Bitcoin Foundation Trials Blockchain Voting System in Latest Election Controversy

As perhaps an extension of its recent focus on revitalizing its image, the Bitcoin Foundation announced yesterday it would allow its members to cast votes in its latest election round directly on the bitcoin blockchain, the digital currency’s public ledger.

Billed in a blog post as a way for the Bitcoin Foundation to advance blockchain technology by new executive director Patrick Murck, the decision was soon met with mixed reactions, with some lauding the novel step and others criticising it for a potential negative impact on an election meant to fill two outgoing board member positions.

At issue was a process described as cumbersome by candidates such as CryptoCurrency Certification Consortium’s (C4) Michael Perklin and decried as a veiled way for the organisation to prevent voter participation by entrepreneur and candidate Olivier Janssens.