CGTS in Salamanca: Reinventing Electoral Trust in the Age of AI
As part of the International Capacity-Building Program on Electoral Management (Innovation, Integrity, and Democratic Governance), held in Salamanca, Spain, Dedaniel Urribarri, CEO of CGTS, delivered a keynote presentation focused on one of the most pressing challenges facing modern democracies: “Electoral Audits: Transparency and Independent Validation in the Age of AI.”
At a time when disinformation, deepfakes, and increasingly complex technologies are testing institutional credibility, the presentation explored how safeguarding electoral integrity now requires new approaches to independent technical validation.
A New Equation for Electoral Trust
For decades, the central question on election day was simply: Who won?
Today, that question has evolved into something far more fundamental:
How can we demonstrate that the entire electoral process was trustworthy? A New Equation for Electoral Trust
CGTS emphasized that trust should never be assumed—it must be earned through objective evidence. This concept was summarized in the core principle presented during the conference:
Doing Things Right + Evidence = Trust
Executing electoral processes correctly is no longer enough if there are no objective verification mechanisms capable of demonstrating that integrity to citizens.
To transform transparency into an institutional guarantee, the model presented in Salamanca is built upon three fundamental pillars:
1. Objectivity
No organization should serve as both judge and evaluator of its own systems and processes. Independent third-party auditors provide the impartiality and technical rigor necessary to validate every critical technological component.
2. Transparency
Every stage of the electoral process must be auditable and verifiable, generating the technical evidence required to demonstrate that procedures have been executed correctly and in accordance with established standards.
3. Trust as the Outcome
Trust is the direct result of making the technical robustness of electoral systems visible, strengthening institutional legitimacy and public confidence.
Supporting the Entire Electoral Cycle
The framework presented by CGTS redefines the traditional role of the auditor—from a reactive approach focused solely on identifying issues to that of a strategic partner dedicated to building certainty throughout the electoral process.
Through a structured five-stage model, CGTS provides comprehensive support across every phase of the electoral cycle:
- Pre-Election Phase: Preventive verification of electoral processes—including planning, voter registration, electoral materials and documentation, and equipment production—as well as critical technological components such as software, infrastructure, source code, zero-configuration validation, and security mechanisms to ensure compliance with established standards.
- Election Day Phase: Independent observation and technical oversight of critical operations throughout election day.
- Post-Election Phase: Technical reviews and data verification to certify the integrity and consistency of the vote tabulation and election results consolidation process.
This methodology is supported by more than two decades of technical expertise gained through participation in electoral projects across countries including Mexico, Argentina, Honduras, El Salvador, and Peru.
The Next Frontier: Who Audits Artificial Intelligence?
One of the most thought-provoking moments of the conference centered on the impact of emerging technologies.
While the electoral industry has developed mature methodologies for auditing voting systems, software, and election results transmission, the rapid evolution of AI-powered ecosystems raises a new challenge for democratic governance:
If we already know how to audit voting systems and software, who audits Artificial Intelligence?
Answering this question will define the next generation of electoral auditing worldwide.
“Electoral trust is not declared. It is demonstrated.”
Dedaniel Urribarri, CGTS CEO.
