Counting has begun in the Irish general election, as exit polls suggest a close contest between the three major parties.

Ireland's opposition party Sinn Féin looked on course to narrowly win the popular vote in the country's general election on Friday, an exit poll suggested, but its two main political rivals— the incumbent coalition parties of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil— will likely have enough support to retain power.

Ireland's two large centre-right parties looked on course to be returned to power after an election on Friday, but they will likely need at least one junior partner to reach a majority, raising questions about the stability of the next government.

Counting will start across the Republic of Ireland at 09:00 local time Exit polls in the Irish election suggest a close contest between the three major parties. Figures from Friday's exit poll show Sinn Féin slightly ahead of both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil in first preference votes.

The Irish General Election 2024 will be held this Friday, November 29 - here, an overview of the major political parties running candidates. What parties are running in the Irish General Election 2024?

The Republic of Ireland elects its government using a system of proportional representation known as the single transferable vote. Voters rank candidates in their constituency in order of preference, marking their favourite with a number one, a number two beside their next choice and so on.

Counting has begun in the Irish general election, as exit polls suggest a close contest between the three major parties

Vote counting is underway in Ireland’s national election. An exit poll suggests the contest is a close-fought race among the country’s three largest political parties.

The polls are set to open for the Irish general election. Polling stations will be open between 07:00 and 22:00 local time on Friday to allow voters to choose representatives to serve as Teachtaí Dála (TDs) in the Dáil, the lower house of the Oireachtas (Ireland's parliament).

Ireland's Prime Minister Simon Harris votes as his Fine Gael party seeks a fourth term in office :: November 29, 2024 :: Wicklow, Ireland A slide in support for his Fine Gael party showed signs of stabilising with last opinion poll indicating a likely return of the centre-right led coalition to government.