Evolution of secret voting in the digital state

The article is devoted to the analysis of the evolution of the institution of secret voting. In the context of the formation of the information society and the development of digital technologies, traditional legal guarantees that ensure its protection have lost their effectiveness. At the same time, well-established mechanisms for ensuring compliance with the principle of secret voting act as a barrier to the digital transformation of the electoral process. The article reveals the relationship of this legal institution with information law. On the basis of the study, it is proposed to form an information-legal institution "voting secrecy" in the structure of confidential information. The advantages of such an evolution include increasing the possibilities of using digital technologies in the electoral process, increasing the number of institutions of direct democracy, improving the institution of legal responsibility for disclosing the results of voting by a particular voter, as well as regulating the circulation of this type of information. It seems that in order to implement this proposal, the legislator needs to determine the purpose of the special legal regime, the object of legal regulation, the legal status of subjects of legal relations, the complex of legal means for regulating the circulation of information constituting the secrecy of voting, and the means of legal influence on persons infringing the established order. The article formulates specific proposals on the content of these elements of the new information and legal institution.