Screven County in Georgia has become the first county in the US to use the Bitcoin blockchain to safeguard the results of its elections. The county worked with Simple Proof, a company that protects digital records using the Bitcoin blockchain, to ensure that the election results couldn't be altered. Simple Proof's open-source protocol, called OpenTimestamps, enables cryptographic timestamping and stores information on Bitcoin's immutable ledger. The information stored in the blockchain for the Screven County elections included Election Summary Reports and the Statement of Votes Cast. While Simple Proof protects voting records, it doesn't ensure the legitimacy of votes, which is the responsibility of the local board of elections. Simple Proof and Screven County's successful endeavor has led to optimism from both parties and a desire to see the implementation of blockchain-based services statewide and in other counties across the country.



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