Electronic voting in the Republic of Ireland the Government of Ireland established the Independent Commission on Electronic Voting and Counting at Elections to examine the proposed system. It was dissolved in 2006. The Commission issued a series of reports reviewing the proposed system and comparing it to the existing electoral system: "The Commission can recommend the voting and counting equipment as follows: The prime issue was the lack of verifiability by the absence of an audit mechanism or verified paper trail. The former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern had defended the flawed system in the Dáil, bemoaning the use of ""stupid old pencils"". The voting machines bought by the
Elections in the Republic of Ireland establishes a lower maximum of five years. Elections are by single transferable vote (STV), with each constituency returning between three and five deputies, each called a "Teachta Dála" or TD. Since 1981, constituencies have been redrawn by an independent Constituency Commission after each census. Elections to the European Parliament are held simultaneously across Europe every five years. In Ireland, as for Dáil elections, STV is used in constituencies returning three to five members. Local elections are held on the same day as European elections. Local electoral areas (LEAs) return between six and ten councillors by STV. Until the Local Government