Supervised voting not good for democracy

EVERY self-respecting democracy in the world operates under the rule of law.

Electoral law is particularly important because it is based on the authority of the people. Any interference, any sly manipulation of such laws seriously dilutes the quality of that democratic authority.

RTÉ’s News at One (July 5) reported how politicians have been breaking the law for years by supervising how councillors are voting in Seanad elections. This illegal activity is to make sure councillors are voting according to deals worked out between political parties. The UN frequently sends teams of inspectors to emerging democracies to ensure such vote-tampering does not occur; Irish politicians are often invited to join these inspection teams. They must feel odd to find themselves enforcing electoral laws they have been openly flouting themselves for years.