The Government is to end the drama and pathos of the manual election count by introducing electronic voting throughout the State in the 2004 local and European elections.
The Cabinet decided yesterday that the new system would apply in all parts of the State in 2004 following the successful trial run of the system in several constituencies in this year's general election and Nice referendum.
The decision, heralds the end of the long counts - some of which ran for three days as tortuous recounts took place - which have been a feature of the Irish political system since the foundation of the State.
Under the new system, results will be known within a few hours of the polls closing.
The Minister for Education, Mr Dempsey, championed the new system when he was Minister for the Environment in the 1992-1997 Government. Mr Dempsey argued that it provided for a more accurate distribution of candidates' surpluses during the election count.
However, critics say the increased accuracy is small return for the loss of the major day of political drama provided by the manual system. They argue that the television spectacle provided under the old system is one of the few events that interests most sections of the electorate in politics.
The Minister for the Environment, Mr Cullen, said yesterday: "Reaction to the electronic experience has been overwhelmingly positive both from voters and from electoral administrators . . . I am convinced that electronic voting will make it easier for the public to vote, will improve the efficiency of electoral administration, will provide earlier results, will support a positive image of the country in its use of information technology and will help to modernise the democratic process in all its facets."
The introduction of the new system throughout the State will cost an estimated €33 million, but there will be offset savings, such as the cost of paying large numbers of staff to count votes.
The system has run smoothly when used to date although after the general election politicians of all parties agreed that a more humane method be found to inform candidates of the results before they are announced.
This followed in particular the result in Dublin North where the manner of the announcement that outgoing Fine Gael deputy Ms Nora Owen had lost her seat was widely seen as undignified.