🗳️ Voting Portal

A modern, secure, and user-friendly online voting platform built with the MERN stack. This application provides a complete digital voting experience with separate interfaces for voters and administrators.

🌟 Features

For Voters

• Secure Registration: Register with Aadhar card verification
• One-Time Voting: Each user can vote only once per election
• Real-time Results: View live voting results and statistics
• Profile Management: Update personal information and change passwords
• Responsive Design: Works seamlessly on desktop and mobile devices

For Administrators

• Candidate Management: Add, edit, and delete candidates
• Vote Monitoring: Real-time vote tracking and analytics
• User Management: Monitor registered users and voting status
• Results Dashboard: Comprehensive voting results with visual representations

Security Features

• JWT Authentication: Secure token-based authentication
• Password Encryption: Bcrypt hashing for password security
• CORS Protection: Configured cross-origin resource sharing
• Input Validation: Comprehensive form validation on both client and server
• Role-based Access: Separate permissions for voters and administrators

🚀 Live Demo

• Frontend: https://electorportal.vercel.app
• Backend API: https://votingportal-fp5j.onrender.com

🛠️ Tech Stack

Frontend

• React 19.1.0 - Modern UI library with latest features
• React Router DOM 7.7.1 - Client-side routing
• React Icons 5.5.0 - Beautiful icons
• Vite 7.0.4 - Fast build tool and development server
• CSS3 - Custom styling with responsive design

Backend

• Node.js - JavaScript runtime environment
• Express.js 5.1.0 - Web application framework
• MongoDB - NoSQL database
• Mongoose 8.17.0 - MongoDB object modeling

Security & Authentication

• JSON Web Tokens (JWT) - Secure authentication
• Bcrypt.js - Password hashing
• CORS - Cross-origin resource sharing

Deployment

• Frontend: Vercel
• Backend: Render
• Database: MongoDB Atlas

📁 Project Structure

VotingPortal/
├── frontend/
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── components/
│   │   │   ├── Home.jsx              # Landing page
│   │   │   ├── Login.jsx             # User login
│   │   │   ├── Signup.jsx            # User registration
│   │   │   ├── Dashboard.jsx         # Voter dashboard
│   │   │   ├── AdminPanel.jsx        # Admin management panel
│   │   │   ├── Profile.jsx           # User profile management
│   │   │   ├── About.jsx             # About page
│   │   │   ├── Navbar.jsx            # Navigation component
│   │   │   ├── Footer.jsx            # Footer component
│   │   │   └── ProtectedRoute.jsx    # Route protection
│   │   ├── context/
│   │   │   └── AuthContext.jsx       # Authentication context
│   │   ├── styles/
│   │   │   ├── global.css            # Global styles
│   │   │   ├── auth.css              # Authentication styles
│   │   │   ├── dashboard.css         # Dashboard styles
│   │   │   ├── admin.css             # Admin panel styles
│   │   │   └── navbar.css            # Navigation styles
│   │   ├── utils/
│   │   │   └── api.js                # API utility functions
│   │   ├── App.jsx                   # Main app component
│   │   └── main.jsx                  # App entry point
│   ├── public/
│   ├── package.json
│   └── vite.config.js
├── backend/
│   ├── models/
│   │   ├── user.js                   # User schema
│   │   └── candidate.js              # Candidate schema
│   ├── routes/
│   │   ├── userRoutes.js             # User-related routes
│   │   └── candidateRoutes.js        # Candidate-related routes
│   ├── connection/
│   │   └── db.js                     # Database connection
│   ├── jwt.js                        # JWT utilities
│   ├── server.js                     # Express server
│   └── package.json
└── README.md

🔧 Installation & Setup

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v18 or higher)
• MongoDB (Atlas or local installation)
• Git

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/MithanshuHedau/VotingPortal.git
cd VotingPortal

2. Backend Setup

# Navigate to backend directory
cd backend

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Create .env file and add your environment variables
echo "MONGODB_URL=your_mongodb_connection_string
JWT_SECRET=your_jwt_secret_key
PORT=3000" > .env

# Start the backend server
npm start

3. Frontend Setup

# Navigate to frontend directory (from root)
cd frontend

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Start the development server
npm run dev

4. Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the backend directory:

🚀 Deployment

Frontend (Vercel)

1. Connect your GitHub repository to Vercel
2. Set build command: npm run build
3. Set output directory: dist
4. Deploy automatically on push to main branch

Backend (Render)

1. Connect your GitHub repository to Render
2. Set build command: npm install
3. Set start command: npm start
4. Add environment variables in Render dashboard
5. Deploy automatically on push to main branch

📖 API Documentation

Authentication Endpoints

POST /user/signup          # Register new user
POST /user/login           # User login
GET  /user/profile         # Get user profile
PUT  /user/profile/password # Update password

Candidate Endpoints

GET    /user/candidates              # Get all candidates (voter)
POST   /candidate                    # Add candidate (admin only)
PUT    /candidate/:id               # Update candidate (admin only)
DELETE /candidate/:id               # Delete candidate (admin only)
POST   /candidate/vote/:id          # Vote for candidate
GET    /candidate/vote/count        # Get vote counts

👥 User Roles

Voter

• Register and login to the system
• View available candidates
• Cast one vote per election
• View real-time results
• Manage profile and change password

Administrator

• All voter permissions except voting
• Add, edit, and delete candidates
• Monitor vote counts and analytics
• Access comprehensive admin dashboard

🔐 Security Measures

1. Password Security: Bcrypt hashing with salt rounds
2. JWT Authentication: Secure token-based authentication
3. Input Validation: Server-side validation for all inputs
4. CORS Configuration: Restricted cross-origin requests
5. Role-based Access: Protected admin routes
6. One Vote Policy: Database-level vote tracking

🎨 UI/UX Features

• Modern Design: Clean and intuitive interface
• Responsive Layout: Mobile-friendly design
• Real-time Updates: Live vote counting and results
• Loading States: User-friendly loading indicators
• Error Handling: Comprehensive error messages
• Success Feedback: Clear confirmation messages

🧪 Testing

Manual Testing Checklist

• User registration with validation
• User login and authentication
• Protected route access
• Candidate voting process
• Admin candidate management
• Real-time vote counting
• Profile management
• Password updates
• Responsive design on mobile

🔄 Version History

• v1.0.0 - Initial release with core voting functionality
• v1.1.0 - Added admin panel and candidate management
• v1.2.0 - Improved UI/UX and mobile responsiveness
• v1.3.0 - Enhanced security and error handling

🤝 Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
5. Open a Pull Request

📄 License

This project is licensed under the ISC License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🛡️ Data Privacy

• User data is encrypted and securely stored
• Voting records are anonymized
• Personal information is protected according to privacy standards
• Regular security audits and updates

📞 Support & Contact

For any questions, issues, or suggestions, please feel free to reach out:

Email: hedaumithanshu@gmail.com

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Built with ❤️ by Mithanshu Hedau

Making democracy accessible through technology