At Stake in this Election:  

• All 160 seats in the Irish Dáil 

Government Structure:  

• Chief of State: President Michael D. HIGGINS (since 11 November 2011) 

• Head of Government: Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Simon HARRIS (since 9 April 2024) 

• Assembly: bicameral parliament (Oireachtas) with 60 seat Senate (Seanad Éireann) and 160 seat Dáil (Dáil Éireann) 

Electoral System:  

• The President is directly elected by plurality vote to a 7-year term, once renewable.  

• The Taoiseach is appointed by the President and approved by Parliament 

•  49 of 60 members in the Senate are indirectly elected from 5 vocational panels of nominees by electoral college. The remaining 11 are appointed by the Taoiseach.  

• All 160 members of the Dáil are directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation single transferable vote to 5-year terms.  

Last Election:  

In the last election, Sinn Fein and Fianna Fáil both received 37 of the 159 seats up for election. Fianna Fáil formed a government with Fine Gael and the Green Party. Voter turnout was 63%. 

Information for Voters: 

Frequently Asked Questions (in English and Irish)  

Key Deadlines:  

• Candidate filing deadline: 16 November 2024 

• Voter registration deadline: 12 November 2024 

Main Parties in this Election:  

• Fianna Fáil 

• • Leader: Micheál MARTIN 

• • Seats won in the last election: 37 seats out of 159 

• Sinn Fein 

• • Leader: Mary Lou MCDONALD 

• • Seats won in the last election: 37 seats out of 159 

• Fine Gael 

• • Leader: Simon HARRIS 

• • Seats won in the last election: 37 seats out of 159 

• Green Party / Comhaontas Glas 

• • Leader: Roderic O’GORMAN 

• • Seats won in the last election: 12 seats out of 159 

• Labour Party 

• • Leader: Ivana BACKIK 

• • Seats won in the last election: 6 seats out of 159 

• Social Democrats 

• • Leader: Holly CAIRNS 

• • Seats won in the last election: 6 seats out of 159 

• People Before Profit – Solidarity  

• • Alliance of People Before Profit and Solidarity 

• • Seats won in the last election: seats out of 159 

• Aontú 

• • Leader: Peadar TÓIBÍN 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 seat out of 159 

• Independents 4 Change 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 seat out of 159 

Population and Registered Voters: 

• Population: 5,262,382 (2023 est.)  

• Registered Voters: 3,502,044 (2020) 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population: 2,653,866 (2023 est.) 

• CEDAW Status: Acceded 23 Dec 1985 

• Gender Quota: Yes, the amount of public funding for political parties is contingent in part on parties maintaining a gender balance of 60-40 or better among candidates.  

• Female Candidates in this election: Yes 

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 24 of 60 (40%) in the Senate and 37 out of 160 (23%) in the House of Representatives 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.950, Very High, rank 7 (2022) 

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: 14.3 (2023) 

Disability Data: 

• CRPD Status: Signed 30 Mar 2007, Ratified 20 Mar 2018 

• Projected population with a disability: 841,981 (2023 est.) 

IFES Resources: 

• Does IFES have a presence in Ireland: No 

• Election Access: Yes  

• ElectionJudgments: Yes, 1 judgment