Web Based Voting System in PHP

Computer technology has greatly aided in the enhancement of one’s life. Most businesses, corporations, and institutions had developed their own applications of such technology to help them work more efficiently with less time and effort, resulting in more production, profit, and a more satisfied customer base. Automated Election is a system-appropriate technology that has been demonstrated in the voting, counting, consolidating, canvassing, and transmission of election results, among other electoral procedures. The capstone project, “Voting System in PHP and MySQL Free Source Code,” is an automated voting procedure in which end users can vote and choose their candidate in a more reliable and effective voting platform. The conventional method of voting is being used in the election. On Election Day, voters utilize paper ballots to cast their ballots. As a result, the researchers have opted to build and construct user-friendly and dependable automatic voting software. The researchers create a voting system to fill the flaws in the traditional voting procedure. The researchers will build the “Voting System in PHP and MySQL Free Source code” using the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) methodology. The SDLC methodology consists of several stages that lead to the creation of software, including project needs identification, data collection and analysis, design, and coding. This strategy will be reduced and improved in this modern type of website project built in PHP and MySQL.

Web Based Voting System in PHP

The capstone project, “Voting System in PHP and MySQL Free Source Code,” is an automated voting procedure that allows end users to vote and select their candidate in a more reliable and effective voting platform. They provide cutting-edge technology that is both efficient, allowing electoral authorities to take use of the benefits of a computerized system, and practical, preserving the fundamental principles that voters and election officials are accustomed to. This method makes use of cutting-edge technologies, allowing election officials to conduct counting and canvassing processes in hours rather than days. The technology automates the scanning, counting, consolidation, and transfer of votes in a safe and traceable manner, eliminating the possibility of human mistake, tampering, or fraud attempts and enhancing election integrity.

The traditional method of voting is being used in the electoral process. On Election Day, voters utilize paper ballots to cast their ballots. As a result, the researchers have opted to build and construct user-friendly and dependable automatic voting software. The researchers’ goal in this project is to create a computer-based voting system that is accurate, dependable, and simple to use during the election of student representatives, as well as to offer relevant and accurate information needed after the election process.

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Proposed Solution

The researchers create a voting system to fill the flaws in the traditional voting procedure. A technology that has been demonstrated in the voting, counting, consolidating, canvassing, and communication of election results, as well as other electoral processes. This method makes use of cutting-edge technologies, allowing election officials to conduct counting and canvassing processes in hours rather than days. The technology automates the scanning, counting, consolidation, and transfer of votes in a safe and traceable manner, eliminating the possibility of human mistake, tampering, or fraud attempts and enhancing election integrity.

Objectives of the Study

General Objective – The main purpose of this capstone project is to develop the Voting System in PHP and MySQL Free Source code that is user-friendly and reliable.

Specific Objectives:

1. Aim to create a computer-based voting system that is efficient, accurate, and dependable.
2. Provide a direct recording voting system in which voters examine ballots on a computer monitor and select options with an input device.
3. Create a system in which users may log in and vote in a quick, secure, and hassle-free manner.
4. To reduce incorrect votes, provide a module that standardizes voting so that users simply choose the candidate of their choice and save it.
5. Provide election results that are timely, dependable, and accurate.

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Scope of the Study

The capstone project focuses on the creation of a voting system using PHP and MySQL free source code. The voting mechanism will be deployed on the main server and will only be accessible to students who are formally enrolled in the system. The suggested system will be built to perform client-server communication through a computer network or on the same machine. The database maintenance will include adding, modifying, and deleting candidates for student government positions and electoral board members, as well as maintaining and managing user table entries and user logs, as well as monitoring user actions in the system.

Significance of the study

The success of the project will significantly benefit the following:

COMELEC: They will gain much from this study since they will be able to get the newly elected officers as soon as feasible. Similarly, by utilizing the system, the council can quickly make changes to how, when, and who the students are that they need to turn over the position that they have. Vote canvassing volumes and human labor can be reduced, and electoral fraud can be eliminated.

Voters: can gain from the study because their voting time will be reduced and they will have confidence that their votes will be counted. Similarly, they may readily learn the outcome of the election.

Candidates: Because their votes will be protected, and it reduces errors such as writing their names incorrectly.

Researchers: They will use not only their programming skills, but they must also ensure and be assured that their program will be of more aid and will meet the wants of the entire user.

Future Researchers: The approach provided would assist future researchers by serving as a guide or reference in their own work on any proposal or project.

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Chapter IV

METHODOLOGY

Project success within systems development is difficult to measure as it consist of multiple factors such as: technical, economic, behavioral, psychological and political dimensions. The researchers will utilize several analytical tools to help and justify the conduct of the study and also guide the researchers to resolve the problems encountered by the school in the election period. The analytical tools include interview, observation and brainstorming which will be employed by the researchers in analyzing the problems of the existing system.

To determine the requirements definition process, a part of a questionnaire was used covering how the requirements were setup and which software development methods were used during the process. Survey questionnaires are given to the student and faculty to obtain information. The researchers prepare questionnaire guide composed of list of questions to help researchers to validate the system proposed.

By observing users, an analyst can identify a process flow, awkward steps, pain points and opportunities for improvement. Brainstorming is used in requirements elicitation to get as many ideas as possible from a group of people and individual. Generally used to identify possible solutions to problems, and clarify details of opportunities. Brainstorming casts a wide net, identifying many different possibilities. Prioritization of those possibilities is important to finding the solutions to the problem of the existing system.

On system development, the researchers will utilize the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) method in the development of the system. The SDLC method is the process employed in the analysis and design of the Web Based Voting System in PHP as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 illustrates the Modified Waterfall Model that will be used by the researchers in developing the Web Based Voting System in PHP for Supreme Student Government. The model develops systematically from one phase to other, like a waterfall. It is made up of several phases and the details of these phases are:

Requirement Analysis. In this phase, the researchers will study how the system works, determine the user’s wants, needs and requirements, and recommend a solution. It also involves developing estimates for the work to be performed, establishing the necessary commitments, and defining the plan to perform the work.

System and Software Design

On this phase, the system will be designed based on the requirements needed in the system. Process and data model will be done to present the system’s data and the relationship between different data elements. Data Flow Diagram (DFD) will be used to represent the flow of data in the system. Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD) shall be employed as data model for the system. After finalizing the ERD, the system database will be created to fulfill the system’s information and processing needs. The programmer will create the source codes necessary for the system to be constructed.

Testing. This phase aimed to find out whether the software functions and features work according to the specification, ensure that the produced system is complete and performs efficiently, evaluate whether the software perform all activities after integration with the existing operating environment, and measure up the reliability and overall quality of the software.

Implementation. In this phase, the researchers will conduct the system dry-run and conduct training of the target users of the system. The users of the system will check if the recommended functions and suggestions of the users are met.

Operation and Maintenance. This Phase is to ensure the information system is fully functional and performs optimally until the system reaches its end of life. The Operations and Maintenance Phase comprises the following: management of changes to the system to support end users, monitoring of system performance, performance of required security activities such as backups, and continuation of end user support through training and documentation

Requirements Analysis and Documentation

The proposed system is “Web Based Voting System in PHP for SSG, an application that enables users to vote using a computer. The application will enable users to interactively choose their candidate and cast their vote using a mouse-based GUI.

The completion of the software depends upon meeting the following goals and objectives:

1. Provide voting software that is fully accessible through Local Area Network (LAN) of the school.
2. Provide a direct recording voting system where voters view ballots on a computer monitor and makes choices using an input device.
3. Provide results of the election that is fast, reliable and accurate.

4. Provide help guide feature to guide voters on how to use the system.

System Functionality

System Administrator – One of the features of the system is the log-in and log-out services which require users to enter user id and password. It has a database that can be updated and maintained by the admin. The administrator is the only authorized user of the system who can generate results and tally of votes from the system.

Voter – The student voters are prompt by the system to enter their user id and password. Voters can choose their candidate and cast their votes automatically by a click of a button.

Project Plan

Before the software project is implemented, the researchers will prepare a project schedule that identifies the anticipated activities involved, management of resources and project plans showing the cost needed in the development of the voting system.

Design of Software and Process

Based on the result of the observation and interview as well as users suggestions the researchers created a design for the system to be developed. All the requirements of the first phase are being used to contribute in the successful preparation of creating the Web Based Voting System in PHP for Supreme Student Government. It also includes the Data Flow Diagram, DFD Explosion for teachers and students.

Decomposition Chart (Figure2)

Development and Testing

The researchers will use the Modified Waterfall Model in developing the System. The software evolved as a result of shared information between the respondents and the researchers.

Testing will exercise the system in all possible ways. It includes initial testing and final testing of the new software. The electronic voting systems, including equipment and software, should be tested prior to the deployment of to help ensure that the system works as expected.

Requirements Definition Phase

During the Requirements Definition Phase, the researchers together with the beneficiary of the proposed system will work together to establish the architectural boundaries for the project, to establish criteria for measuring the technical performance of the system, and to baseline the requirements. Activities in this phase are the following: define system requirements, develop system process model, and develop application logical data model, estimate system workload, and Identify strategies for training end users.

Software Requirements. The software development tools for this study are presented in Table 1.0.

Software Requirements

Development Tools

• Bootstrap
• MySQL
• PHP

Hardware Requirements

• Intel Pentium Processor or Higher
• 1-2 GB Memory (Recommended)
• 80 GB, Hard Disk
• Standard Keyboard
• Standard Mouse
• AVR/UPS
• Switch
• Monitor
• Printer

People ware Recommendation. Table 3.0 includes the recommendation of appropriate users for the new system with specific task given.

The system is intended for beginners and professional users. Its design and uses suit the needs of the student voters as well as to the administrator to provide an accurate and effective voting and tabulating machine in the election process and that provides the user accurate results.

Table 3.0 People ware Recommendation

Project Manager – Supervises and monitors the entire project activities and its development

System Analyst – Responsible for researching, planning and recommending software and system choices to meet an organization’s business requirements.

Programmer – Creates the source codes for the development of proposed system. Must be expert with the programming language to be used in the development of the system.

Researchers – Further researchers on the content and other studies related to current system being developed.

Back-end user:

System Administrator – In charge of maintaining and managing the table entries of files; keeps the server up, running, and secure; keeps track of the log; updates the database, provides access to authorized users of the system.

Front-end users:

Students/Voters – One who have access to the computer-based voting system.

System Process Model

Context diagram and the decomposition diagram of the proposed voting system which show the procedures of each function, the users and the expected output.

The context diagram Web Based Voting System in PHP for Supreme Student Government in Figure 2.0 illustrates the users input to the system and the output information to the users. System Administrator and the student voters are the users of the system. The system can provide the following to the users: user’s log report, log changes report, candidates’ party list, election final results, and list of candidates chosen by the voter.

Implementation and Unit Testing Phase

This section will discuss the implementation plan and unit testing of the proposed system. This phase will also discuss if the recommended functions and suggestions of the respondents and users are met.

The construction of the project is divided in modules/units and is first developed in small programs called units, which are integrated in the next phase. Testing is one of the important phases of the Web Based Voting System in PHP development. Testing will exercise the system in all possible ways to test it for potential errors and bugs. It includes initial testing and final testing of the proposed electronic voting system. Each unit is developed and tested for its functionality; this is referred to as Unit Testing. Unit testing mainly verifies if the modules/units meet their specifications.

Integration and System Testing Phase

Integration and system testing is a type of software testing, this makes sure that tests such as the new system and integration are done before releasing the software. Software testing has very strict set of rules and guidelines that it follows to make sure each individual part of the software is thoroughly checked before it is given the OK, this makes sure that there are no errors and that the software runs how it’s supposed to. Integration and system testing will be done by the researchers and will focus on the software testing phase in the system development life cycle.

Integration testing in the software testing model comes before system testing and after the unit testing has been done.

System testing is simply testing the new software as a whole; it gets all the integrated modules of the various components from the integration testing phase and combines all the different parts into a system which is then tested. Testing is then done on the system as all the parts are now integrated into one system the testing phase will now have to be done on the system to check and remove any errors or bugs.

Operation and Maintenance Phase

The maintenance-phase consists of maintenance-tasks to keep the product up and running. The researchers will continuously monitor the performance of the system in regard to hardware and the network. Daily operations of the system require identifying and implementing minor modifications for it to function optimally and correctly. The researchers will document these modifications. This phase includes any general enhancements, changes and additions, which might be required by the end-users. The defects and deficiencies are usually documented by the developing organization to enable future solutions and known issues addressing in any future maintenance releases. Maintenance is always necessary to keep system usable and useful.

Implementation Results

Initial Testing Result

The developers have conducted a thorough unit testing or initial testing to gather insights, comments and suggestions from the intended users. The average weighted mean of 4.0 which is interpreted as good means that the proposed features of the developed system is adaptable by the users.

Expert Testing Result

The developers have utilized panel of IT Experts to evaluate the developed system. Ratings were given and some suggestions were drawn in order to come up with a functional and reliable system. The weighted mean of 4.16 shows that the developed system is good and adaptable by the users.

User Acceptance Testing Result

The developers have finalized the system and come up with the user acceptance testing in order to assess the functionalities and features of the developed system. The weighted mean of 4.39 shows that the system is good for the intended users and has met the end-user expectations and suggested functions and features.

FREE DOWNLOAD SOURCE CODE

• Username: admin
• Password: admin
• Database: evoting.sql

Conclusion

Given all of the essential information, it was determined that the project is valuable and may aid a specific organization in enhancing efficacy in providing the best elections possible. The aforementioned technology will make elections and voting processes smooth and efficient, with no problems, errors, or mistakes. The introduction of the system will make the voting process easier and faster to complete. According to the study’s findings, the produced system met the demands and requirements of the respondents and intended users. As a result, the researchers concluded that deploying the proposed technology will significantly assist organizations in monitoring and tracking votes during elections.

Recommendations

The system is designed for both novice and experienced users. Its design and applications meet the needs of student voters as well as administrators by providing an accurate and effective voting and tabulating machine in the election process and providing correct results to the user. With the aforementioned benefits, it is strongly recommended that COMELEC invest in the system so that they can properly monitor the votes and process them in an efficient and timely manner. According to the project’s experts, the target users should understand how the generated system works. The system is highly recommended since it simplifies, expedites, and simplifies accounting administration.

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