The election season nears its close on Thursday as voters decide who will be the next president of Ireland. The last debates will be held on Monday, and Newstalk and Google have invited the public to join the digital debate by sending in questions via YouTube. That evening, Pat Kenny will host the final televised debate on RTÉ before the broadcast moratorium takes effect.
The presidential election is run by proportional representation, so voters’ preferences, from first to seventh, have a big impact on who wins the election.
Two referendums will also come before the people on Thursday. The first, if passed, would amend the Constitution to allow judges’ salaries to be cut if the salaries of other public servants are also on the chopping block, or if the Government decides it is “in the public interest.” It would also allow the Government to make judges pay the public-service pension levy, which is a pension contribution. The second referendum would allow the Houses of the Oireachtas to conduct investigations into matters they decide are of general public importance. The Houses would have the power to look into any individuals connected to the investigations.
Children will get a holiday if their school is used as a polling station, all of which will be open from 7am to 10pm.
