familiar image from the analog world - into a digital, recorded and scalable form.

Conclusion: More control over the right time

Sealed ballots and digitally locked election results give organizations more control over the most sensitive moment of every election: the announcement of results. With sealed voting, a finely graduated role concept and clear logging, NemoVote strengthens the independence of election committees - and makes digital elections even more trustworthy.

If you would like to know whether sealed voting makes sense for your next election, please contact us - we will help you find the right level of security for your scenario.