Debate contribution: Election of the President of Ireland: Voting Rights

Debate contribution by Mr Declan Kearney on 6 May 2025.

MLA: Mr Declan Kearney
Party at the time: Sinn Féin
Date: 6 May 2025
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Private Members' Business
Heading: Election of the President of Ireland: Voting Rights
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 4929870

Text

I beg to move
Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle. Tá mé breá sásta an rún seo a mholadh, ar ábhar atá ríthábhachtach agus fíorshuntasach do shaoránaigh Éireannacha anseo sna Sé Chontae.
Sinn Féin urges all Assembly Members, regardless of their political perspective, to support the motion, which calls on the Irish Government to fulfil their responsibility and finally extend the right to vote in Irish presidential elections to the hundreds of thousands of Irish citizens living in the North of Ireland. It is finally time for an Irish Government to resolve that democratic deficit and to set the date for a referendum on allowing Irish citizens here to have their say in presidential elections. By speaking with one voice on the issue, our Assembly can powerfully affirm the principles of parity of esteem, mutual respect and equality in the Good Friday Agreement. Central to the agreement of our peace settlement was the recognition of the birthright of every citizen in the North to identify as Irish, British or neither, if they so choose, and to be accepted as such. The agreement included a key provision that the Irish Government would amend article 2 of the Irish constitution, granting the right to full Irish citizenship. The duty of the Irish Government is established clearly under article 2, which underpins the birthright of everyone born on the island of Ireland
"to be part of the Irish Nation."
Equally, the right of those of us in the North who are Irish to identify as Irish citizens is recognised in the Good Friday Agreement. Twelve years have passed since 2013, when the constitutional convention in Dublin voted overwhelmingly — by a margin of 78% — in support of extending the franchise to Irish citizens living in the North and abroad. That was an important recognition of the reality of hundreds of thousands of Irish citizens living in the North of Ireland and of the vast Irish diaspora that populates the globe: North America, Australia, the European Union and elsewhere. That position has been further endorsed by all the main parties in the Southern state. Due to a lack of progress on the proposal to hold a referendum, Sinn Féin brought legislation to the Dáil in 2014 to give effect to the recommendations of the constitutional convention on presidential voting rights. In 2017, the Irish Government agreed to a referendum on amending article 12 of the Irish constitution to meet their obligation, but no progress has been made on that to date. Notably, the 2020 Programme for Government contained a pledge to extend presidential voting rights to Irish citizens in the North and beyond, yet nothing was done about that. In another backward step, the current Government have failed to prioritise the extension of the franchise in presidential elections in their current Programme for Government. That is a regressive omission and a further denial of clearly defined and recognised rights of Irish citizenship, running counter to the popular democratic will of people across the island. Here we are in 2025, with the presidential election on the horizon, and, despite years of promises and commitments from Dublin Governments, we are no further forward. Irish citizens in the North of Ireland are still disenfranchised from participation in the democratic process to elect the Irish head of state. That is in marked contrast to the welcome progress that has been made in the provision of other rights and equality measures across the Irish state. Consider, for example, 2015, when Ireland legalised equal marriage through a national referendum, following recommendations from the same Irish constitutional convention. Extending the franchise to all Irish citizens is an appropriate and proportionate constitutional position to adopt. Its introduction will be an important reflection of the momentum for constitutional change that has been gathering all over Ireland, North and South. Moreover, the office of uachtarán na hÉireann, the president of Ireland, is held in hugely high regard and respect throughout the world. Recent international developments have shown that the office of the Irish president can have immense political, diplomatic and moral significance in the context of international relations. In a world that has shamefully remained silent during the ongoing genocide in Gaza, the current Irish president has shown courageous leadership in his appeal to world leaders to break their silence and call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. The incumbent president of Ireland has been an exemplar by using his office to make a true, meaningful difference as a strong advocate of the primacy of international law, multilateralism, peace and justice. Irish citizens living in the North of Ireland should have the right to a say in the future role and influence of the Irish presidency. Our rights as full Irish citizens are fully guaranteed under the Good Friday Agreement and in the Irish constitution, but those rights are not being engaged. The unacceptable democratic deficit should end. The Irish Government should act now. There is no excuse for continued prevarication or delay. The right of Irish citizens in the North to vote in the next Irish presidential election must be progressed and delivered. I sincerely hope that the Assembly will endorse this call with one voice on the basis of mutual respect and parity of esteem for all of us who share the Irish national identity in the North of Ireland.

890 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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