
Contents
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33 Gender Quotas in Ireland: A First for Proportional Representation by the Single Transferable Vote
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Constitutional Provisions for the Referendum Constitutional Provisions for the Referendum
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A Short History of Referendums in Ireland A Short History of Referendums in Ireland
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Moral and Religious Issues Moral and Religious Issues
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European Integration European Integration
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Voting Voting
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Political institutions Political institutions
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Other Issues Other Issues
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Electoral Behaviour at Referendums Electoral Behaviour at Referendums
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Turnout Turnout
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Influences on Voting Behaviour Influences on Voting Behaviour
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The Political Impact of the Referendum The Political Impact of the Referendum
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Conclusion Conclusion
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Notes Notes
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Bibliography Bibliography
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35 C35The Politics of Referendums
Get accessProfessor Michael Gallagher, MRIA, Professor of Comparative Politics, Trinity College Dublin
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Published:11 August 2021
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Abstract
Ireland has become one of the world’s biggest users of referendums, which are an important part of the system of governance. The use of the referendum is tightly related to constitutional change, and partly as a result, referendums have not been held on classic left–right tax and spend issues. Rather, the main issues that have generated referendums have been moral (particularly divorce and abortion) and the ratification of EU treaties. The chapter analyses the factors influencing referendum voting behaviour: the impact of party allegiance has been weakening, while social class and age are both strongly related to referendum voting behaviour, though the pattern varies depending on the issue. Referendums are sometimes accused of facilitating the suppression of minority rights, but that has not been the Irish experience. On the whole, the referendum experience in Ireland can be seen as an enhancement of, rather than a threat to, representative government.
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