Irish general election: How voters will choose the next parliament

Ireland’s general election held on Friday will decide who will sit in the Dáil, the lower house of the Oireachtas (Ireland’s parliament).

Elected members are known as Teachtaí Dála (TDs).

Both the number of TDs and constituencies will increase for the 2024 elections. After the 2023 review.

There are now 43 Dáil constituencies (up from 39 in 2020) that will elect between three and five TDs.

174 TDs will be elected in 2020, up from 160.

One seat in the Dáil goes to the Ceann Comhairle (Speaker), so 88 TDs is the required number for an overall majority.

More than 3.4 million people are registered to vote in the Republic of Ireland.

The Republic of Ireland elects its government using a system of proportional representation known as the single transferable vote.

Voters will have the opportunity to rank the candidates in their constituency by preference, marking their favorite as number one, their next choice as number two, and so on.

They can vote for as many or as many candidates as they want.

Candidates must reach a certain number of votes to be elected.

This number is decided by a mathematical formula based on the number of seats available for each constituency and the votes cast.

Ballot counting takes place in several rounds.

Each ballot is initially assigned to the first choice.

Once a candidate receives the required number of votes, they are elected and any remaining ballots marked with them as first choice move to the second ranked preference. .

Ballots continue to move to the next usable priority until all seats in the constituency are filled with candidates who have reached the quota.

Politics in the Republic has traditionally been dominated by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.

The two parties emerged after a split in nationalist opinion over the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921.

Fianna Fáil was once seen as more centrist, Fine Gael more conservative, but the differences have blurred and both are now seen as centre-right parties.

Four years ago, Fianna Fáil won 38 seats and Fine Gael 35.

In order to achieve a governing majority, a coalition government was formed between Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party.

This year’s election was the first major electoral test for Fine Gael leader and Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Simon Harris.

He was. New to the role in AprilHe became the youngest person to lead the Republic of Ireland at the age of 37 when his predecessor Leo Varadkar resigned.

Harris signed for Wicklow as a TD in 2011 aged 24.

He had. Rapid rise in party ranksTaking his first Cabinet role before his 30th birthday.

As Minister of Health, he oversaw the Republic’s vote to end the abortion ban and was in charge of the country’s initial response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fianna Fáil is led by Tánaiste (Irish Deputy Prime Minister) Michéal Martin.

He is an experienced politician, having left a short-lived teaching career in 1985 to work full-time in politics.

Martin was first elected as a TD in 1989 and has been re-elected at every election since.

He assumed the mantle as leader of Fianna Fáil in 2011 and was elected Taoiseach in 2020 as part of a three-party coalition agreement.

Sinn Féin, led by Mary Lou McDonaldis an Irish republican and democratic socialist party and the main opposition party.

MacDonald was the party’s first MEP (Member of the European Parliament) in 2004, and in 2011 won her first seat for the party in the Dáil for the Dublin Central constituency.

She became vice-president of Sinn Féin in 2009, and took over as president from Gerry Adams in 2018.

Since then, the Dublin politician has sought to distance his party from criticism about its historical links to IRA violence.

In 2020, his party achieved significant gains and tops in the popular vote.By winning 37 seats.

It has become The biggest party in Northern Irelandin its councils as well as in its assembly and at Westminster.

Other parties putting forward candidates for the election include Labour, the Social Democrats, PBP-Solidarity, Aontú and the newly formed Independent Ireland.

The campaign saw its fair share of viral moments.

An awkward encounter between a care worker and Simon Harris during the election campaign in County Cork last weekend was viewed millions of times on social media platforms during the final week of the campaign.

In his first campaign as leader of Fine Gael, Harris had plenty of practice trying to put out electoral fires.

The party had been campaigning under a “new energy” slogan since its election as leader and Taoiseach earlier this year.

Observers wondered how the ‘Harris Hop’ had resembled a ‘flop’.

Fianna Fail, on the other hand, managed to avoid any negative viral moments.

Under the leadership of Michael Martin, the party had what it called a steady campaign, with no major wins but no major setbacks either.

Sinn Féin faced questions over its handling Recent internal conflicts on both sides of the border, but these incidents do not appear to have had a significant impact on the campaign as the party’s polling position has marginally improved. Restored.

He focused on providing his policy positions around key issues such as his proposed solution to the nation’s housing crisis.

The exit poll suggests it’s tight. – Fine Gael 20%, Sinn Fein 21.1%, Fine Gael 20%, Fianna Fail 19.5%.

The two main parties in the outgoing Irish government have once again… Rejected Sinn Féin as a potential coalition partner.

Polling also suggests that more independents will be elected than in 2020, and if the parliamentary math is tight, their role in government formation could be significant.

If it is to enter government for the first time, Sinn Féin is likely to have to look to smaller parties or like-minded independents to secure a majority.

The first meeting of the new deal will take place on December 18, but coalition talks are unlikely to be concluded by then.

Few expect a new government to be in place before 2025.

A government will be formally formed when the Dáil passes a vote to install a new Taoiseach.

Ballot boxes were sent to the constituency counting center after polling closed on Friday, but counting will not begin until 09:00 local time on Saturday.

Counting can sometimes last several days.