It took a little longer than anticipated, but Lawrence County finally knows its election winners.

The delay was due to a software bug that prevented ballot counting at the courthouse on election night, prompting board of elections staff to manually count ballots, delaying results be several hours.

While it was frustrating to candidates and those following the races, it was not the end of the world.

Fortunately, the board had a backup plan — and the incident shows the absolute need for counties to keep paper records, no matter what form of balloting they use.

We thank those at the office who worked through the night to straighten things out.

Fortunately, the confusion occurred in an off-year election, with lower turnout.

In the days that come, we hope the software company will look at the current system and take steps to be prepared next time around, when there will be far more people voting.

Whether that mean an upgraded system, new software or other safeguards, all options should be examined.

It is always best to be prepared.