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IRELAND: Vote counting begins in tight election

Vote counting in Ireland’s general election gets underway Saturday with an exit poll indicating a tight finish between the three main parties.

After voting concluded late Friday, an exit poll indicated that pro-Irish unity party Sinn Fein were leading with 21.1 percent of the vote.

But neck and neck on 21.0 percent was the centre-right Fine Gael whose leader is the outgoing prime minister Simon Harris.

Fine Gael’s centre-right partner in the outgoing coalition — Fianna Fail, led by deputy prime minister Micheal Martin — were slightly further back in third with 19.5 percent.

Counting begins at 0900 GMT Saturday with partial results expected throughout the day.

A final result, however, may not be clear for days as EU member Ireland’s proportional representation system sees votes of eliminated candidates redistributed during multiple rounds of counting.

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Naija Times