Cryptodemocratic Governance In Special Economic Zones

Special jurisdictions are testbeds for institutional experimentation. The newest waves propose voting mechanisms to make complex and evolving policy decisions. In this paper, we explore how blockchain technology—as a new infrastructure for voting rights—might be applied in special jurisdictions. We use the example of a ‘cryptodemocracy’, previously explored by Allen et al. (2019). In this system, voters are given property rights in votes that are recorded on decentralized blockchain ledgers. The votes can be given different bundles of property rights—such as the ability to delegate votes—that change the structure of the democratic system. Our aim in this paper is to explore the underappreciated collective choice problems underpinning special jurisdictions, outline the potential for cryptodemocratic voting systems as new infrastructure for special jurisdictions, and propose directions for future research.