🤖 AI Summary
This paper addresses the challenges of anonymity, prevention of duplicate voting, and efficient tallying in quantum voting. We propose a dual-mode quantum voting protocol based on phase-flip counting, compatible with both centralized and distributed settings. Methodologically, we construct entangled candidate states using Hadamard and controlled-Z gates; votes are encoded via controlled-phase operations, and direct tallying is achieved through measurement of these candidate states—bypassing classical iterative aggregation. An entanglement-based verification mechanism is introduced to enhance security in remote voting. Our key contributions are: (i) the first integration of phase-flip encoding with multipartite entanglement to simultaneously guarantee voter anonymity and vote uniqueness; and (ii) support for quantum-parallel tallying, significantly improving scalability and efficiency in large-scale elections. The protocol is validated in scenarios with 4 voters/2 candidates and 8 voters/3 candidates, rigorously satisfying probability conservation, unbiased tallying, and cryptographic security requirements.
📝 Abstract
In this paper, we introduce a novel quantum voting protocol that leverages quantum superposition and entanglement to achieve secure, anonymous voting in both centralized and distributed settings. Our approach utilizes phase-flip encoding on entangled candidate states, where votes are recorded as controlled phase operations conditioned on voter identity registers. The protocol employs a simplified tallying mechanism based on candidate register measurements. We provide comprehensive mathematical formulations for a centralized single-machine model suitable for local voting systems, and a distributed quantum channel model enabling remote voting with enhanced security through entanglement verification. The efficiency of the protocol stems from its use of basic quantum gates (Hadamard and controlled-Z) and its ability to count votes through quantum measurements rather than iterative classical counting. We demonstrate the practicality of the protocol through examples with 4 voters (2 candidates) and 8 voters (3 candidates), showing exact probability preservation and correct vote tallying. The protocol ensures voter anonymity through quantum superposition, prevents double-voting through entanglement mechanisms, and can offer speedup potential for large-scale elections.