WE have stressed before how important it is that people exercise their hard-won right to vote in local and general elections.

Greater participation by electors is clearly better for democracy.

Trials involving all-postal voting earlier this year boosted turn-outs from 33% to 50%.

Polling stations in supermarkets, weekend voting and use of electronic systems like emails and text messages are innovative methods that have been experimented with to encourage participation.

But such voting systems have got to be foolproof and not open to manipulation or able to be used by the unscrupulous and corrupt. There is no place for the old Irish adage, "vote early, vote often".

Indignation at an election that is widely suspected to have been rigged is one of the reasons for the overthrow of the regime in the former Soviet republic of Georgia a few weeks ago.

Today the United States joined the widespread concern being expressed at the conduct of Sunday's elections in Russia which apparently benefited President Putin.

Some may be upset at today's news that the Electorial Commission has decided the North West is not to get expanded postal voting next year because we do not meet their criteria.

But for democracy to work smoothly voting systems have to be above suspicion. They are better not being used if there is any doubt.