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In Ireland,direct elections byuniversal suffrage are used for thePresident, the ceremonial head of state; forDáil Éireann, the house of representatives of theOireachtas or parliament; for theEuropean Parliament; and forlocal government. All elections useproportional representation by means of thesingle transferable vote (PR-STV) in constituencies returning three or more members, except that the presidential election and by-elections use the single-winner analogue of STV, elsewhere calledinstant-runoff voting or the alternative vote. Members ofSeanad Éireann, the second house of the Oireachtas, are partlynominated, partlyindirectly elected, and partlyelected by graduates of particular universities.
Coalition governments have been the norm since 1989.Fine Gael (or its predecessorCumann na nGaedheal) orFianna Fáil have led every government since independence in 1922. Thecurrent government is a coalition of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Independents. Traditionally, theLabour Party was the third party, although since 2016 it has been surpassed bySinn Féin, and since 2020 by the Green Party. Smaller parties andindependents exist in the Dáil and more so in local government.
Since 2023, electoral operations and oversight of electoral integrity have been carried out by an independentElectoral Commission.
Entitlement to vote is based on citizenship. Residents of the state who are Irish citizens or British citizens may vote in elections toDáil Éireann, thelower house of theOireachtas (parliament). Residents who are citizens of any EU state may vote inEuropean Parliament elections, while any resident, regardless of citizenship, may vote inlocal elections.[1]
Theright of Irish expatriates to vote is heavily restricted. Only members of thearmed forces and diplomatic staff abroad may vote inDáil elections, while only expatriates who are graduates of theNational University of Ireland orTrinity College Dublin may vote inSeanad elections to theuniversity constituencies.
| Citizenship | Local elections | European elections | Dáil Elections | Presidential elections | Referendums |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland |  Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| United Kingdom | Y |  N[a] | Y | N | N |
| EU | Y | Y | N | N | N |
| Other non-EU | Y | N | N | N | N |
Military personnel, whether serving at home or abroad, vote by postal ballot. These votes are delivered by a courier service, usually a commercial one, but a military courier is used for ballots cast by Irish troops in Lebanon and Syria.[4] Voters living on islands off the west coast in countiesGalway,Mayo, andDonegal traditionally voted two or three days before polling day, but in 2014 the gap was narrowed, when they voted just one day beforehand.[5] Following an amendment to electoral law in 2022, early voting on the islands is allowed only in exceptional circumstances.[6]
Under the Constitution, the term of aDáil is a maximum of seven years; statute law, currently the Electoral Act 1992, establishes a lower maximum of five years.[7] The Taoiseach may advise the president to dissolve at any time. If a Taoiseach has ceased to retain the support of the majority of the Dáil, the president may in their absolute discretion refuse to dissolve the Dáil. To date, no president has refused to dissolve the Dáil.
Electoral law provides that the "same Dáil shall not continue for a longer period than five years from the date of its first meeting".[8] When the Dáil is dissolved, the Clerk of the Dáil must issue awrit of election to the returning officer for each constituency.[9] The election must take place on a date set by theMinister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage 18 to 25 days (disregarding any excluded day) after the writs have been issued.[10][11][12]
Elections are bysingle transferable vote (STV), with eachconstituency returning between three and five deputies, each called aTeachta Dála or TD. From 1980, constituencies have been redrawn by an independentConstituency Commission after each census, which was put on a statutory basis in 1997. From 2023, these functions have been carried out by theElectoral Commission.
The erection and removal of campaign posters by candidates is governed by the Litter Pollution Act 1997 and the Electoral (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 2009.[13] Posters may only be erected for a certain specified time period before an election. This time period is either (a) 30 days before the poll date or (b) from the date the polling day order for the election has been made, whichever provides the shorter period of time. Posters must be removed within seven days of polling day.
| Dates | Abbr | Title of government | Head of government |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1919–22 | DM | Dáil Ministry | President of Dáil Éireann |
| 1922 | PG | Provisional Government | Chairman of the Provisional Government |
| 1922–37 | EC | Executive Council of the Irish Free State | President of the Executive Council |
| 1937– | GI | Government of Ireland | Taoiseach |
Elections toSeanad Éireann take place after the general election to the Dáil. There are sixty members of the Seanad. Of these, eleven arenominated by theTaoiseach appointed next after the dissolution of the Dáil. Six are elected by STV inuniversity constituencies: three for theNational University (by graduates) and three forDublin University (by graduates and scholars ofTrinity College Dublin).[18][19] Forty-three are elected by an electorate of serving politicians (members of the incoming Dáil, the outgoing Seanad, and city and county councillors)[20] for fivevocational panels. These elections are also counted using STV, although using a different set of rules on the distribution of surpluses and the order of counts than in other elections in Ireland.[21]
Elections to theEuropean Parliament are held simultaneously across Europe every five years. In Ireland, as for Dáil elections, STV is used in constituencies returning three to five members.[22] Ireland has 14 seats in the European Parliament.
Elections tocounty councils, city councils and city and county councils are held every five years and by convention take place on the same day as European elections.Local electoral areas (LEAs) return between three and seven councillors by STV.[23] Until theLocal Government Reform Act 2014, elections were also held forborough and town councils. The 2014 Act abolished borough and town councils with their functions transferred to municipal districts of the county councils, comprising the county councillors from the LEA coterminous with the district.
Some members ofÚdarás na Gaeltachta were directly elected byGaeltacht residents between 1980 and 2012; since then all have been appointed by the government.[24][25]
ThePresident of Ireland is formally elected by the citizens of Ireland once in every seven years, except in the event of premature vacancy, when an election must be held within sixty days. The President is directly elected by secret ballot under the system of theinstant-runoff voting (although the Constitution describes it as "the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote"). While both Irish and British citizens resident in the state may vote in Dáil elections, only Irish citizens, who must be at least 18 years of age, may vote in the election of the President. The presidency is open to all citizens of the state who are at least 35. A candidate must be nominated by one of the following:
Where only one candidate is nominated, that candidate is declared elected without a ballot. No one may serve as President for more than two terms.
TheConstitution of Ireland wasapproved by plebiscite on 1 July 1937. The Constitution recognises two types of referendums:
There have been 38 referendums for amendments to the Constitution of Ireland. There have been no ordinary referendums. Since 2023, theElectoral Commission provides neutral information to the public on each amendment. An organisation can register with the commission as an "approved body" in order to campaign publicly for or against the proposal, and to havemonitors in polling stations andcounting agents at count centres. From 1998 to 2019, this function was carried out by aReferendum Commission established for each referendum.
For a proposal to changethe name of a place, a plebiscite is required.[26] The current 1956 Regulations on conducting such plebiscites relate to a postal vote ofratepayers;[27] in 2019 the relevant electorate was changed from ratepayers to local electors,[26] but as of 16 January 2020[update] the regulations have not been updated accordingly.[26][28] In a County Cork town,Charleville was chosen in a 1989 four-option plebiscite ahead ofRáth Luirc,An Rath, andRathgoggan.[29][30] TheOfficial Languages Act 2003 prevented the plebiscite provision applying to places in theGaeltacht, and so a 2005 plebiscite to change the name ofDingle, County Kerry was ruled invalid; in 2011, the 2003 Act was amended to remove the restriction.[31]
Other local plebiscites includethree in 2019 on whether to establishdirectly-elected mayors forCork City Council,Limerick City and County Council andWaterford City and County Council, of which onlythat for Limerick was passed.
the Dáil will rise to–day. ... It is my intention to advise the President so that on the 31st May he may issue his direction for the holding of a general election. His proclamation may be issued on the 31st May. ... the 22nd June [sic] will be the polling day and then the outgoing Dáil, the present Dáil, would have to be dissolved not later than 8th July. The House is aware that it will be dissolved as soon as the Clerk of the Dáil is able to inform us that he has got returns for all the writs.
In accordance with Section 79 of the Local Government Act 1946 and the Local Government (Changing of Place Names Regulations) 1956 (as amended by Section 67 of Local Government Act 1994);Brophy, Daragh (13 January 2015)."Palmerston or Palmerstown? … Residents have voted on a name change".TheJournal.ie. Retrieved8 January 2018.
The people of the north Cork town of Rath Luirc (or Charleville, or An Rath, or Rathgoggan) have voted to use the name Charleville for their town. Road signs in the area will be replaced.
