Ireland: Bill to extend Irish Presidential election voting rights to people in Northern Ireland receives cross-party support | Derry Now

Sinn Féin President and Louth TD Gerry Adams has welcomed this morning’s cross party support from the Joint Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government for his Bill which seeks to extend the franchise in Presidential elections to citizens in the North and in the diaspora. The Bill which is co-sponsored by Seán Crowe TD would also lower the voting age in Presidential elections to 16. The Bill is entitled the ‘Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Presidential Voting) Bill 2014’.

Ireland: No diaspora vote in 2018 presidential election, says Coveney | The IRish Times

Ireland’s diaspora has no chance of voting in next year’s presidential election, Minister for Local Government Simon Coveney has confirmed. Work is however starting on improving the voter registration process, he said. Taoiseach Enda Kenny pledged during his St Patrick’s week visit to the US that a referendum would be held on whether or not to allow non-resident citizens, including those in Northern Ireland, to vote in presidential elections.

Ireland: Senators support plan for emigrant voting rights | The Irish Times

A broad coalition of Senators has called for voting rights to be extended to Irish citizens living abroad. Senators representing all of the political parties in the Upper House have backed a 10-point plan that would see the franchise extended to emigrants and Irish citizens living in Northern Ireland. The plan was unveiled at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon by Billy Lawless, an Independent Senator who lives in the US and is viewed as the Irish diaspora’s representative in the Seanad. It was accompanied by a policy paper prepared by Irish emigrants group VotingRights.ie.

Ireland: Visually impaired man wins case against State over voting | The Irish Times

A severely visually impaired man has won his High Court case over the State’s duty to vindicate his right to vote privately and without assistance in referendums and elections. Robbie Sinnott had taken proceedings against the Minister for the Environment and the State. He was supported by the Free Legal Advice Centres. In his judgment, Mr Justice Tony O’Connor said Mr Sinnott has “an inspiring desire to learn and to participate”. He shared Mr Sinnott’s concerns about the Department of the Environment’s delay over years in introducing the relevant tactile voting systems, and about the lack of information made publicly available about them.

Ireland: Online voting to be considered in referendum for Irish abroad | The Irish Times

The Government will consider online voting as an option in the referendum granting voting rights for the Irish abroad, Minister for the Diaspora Joe McHugh has said. Mr McHugh told RTÉ that an options paper containing a range of suggestions will be published. “It will contain all the various permutations. Ultimately we hope to have a rational and informed debate to determine the best options.” The decision to hold a referendum, which was taken by the Cabinet last week and announced by Taoiseach Enda Kenny in the US on Sunday, builds on the findings of the convention on the constitution in 2013 which recommended that the constitution be amended to provide for citizens resident outside the State, including Northern Ireland, to have the right to vote at presidential elections.

Ireland: Diaspora voting proposals raise ethical and political issues | The Irish Times

On the face of it, Enda Kenny’s commitment to extending the vote to the Irish diaspora in presidential elections sounds worthwhile and deserved. Such a generous gesture to Irish citizens living abroad also seems relatively straightforward, giving effect to one of the recommendations made by the Constitutional Convention. The franchise for the diaspora could start as early as 2025 if the optimism of the Taoiseach, Minister of State for the Diaspora Joe McHugh and other Ministers is to be believed. But such a fundamental change is fraught with logistical challenges, carries a big price tag and will raise a host of niggling ethical issues, as well as political headaches for parties other than Sinn Féin.

Ireland: Referendum to be held on granting Irish abroad voting rights | The Irish Times

A referendum on granting Irish citizens abroad the right to vote in Irish presidential elections is to be held the Taoiseach has announced. Speaking in Philadelphia, Enda Kenny said the proposed change, which will also apply to those living in Northern Ireland, will mark a “historic recognition of the strong and enduring links between Ireland and all our citizens, wherever they are in the world.” … The decision to hold a referendum, which was taken by the cabinet last week, builds on the findings of the convention on the constitution in 2013 which recommended that the constitution be amended to provide for citizens resident outside the State, including Northern Ireland, to have the right to vote at presidential elections.

Ireland: Sinn Féin delegates take ‘One Irish citizen, One Vote’ drive to Dáil | Derry Journal

Councillors from Derry City and Strabane took their campaign for votes for all Irish citizens in future Irish Presidential elections to the Dáil just before it rose for Christmas. Local delegates protested outside the Dáil over the Dublin Government’s failure to implement a Constitutional Convention’s recommendation that it hold a referendum on voting rights for all Irish citizens regardless of where they were born. The protest followed a Sinn Féin motion passed by Derry City and Strabane District Council last month in support of votes for all Irish people.

Ireland: Calls strengthen for voting rights for Irish in Northern Ireland and living abroad | Irish Central

Pressure is growing on the Irish government to extend voting rights in Irish presidential elections to Irish citizens living in Northern Ireland and across the globe. Newry, Mourne and Down Council is the latest local authority to add its voice to the call for northerners and the diaspora to participate in future Presidential votes. Last month, Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams criticized Enda Kenny after the taoiseach rejected a proposed referendum in 2017 on the right of Irish citizens in Northern Ireland and in the diaspora to vote for the next President. The Taoiseach said the delay in holding a referendum was due to the need for officials to determine who would be included in a new franchise as well as the cost of the venture. Mr. Adams described the decision as “unacceptable and deeply disappointing.”

Ireland: Government will publish paper on the extension of voting rights to Irish abroad in January | Irish Post

An options paper on extending voting rights in presidential elections to Irish citizens living abroad is due in January, according to Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald. The issue of extending the electoral franchise to members of the Irish Diaspora around the world was raised by Sinn Féin deputy Mary Lou McDonald TD, speaking during Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil. Ms McDonald accused the Government of a “con job” in their treatment of the prospect of the Irish abroad and those in Northern Ireland being handed the right to vote in presidential elections. But the Tánaiste rejected Sinn Féin’s accusation that the Government had been “stalling” on the issue, saying that “considerable practical implications” had been behind the motion’s apparent lack of speed.

Ireland: Referendum on Irish emigrant vote further delayed by Irish leader | Irish Central

Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams described Taoiseach Enda Kenny’s rejection of a promised referendum next year on the right of the diaspora and Irish citizens living in Northern Ireland to vote in presidential elections as “unacceptable and deeply disappointing.” The Sinn Féin leader also criticized the announcement by the Taoiseach ruling out a referendum before the next presidential election in 2018. In his response to a question from the Sinn Féin leader, the Taoiseach blamed the delay in holding the referendum on the need for officials to determine who would be included in a new franchise, what categories of people would be covered, and the cost of the venture. Kenny, according to an Irish Times report, said he was still committed to holding a referendum on the issue of emigrant voting for the president and had recently met with Diaspora Minister Joe McHugh to request that the research being done by an interdepartmental group be concluded soon.

Ireland: Meet Billy Lawless, the Irish Expat Senator Who Can’t Vote | Wall Street Journal

Long before Billy Lawless became the first expatriate to serve in the Irish Senate, he was a regular guest at a uniquely Irish event known as the “American wake.” A full-blown going-away party held in a small Irish village, this occasion earned its dour name “because Johnny or Mary were going to the United States and that was probably the last we’d ever see of them,” said Mr. Lawless, a Chicago restaurateur who grew up on the outskirts of Galway. “But that day is gone now. Everything has changed.” Though emigration once implied a dramatic severing of ties, today’s expats are remaining more engaged than ever with the political affairs of their home countries, following local news on the internet and voting from abroad. In a more profound break with old patterns, expats like Mr. Lawless are even taking on political roles in their native countries. Most nations, including 23 of 28 European Union member states, now allow some form of voting for non-resident citizens, said Jean-Thomas Arrighi, a political scientist specializing in the issue at the University of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. Thirteen countries have gone further, establishing “external constituencies,” with representatives directly elected by citizens abroad.

Ireland: Referendum in Ireland on whether Irish abroad should have voting rights at home looks likely | Irish Post

A referendum is likely to be held in Ireland asking the electorate whether millions of Irish living abroad should have a vote in the next Presidential election. A spokesman for the Department of the Taoiseach told The Irish Post why a referendum was necessary: “Any such vote granted to those not living in the Republic would require a change in the constitution. This in turn needs a referendum to enact such a change.” The department confirmed that discussions have been entered into by the Minister for the Diaspora Joe McHugh. However, no date had been fixed for any referendum and neither had the exact wording of any such question been formulated.

Ireland: Call to give blind people right to secret vote | Irish Examiner

The Government has been asked to “rectify its failure” to provide blind and vision impaired voters with their constitutional right to a secret ballot. The call has come from the National Council for the Blind of Ireland (NCBI) as a High Court challenge begins against the Department of the Environment, Community, and Local Government by Robert Sinnott of the Blind Legal Alliance. The action claims people who are blind or vision-impaired cannot vote in secret. People with sight loss are entitled to enlist the assistance of a ‘trusted friend’ or the presiding officer when casting their ballot.

Ireland: Referendum to give emigrants a vote for president ‘only a first step’ | The Irish Times

Organisations representing Irish citizens overseas have welcomed the announcement that a referendum will be held early next year on the right of emigrants to vote in Presidential elections. Plans for a referendum were discussed last week at an interdepartmental group on diaspora affairs, chaired by Minister for the Diaspora Joe McHugh. Proposals will be brought to the Global Irish Civic Forum, a meeting of organisations and individuals working with Irish communities around the world, in Dublin next February. It is the second time such a meeting will take place; almost 200 people attended the first forum in June 2015. A recent poll of 350 Irish people who emigrated since 2008, carried out by Ipsos MRBI for The Irish Times, found 62 per cent would like a vote for the president.Sixty-three per cent wanted a say in general elections, 61 per cent in referendums, and 53 per cent in Seanad elections. The remainder of those surveyed were fairly evenly split between those who had no opinion on the issue, or who didn’t think they should have a right to vote.

Ireland: Referendum on voting rights for the Irish abroad planned for 2017 | Irish Central

A referendum, planned for early next year, on Ireland’s election law could lead to the country’s 800,000 passport holders who live outside the state getting the right to vote in Irish presidential elections. The Minister for the Diaspora Joe McHugh unveiled plans for the referendum during a special event in Kampala, Uganda attended by Irish citizens living in the country. McHugh admitted that if the diaspora voting in the presidential election went well then voting rights for emigrants could be expanded to include the right to vote in general elections. Currently there are 800,000 Irish people with Irish passports living outside the state in 120 countries around the world. They currently do not have the right to vote on matters in Ireland. The proposed referendum, if passed, would see this law change.

Ireland: Brexit vote makes united Ireland suddenly thinkable | Reuters

Protestant unionists are queuing for Irish passports in Belfast and once quiet Catholic nationalists are openly campaigning for a united Ireland, signs of deep shifts in the United Kingdom’s most troubled province since Britain voted to leave the EU. Eighteen years after a peace deal ended decades of fighting between mainly Catholic nationalists who favour a united Ireland and mainly Protestant unionists who favour remaining part of the United Kingdom, Britain’s Brexit vote is making people on both sides of the divide in Northern Ireland think the unthinkable. Northern Ireland, like neighbouring Scotland, voted to stay in the European Union, with 56 pecent in favour, even though Britain as a whole voted to leave the bloc.

Ireland: Emigrant groups form coalition to push for voting rights | The Irish Times

Groups representing Irish emigrants from Britain, the US, Australia, Germany and Latin America have formed a “global coalition” to put pressure on the next government to introduce voting rights for Irish citizens overseas. In letters sent to Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny and Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin, the coalition, led by VotingRights.ie, has called on the next government to “end the current disfranchisement of one-in-six Irish-born citizens who are emigrants”. Ireland is one of only three countries in the EU, along with Greece and Malta, which does not allow its citizens overseas to vote. The new coalition claims that more than 125 countries worldwide have some provision to enable absentee citizens to cast a ballot from abroad. More than 250,000 Irish people have moved abroad since 2008, and “many of these emigrants are eager to return home with new talents to raise families and contribute to the strength of the nation,” the coalition said in the letters to Mr Kenny and Mr Martin.

Ireland: After Inconclusive Vote Ireland Faces Political Stalemate | Wall Street Journal

Ireland’s newly elected lawmakers were settling in for a protracted period of negotiations over the formation of a new government Tuesday, as the counting of votes cast Friday was wrapping up. The new legislature, which is known as Dáil Éireann, will meet for the first time on March 10, though there are few signs that a government would be in place by then, or in subsequent weeks. While a number of alignments between parties and independent lawmakers are possible, none seems easy to arrange as long as the two large center-right groupings—Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil—remain reluctant to work together. A second election is possible, though most parties will seek to avoid a contest this year to gain time to rebuild their war chests.

Ireland: Counting finally ends six days later | Financial Times

The counting of votes in Ireland’s general election finally ended on Thursday as the last two parliamentary seats were distributed six days after voters went to the polls. The result of the election is now official – and it does not make happy reading for Enda Kenny, the outgoing prime minister, writes Vincent Boland in Dublin. Mr Kenny’s centre-right Fine Gael party won 50 of parliament’s 158 seats – a far worse showing than it had expected. It had won 76 seats in the last election in 2011, and (after defections) had 66 seats in the outgoing parliament, making it by far the biggest party.

Ireland: Divided parliament mulls awkward pacts, second election | Associated Press

Ireland’s election has produced a parliament full of feuding factions and no obvious road to a majority government, spurring lawmakers to warn Sunday that the country could face a protracted political deadlock followed by a second election. For the first time in Irish electoral history, the combined popular vote Friday for Ireland’s two political heavyweights – the Fianna Fail and Fine Gael parties – fell below 50 per cent as voters infuriated by austerity measures shifted their support to a Babel of anti-government voices. The results left parliament with at least nine factions and a legion of loose-cannon independents, few of them easy partners for a coalition government, none of them numerous enough to make a difference on their own.

Ireland: Pencils and rankings: It’s time for an Irish-style election | Associated Press

Ireland is voting for a new government Friday, but the country might not know the full official results until Monday — and the government won’t take shape until next month, if one can even be formed. The AP explains some of the peculiarities of Ireland’s democracy and its slow dance with election results. In Ireland’s system of proportional representation, voters get one ballot but can vote for as many listed candidates as they like in order of preference. You literally can vote for every single politician with a hand-written No. 1, 2, 3 and so on. The multi-numbered ballots mean they must be counted in multiple rounds. At first the total number of votes cast in a district is calculated. This is divided by the number of seats in that district, which produces a quota, which is the target needed to win a seat. If the winning candidate in the first count gets more votes than the quota, their surplus votes are redistributed to lower-ranking candidates, starting with the No. 2s registered on the winning candidate’s ballot. And if there is no winner in a round, they eliminate a losing candidate at the bottom of the list and the No. 2s on those ballots are transferred to other candidates.

Ireland: Likely hung parliament spells talk of ‘grand coalition’ | The Guardian

A government in Ireland is unlikely to be formed in time for the annual St Patrick’s Day meeting of Irish premier and US president in Washington DC, with the Republic’s election on course to produce a hung parliament. Fine Gael, the main party in the outgoing coalition, is set to lose up to 20 seats as voters wreaked revenge on its coalition government with Labour that brought in austerity measures. Ireland has been fighting to plug the gap in the nation’s finances and meet the demands of the International Monetary Fund, which had bailed it out from bankruptcy. Its economy has the current highest growth rate in the EU (7%) and falling unemployment. Former Labour leader and ex-deputy prime minister, Eamon Gilmore, said his party’s disastrous performance – down from 33 seats in the 2011 election to under 10 – was a result of it being prepared to take hard decisions during its time in office.

Ireland: Risks of hung parliament, impasse after election Friday | Associated Press

Politicians issued their final appeals for support Thursday on the eve of Ireland’s election, a contest that could produce a hung parliament and political instability in Europe’s main success story for austerity. Prime Minister Enda Kenny and Deputy Prime Minister Joan Burton shared a pot of tea at a Dublin restaurant as they asked voters to keep their 5-year-old coalition government intact. Polls consistently suggest they’ll lose their majority position in parliament and will need more allies to remain in office. Kenny and Burton have struggled during the past three weeks of door-to-door campaigning to win credit for Ireland’s unexpectedly rapid rebound from a 2010 international bailout, the crisis that brought them to power five years ago.

Ireland: Voting in Ireland’s general election 2016 – No Emigrants Need Apply | Irish Central

We remember the long lines at ports and airports when Irish emigrants, at great personal cost, came home to vote in the marriage equality referendum, in May 2015. The sense was of a lost tribe returning to its roots and having a say in a critical decision for the Irish people. The Irish government did not make it easy. Polling stations could have been set up in embassies and consulates, a form of postal voting could have been introduced. Instead, many trekked thousands of miles, from as far away as Australia and California, to make their vote count. Yet, as Washington expert Kevin Sullivan wrote, only about 66,000 of the 280,000 who left after the Celtic Tiger collapsed were eligible to vote leaving the emigrant Irish with a much diminished voice when it came to the battle over human rights for all.

Ireland: For Dublin’s Homeless, a Precarious Right to Vote | Dublin Inquirer

In 2009, Benny Donnelly was homeless on the streets of Dublin. Mostly he slept rough, though occasionally he managed to spend the night in a hostel. But he was determined to have his say in the Treaty of Lisbon referendum. Donnelly was unsure of what procedure to follow, since he didn’t have an address. But, sure of his right to vote, he headed to Bridewell Garda Station – the closest one to Merchants Quay hostel – to register. “There was no one willing to help,” he recalls. Despite his efforts, he never learned how to register to vote without a permanent address, and he’s unclear on the matter to this day. “If there was a referendum on abortion tomorrow, I’d want to vote,” he says. But he wouldn’t know how. Article 16 of the Constitution guarantees the right to vote in Dáil elections to all citizens over the age of 18. But for some it is much more difficult to vote than for others.

Ireland: Emigrants could get voting rights for three years, Deenihan says | The Irish Times

The Government is considering extending voting rights to Irish emigrants for three years after they leave the country without holding a referendum on the issue, the Minister for Diaspora Affairs has said. Under existing electoral legislation, Irish citizens are entitled to vote for 18 months after they leave the country, if they intend to return to live in Ireland within that timeframe. Speaking at the first Global Irish Civic Forum at Dublin Castle today, Jimmy Deenihan said there’s a possibility this could be extended to 36 months “without going to the people”.

Ireland: As Ireland Voted For Same-Sex Marriage, Thousands of Expats Came #Hometovote | Wall Street Journal

We woke up on Saturday morning, turned on our radios, and checked our Facebook and Twitter accounts. It was a landslide. Ireland became the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote. With 60.5% of the population coming out to vote, it was the largest turnout for a referendum in recent years and, based on the final count, more than 62% of the country voted ‘yes.’ The ‘no’ side conceded by 10 a.m. “Congratulations to the Yes side. Well done,” one prominent ‘no’ campaigner tweeted. But it wasn’t as simple as that for us. For the gay people of Ireland, this was our lives. And the high turnout across the country proved that, with thousands of expats returning home.

Ireland: Voters set to make history in gay marriage referendum | The Guardian

Irish voters are set make history as the republic becomes the first nation to ask its electorate to legalise gay marriage after a hard-fought and occasionally rancorous battle between conservative and liberal Ireland. More than 3m voters are invited to cast ballots over 15 hours in Ireland’s 43 constituencies, with the historic result to follow on Saturday. Though some 20 other countries worldwide have already legalised gay marriage, Ireland would be the first to do so through a referendum. The move would mark the culmination of an improbable journey in a country in which homosexual acts were still illegal as recently as 1993.