Dr. Liam Weeks:

That is what I would argue. It depends on who those votes are coming from.

If it is a Sinn Féin vote that has put a Fianna Fáil candidate over the quota, those votes might not be reflective of the entire package of votes. It can be argued that it might not make a huge difference. However, in a country like Ireland where seats have been decided on a small number of votes, it can make a difference.

I examined this issue in a paper several years ago using the data from the e-voting trials which was online. I found that votes did vary, depending on which particular method of surplus transfer was used. I am not advocating a particular method but this is an issue which the electoral commission should examine.