Traditional ballot box superior to e-voting

WE have possibly the most sophisticated electoral system in the world. It enables voters, protected by secret ballot, to indicate, right down to street or townland level, their political preferences in the most nuanced way.

Not just party. Not just broad policy, but differences of emphasis within parties.

It enables the voter to follow particular interests, concerns or allegiances down the ballot paper.

Most importantly, it not just enables but forces the parties and politicians to take account of local and sectoral variations and the broad trend of public sentiment. This insight will be severely impaired.

One of the great virtues of our electoral system is that one could physically study and check every ballot paper and the accuracy of the count most important in cases where there is a tight or 'unexpected' result. This facility will disappear with the new system.

Against a context of general mistrust of all in authority or power, one of the casualties must be the ultimate assurance of the legitimacy of the result of the ballot box conferred by the paper trail of individual voting ballots.

When strong and articulate groups are only too eager to challenge the rule of law and the rights of democratic and constitutional majorities, is it not profoundly dangerous to diminish the transparency and acceptable legitimacy of our elected rulers?

Electronic voting is a flash attempt to fix something which ain't broke.

Maurice O'Connell

19 Forge Park

Tralee

Co Kerry