Title: A novel leader election mechanism for distributed systems using dynamic priority scores

Authors: P. Remya Krishnan

Addresses: Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Amrita School of Computing – Coimbatore, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, India

Abstract: Efficient coordination in distributed systems relies on selecting a suitable leader node, a process often challenged by asynchronous operations and node failures. Traditional leader election algorithms struggle with scalability and fault tolerance, necessitating more adaptive approaches to address these challenges. This paper introduces priority enhanced quorum consensus (PEQC), a novel leader election mechanism that integrates dynamically computed priority scores with quorum-based decision making. By utilising priority-based selection, PEQC ensures the election of the most suitable node while addressing node downtime and enhancing system responsiveness. A comparative analysis with existing algorithms demonstrates PEQC's superior performance in reducing election overhead, improving fault recovery, and ensuring fair leadership distribution.

Keywords: leader election; distributed systems; dynamic priority; quorum consensus; scalability; fault tolerance.

DOI: 10.1504/IJITM.2026.152453

International Journal of Information Technology and Management, 2026 Vol.25 No.1, pp.73 - 88

Received: 02 Jul 2024
Accepted: 20 Mar 2025
Published online: 20 Mar 2026 *

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