Has Coir any rights to monitor Polling stations?

Coir have announced that they will be monitoring polling stations counting ballot boxes there and at the count centre to verify that there has been no interference with the count process because of the

"undemocratic nature of forcing the Irish people to vote again on the Lisbon Treaty has prompted many concerned calls to the Cóir office regarding the security of the vote."

Here's my question: Coir are not a political party, do not have any elected representatives, yet they can just turn up at a vote centre and check ballot boxes - can they actually do this?

Whatever about the mud slinging of the campaign, the actual count process is very well carried out here (we've lots of practice).

Anyone know?

I think anyone can turn up and watch the count.

jhegarty said:

I think anyone can turn up and watch the count.

Click to expand...

Yes this is correct. The policital campaigners do it all the time.

Anyone can turn up and watch the count, it keeps everything transparent.

Bit rich of them to turn that into a rather sanctimonious nanny opportunity. Basically they are implying that nobody else could possibly spot miscounts, only them. Ah well they are welcome to watch.

Oh but I don't think they can check the ballot boxes? There is a difference between attending the count and inspecting the boxes.

Sorry, I don't understand how anyone could have an issue with people checking the intention of the voters are carried out.

I guess it was that they implied that the actual vote process wasn't going to be carried out properly - its a straighforward yes/no count, not an election. It bothered me that they are an unaccountable group themselves.