When and what will it be called? – The Irish Times

Taoiseach Simon Harris has confirmed that he has the general elections later this week once the Finance Bill comes into force Budget 2025 measures and other legislation, passes the Dáil.

“I don’t think this will come as a shock to anyone in this country,” he told reporters before heading into Tuesday’s cabinet meeting.

So, how will the choreography go?

This is the last week of the current Dáil. A series of bills will be sent through the House of Representatives on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by elections on Thursday or Friday. The slightly complicating factor in the Taoiseach’s schedule is that he has to attend a meeting of European leaders in Budapest on Thursday afternoon and evening, leading into Friday morning. So he calls the election on Thursday morning before he leaves, or on Friday afternoon after he returns.

What’s the best guess?

Friday. Senior officials say they are preparing for that. The Prime Minister is understandably not keen on calling an election and then being out of the country for the first 24 hours of the campaign. And he can’t skip the summit, which will likely revolve around a discussion about the EU’s response to the American elections result. So the expectation is that he will return from Budapest as early as possible on Friday – probably early in the afternoon – and go to Aras an Uachtarain.

Why is he going there?

The Taoiseach does not actually dissolve the Dáil; the President does so, on the advice of the Taoiseach. The President has the power to refuse a dissolution, but this has never been used and constitutional scholars say that in reality it could only be used in the case where there was a clear alternative government with a majority in the Dáil. That is not the case. President Michael D Higgins will formally authorize the dissolution, and the 33rd Dáil will no longer exist. There are no TDs from then on because there is no Dáil. A new Dáil will meet after the election, probably around December 18.

But there’s still a government, right?

Yes. There is always a government. When the next Dáil elects a new Prime Minister – or continues with the same one, and he or she forms a new government – ​​the ministers take over from the current government. In the meantime, the ministers of the current government will remain in office, although the agreement is that they will form a transitional government and will not make major policy decisions. However, that is just a convention, not a rule, and sometimes circumstances dictate otherwise. In 2020, it was a transitional government led by Leo Varadkar – after suffering a terrible election result – that introduced the first lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic.

What about election day?

This will be determined by the Minister of Housing and Local Government Darragh O’Brien. He essentially has to choose whether it should be a three-week or four-week campaign. Speaking to reporters last week, he said he would do what party leaders agreed. This will almost certainly be a three-week campaign, with votes being cast on Friday, November 29.