- The app introduces a point system to combat low voter turnout, rewarding citizens for participation regardless of political affiliation, aiming to increase voter engagement.
- If elected, the opposition party plans to digitize the Public Service Hall, enabling online management of government registries, and explore Universal Basic Income distribution through the app.
- United Space envisions a liquid democracy, allowing citizens to continuously vote on legislation, transforming the way they interact with state processes and decision-making.
Georgia’s leading opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), has launched United Space, an identity app powered by ZK social protocol Rarimo.
The app aims to bring national identification cards on-chain, promising to revolutionize how citizens engage with both electoral and governance processes. Its launch comes at a critical time, just weeks before Georgia’s parliamentary elections on October 26th, amid increasing concerns about democratic backsliding and foreign interference.
A New Era for Democratic Participation
The United Space app offers surveillance-free, tamper-proof polling, marking a significant shift from traditional electoral processes. Citizens will use the app to vote in the upcoming elections while remaining completely anonymous, a safeguard against concerns about privacy violations and potential voter manipulation.
UNM’s new system also introduces a voter reward program, designed to combat Georgia’s historically low voter turnout. Citizens, regardless of their political affiliations, will be rewarded for their participation. It’s a strategic push to engage the electorate, offering incentives not just for casting a ballot, but for overall civic involvement.
Beyond Elections: A Vision for Digital Governance
UNM has pledged to extend United Space’s capabilities beyond voting if elected into office. The app could digitize Georgia’s Public Service Hall (PSH), a government body that currently handles vital registries for cars, businesses, and notaries. Currently, these services require in-person appointments, but the app aims to transition the system online, making it more accessible to citizens across the country.
Additionally, the opposition envisions using the digitized PSH as a platform for experimenting with Universal Basic Income (UBI), redistributing proceeds from the newly digitized services back to citizens. This initiative could be a game-changer in the region, providing a much-needed financial safety net for many Georgians.
Even more ambitiously, UNM plans to implement a liquid democracy model through the app. This would allow citizens to vote not only during elections but continuously, enabling them to have a say in day-to-day legislative processes. This continuous feedback loop between government and citizens could redefine civic engagement in Georgia.
A Timely Solution to Threats Against Democracy
The launch of United Space couldn’t come at a more pressing time. Georgia has been grappling with concerns about a democratic backslide and the growing threat of Russian interference. In this context, United Space presents itself as a tool to bolster the country’s democratic foundations, offering a secure and transparent means for citizens to participate in governance.
Giorgi Vashadze, MP and leader of the United National Movement, emphasized the transformative potential of the app: “By providing liquid democracy, increasing civil engagement, and anonymizing polling and voting, United Space will help make Georgia one of the most robust democracies in the world. It will provide unprecedented privacy, access, and ease of use for citizens as they engage both with the electoral system and everyday state services.”
Rarimo’s Breakthrough in Privacy Technology
At the core of United Space is a new version of Freedom Tool, Rarimo’s Zero-Knowledge proof-of-citizenship solution, which allows citizens to self-issue their digital identities. Unlike other blockchain-based identity systems that rely on third-party issuers, Freedom Tool 2.0 enables users to become the issuers of their own identity by publishing their national ID data, encrypted, onto an on-chain registry.
Lasha Antadze, co-founder of Rarilabs, highlighted the significance of this technological breakthrough: “Zero-Knowledge tech has now reached a point of maturity where it is propelling blockchain and Web3 into the mainstream, and fueling privacy and freedom for everyday people.”
This approach guarantees that no outside party, including the government, can track or identify individual user activities. Even with possession of a citizen’s passport key, the only information that can be confirmed is that the ID is registered on the blockchain. This level of anonymity is particularly crucial given Georgia’s current political climate.
Kitty Horlick, director at Rarilabs, added: “The beauty of United Space is that it makes citizens direct stakeholders: of state assets, democratic processes, and public services. This is a nation-wide and real-world use case that highlights the promise of blockchain and Zero-Knowledge technology to reshape the dynamic between civilians and the state.”
What’s Next for Georgia’s Digital Future?
As Georgia approaches its parliamentary elections, the United Space app has the potential to serve as a model for other nations looking to strengthen democratic participation through blockchain technology. The blend of decentralized identity, privacy protections, and liquid democracy offers a glimpse into what the future of governance might look like—not just for Georgia, but for countries worldwide.
Georgia’s experiment with blockchain-based democracy could set a new standard for transparency and civic engagement in the digital age.
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