Derry based company 'Modern Democracy' polling system used in 3240 polling stations across England and Wales

Located in Derry’s Catalyst building on the Bay Road, the company broke records during the last local government elections in England and Wales, reporting that the company’s cloud based solutions made it “seamless” for voter processing at a record 3,240 polling stations spanning across 47 council areas.

Rather than the traditional pen and paper method, voters arriving at polling stations using Modern Polling were they checked in and had their Voter ID verified by staff via iPad by scanning a QR code on their poll card.

It meant fewer election staff were required and the waiting times to vote were significantly reduced.

Siobhan Donaghy, CEO of Modern Democracy said: "These local government elections confirm that digital check and voter verification is now becoming the de-facto standard at council authorities across G.B.

“The widespread adoption of our electronic poll-book platform proves its impact on a significant scale and underscores its pivotal role in modernising electoral procedures as councils continue their digital transformation journey.

“Recent clarification from the government that Returning Officers are now able to claim back the expense of implementing the technology is also fuelling a surge in demand.

Siobhan Donaghy explained that with the upcoming General Election, the company is expecting an “exponential rise in interest from local authorities” who want to use the company’s systems. This has led Modern Democracy to expand their sales and services teams “to meet the increased requirement.”

Siobhan Donaghy said that 4000 Ipads were used to implement the Modern Polling system, stating that this made it “the preferred polling day partner for election administrators seeking greater operation and financial efficiencies.”

Their Modern Polling system has been in development for the past 10 years, and the company says that their system also allows for real time analytics and “instant generation of all post-election reports at the close of polls.”

An Electoral Commission survey of election staff carried out at last year’s local government elections found that 86% of those using tablets to check voters found the process easier than the traditional method.