Extend the Dáil franchise to EU citizens

Electoral law in Ireland and in the United Kingdom extends reciprocal voting rights for parliamentary elections for respective citizens. In UK law, this has its foundation in s. 2 of the Ireland Act 1949, whereby “ the Republic of Ireland is not a foreign country”. This right to vote had briefly been reconsidered by Margaret Thatcher, although that would have created difficulties in Northern Ireland given the population who are Irish citizens only. This was effectively resolved by the reciprocal basis in Irish law with the Electoral (Amendment) Act 1985, which required a constitutional amendment, which itself passed in a referendum with 75%.

An unused provision of the 1985 Act allows the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government to make an order allowing citizens of any other Member State of the European Union to vote where Irish citizens have voting rights in that Member State.

The provision in relation to the right of British citizens to vote in Dáil elections is not tied to their EU membership, and so would be unaffected by Brexit.

But as we build stronger alliances with other EU Member States, extending the franchise on such a reciprocal basis would be a meaningful demonstration of commitment to integration and deepening solidarity between the peoples of the Union. There are good reasons for us to widen the franchise for Dáil elections more broadly, which I’ve touched on before. Political institutions derive legitimacy from the principle of government by the consent of the governed, and it increases possibilities for integration into the local community. In my local party branch, we have a Polish member of our committee who will be out knocking on doors with us, but who can now vote only in European and local elections, but not Dáil elections.

We can have a wider debate about how far immigrant should be extended, but to allow citizens of the other 26 EU states to vote in Dáil elections requires no further law; it is simply a diplomatic matter, for the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government in conjunction with the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to establish on a reciprocal basis with any one of the other states.