14 May 2022
By Tom Collins
tom@TheCork.ie
Politics
When will the next general election take place? The quick answer is before 1 February 2025
The current Dáil – which is controlled by a Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Green coalition – must be dissolved no later than 19 February 2025. The date derives from the Electoral Act 1992, Section 33, which states that the same Dáil “shall not continue for a longer period than five years from the date of its first meeting”. The writ for the election must be moved on the dissolution of the Dáil. The election must take place on a day 18 to 25 days (disregarding any excluded day) after the writs have been moved.
So, while no precise date is known yet, the election has to take place before 1 February 2025, but of course it could happen sooner than that if the current coalition collapses. At the time of writing, this means the current coalition will be in place for anther 2 years, 9 months approx.
When there is an election, the registered voters will have their say on who they want to be their new between 169 to 179 TDs across 39 constituencies, although even that is not certain! because the number of constituencies may change before the election based on Census data which indicates a growing population.
