Ireland Kicks Off Presidential Election
(MENAFN) Ireland launched its presidential election Friday, with more than 3.6 million eligible voters casting ballots across over 5,500 polling stations in a contest to replace the outgoing head of state.
Voting commenced at 7 a.m. local time (0600GMT) and continues until 10 p.m. (2100GMT), according to local news outlets, marking the climax of a campaign that officially featured three contenders vying for the presidency.
The ballot lists Fianna Fail's Jim Gavin, Fine Gael's Heather Humphreys, and independent candidate Catherine Connolly. However, Gavin exited the race after the nomination deadline passed, leaving his name on the ballot—any votes he receives will be tallied and redistributed under Ireland's electoral framework.
Ireland employs a proportional representation system called the single transferable vote, requiring voters to rank candidates by preference: one, two, or three. When no candidate secures the necessary quota, the last-place contender is removed from contention and their votes are reallocated based on voters' secondary choices.
For tens of thousands of citizens, Friday represents their inaugural experience participating in a national election.
A Thursday survey revealed Connolly commanding 40% support versus 25% for Humphreys, a former Cabinet minister. Excluding undecided respondents and invalid ballots, Connolly's backing surged to 55% against Humphreys' 35%.
Two additional polls released earlier this week similarly showed Connolly, 68, holding a substantial advantage in the competition to succeed Michael D. Higgins, who completed two seven-year terms as president and is therefore barred from seeking a third.
Vote counting commences Saturday at 9 a.m. (0800GMT) when ballot boxes are unsealed.
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