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Belenios

belenios.org

Free plan WebSelf-hosted
Visit belenios.org
Spec score 8.0 #11 of 31 in Online Voting Software

What it is

Belenios is a free, verifiable online voting system for elections and referendums, including scientific councils and sports associations. Its hosted web platform supports standard candidate selection and preferential elections using Condorcet, Single Transferable Vote, and Majority Judgment. Weighted votes are available for standard elections. Votes are encrypted to protect individual choices, subject to the election’s decryption-key setup. Voters can check that ballots appear in a public ballot box, and anyone can verify that the result matches those ballots. Authentication options include public accounts, Google login, and CAS. The hosted service supports up to 2,500 voters per election; larger elections are directed toward institutional hosting. Belenios is also self-hostable free software under the GNU Affero General Public License version 3. Voters and email addresses cannot be changed after an election starts, and trustee key loss prevents tallying. The hosted plan is free.

Spec sheet

Purpose
Belenios is a verifiable online voting system for elections and referendums, including elections for scientific councils and sports associations.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
Support
The platform is provided as is, has no hotline, and directs users to its FAQ and discussion mailing list for questions.Read 8 Oct 2026 · vote.belenios.org
Authentication
The hosted platform supports public accounts, Google login, and CAS authentication.Read 8 Oct 2026 · vote.belenios.org
Election setup limit
Voters cannot be added and their email addresses cannot be changed after an election starts; the stated remedy is to start the election again.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
High-stakes suitability
The FAQ says Belenios does not protect against stronger coercion where voters may be forced to disclose credentials or passwords, and describes high-stakes online voting security as an unresolved challenge.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
Hosted service limit
The hosted platform allows up to 2500 voters per election; the site suggests institutional hosting for elections above that limit.Read 8 Oct 2026 · vote.belenios.org
Maintainers
The free online platform is maintained by Véronique Cortier and Pierrick Gaudry, and the about page says software development moved to a startup independent of the research teams starting in 2025.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
Privacy data
The GDPR page says Belenios processes language and session cookies, email addresses used for voting material and confirmation, encrypted ballots, and connection information and vote dates.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
Self-hosting
Belenios is free software licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License version 3, and its source code can be downloaded to run a voting server.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
Trustee security
The setup guide recommends trustee-managed shared decryption keys; if a trustee key is lost, the election cannot be tallied and is canceled.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
Verifiability
Voters can check that their ballots appear in the public ballot box, and anyone can verify that the result corresponds to the ballots.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
Voting methods
The hosted platform supports standard candidate selection and preferential elections using Condorcet, Single Transferable Vote, and Majority Judgment.Read 8 Oct 2026 · vote.belenios.org
Voting privacy
The system encrypts votes so that no one can learn an individual voter's vote, subject to the election's decryption-key setup.Read 8 Oct 2026 · belenios.org
Weighted votes
Weighted votes are supported for standard elections only.Read 8 Oct 2026 · vote.belenios.org

Plans and prices

Belenios hosted platform Free up to 2500 voters per election · service provided as is, with no guarantee Read 8 Oct 2026 · vote.belenios.org

Every Belenios plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Free hosted plan up to 2,500 voters
  • Voters and observers can verify ballots and results
  • Supports Condorcet, STV, and Majority Judgment
  • Self-hostable AGPLv3 software
  • Google, public-account, and CAS authentication

Limits

  • No voter changes after an election starts
  • Lost trustee key cancels tallying
  • No hotline; support is FAQ and mailing list
  • Does not address stronger coercion scenarios

Who it suits

Belenios suits organizations running verifiable elections or referendums with anonymous ballots and ranked or preferential choices. It fits teams able to manage trustee keys and the stated hosted-service limits.

Verdict

Belenios provides free, verifiable web voting with several preferential methods and self-hosting. Election setup rules, trustee-key responsibility, service limits, and unresolved coercion risks require careful fit assessment.

Where Specifiction places it

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