Local Elections 2024: Get Involved and How to Vote

Ireland’s local and European elections take place on Friday, June 7th. 92.5 Phoenix FM will be bringing you all of the latest coverage on Saturday, June 8th with live updates from the count centres throughout the day.

It is vital to have your voice heard by participating in the democratic process. To help you prepare for voting on Friday, we have put together an explainer on how the ballot paper works and how to ensure your preferred candidate or candidates stand the best chance of being elected.

Our election coverage

Phoenix Live Saturday will have the first updates from the initial counts in the local elections from 10am, plus some discussion on the emerging trends from local elections in other constituencies. From 5pm to 9pm, Jeff Murphy and Charlie Kurtz present a special programme on the Fingal votes, with David Miskell and Anne Sheridan reporting live from the count centre.

Still unsure of who to vote for?

We have spoken to many of the local and European election candidates alongside hosting town halls for each of the Dublin 15 constituencies. Find all of the interviews and specials on our Mixcloud playlist here. We also recommend taking the questionnaires on EU&I and WhichCandidate to find out which European election candidates best align with your views and priorities.

Single transferable vote: how it works

In Ireland, the electoral system we use is the single transferable vote. This means that each voter has one vote that can be transferred to candidates other than the one given the first preference vote. When filling out the ballot paper, assign a number from 1 downwards to each of the candidates that you would like to see elected. If you do not want to see a candidate or candidates elected, simply leave their box blank.

There is no obligation to give a preference vote to each candidate nor do you have to give preference votes to more than one candidate; however, it is best that you give preference votes to all candidates whose views and policy positions you support.

At the polling station

Voting will be open from 7am to 10pm. Head to the polling station marked on the polling card you should have received in advance of the elections, and bring this with you to the polling station. If you have misplaced or did not receive your polling card, please visit https://checktheregister.ie where you can find your assigned polling station.

Make sure to bring your polling card if you have it and a form of photo ID such as a passport or driving license. You may not be asked for ID if you present a polling card but it will be required otherwise.

You will receive two ballot papers upon verifying your identity, one for the local elections on blue paper and one for the European elections on white paper. The lists of candidates will be presented alphabetically going by last name, alongside their party affiliation if they are part of one.

Who can I vote for?

All residents of Ireland have the right to vote in local elections provided they have registered to vote by the deadline for this year’s elections. The right to vote in European elections is reserved for Irish citizens and EU citizens who are currently residing in Ireland.

Depending on your constituency, there may be as many as 15 candidates on your ballot paper, so it is important to familiarise yourself with the candidates up for election and have your preferences in mind before entering the polling station.

The candidates standing for election in the Dublin 15 electoral areas, listed in order of their appearance on the ballot paper, are: