Fifty one days after the Dáil general election, counting began in the Seanad general election at the first of three election count centres.
What is the Seanad and what does it do?
The Seanad is a parliamentary chamber of 60 Senators whose main function is to debate and amend if necessary, legislation proposed by the Government. Senators can introduce their own Bills which very rarely get passed and into the Dáil. The Seanad can also delay but cannot stop a Bill.
Why didn't the Seanad elections take place on the same day as the Dáil?
Parliamentary elections in Ireland are staggered. The Constitution provides that the Seanad elections must take place "not later than 90 days after the dissolution of the Dáil".
Isn't the Seanad meant to be non-political?
The Seanad election is the only election with no political party names on the ballot papers. And in theory the House does not recognise political party membership. The reality however is that the make-up of the Seanad mostly reflects the strength of the parties in the Dáil.
Who elects the 60 Senators?
Incoming TDs (160), outgoing Senators (60) and local authority councillors (941) a total of 1,169 voters, elect 43 Senators on five vocational panels in what is one of the most exclusive electoral clubs in the world.
This is such a small electorate that the votes are multiplied by 1,000 as otherwise they would be counting fractions of votes in later vote transfers.
Three Senators are elected by graduates of NUI colleges and three are elected by graduates of Trinity College (University of Dublin). The NUI electorate this year is 112,000 while there are an estimated 70,000 Trinity College voters.
The Taoiseach of the new government gets to choose, without election, 11 nominees who have an expertise in certain areas. Every Taoiseach usually includes party members who lost their Dáil seats.
What about graduates of other universities and colleges?
Forty years ago citizens voted in a referendum to expand the electorate to graduates of other third level institutions but action has yet to be taken on this. Change is indeed incremental.
If other third level institutions were included it would increase the overall electorate for the six seats from 200,000 to an estimated 800,000.
What are the vocational panels?
The panels are one of the many intricacies of the Seanad system that some politicians have described as "bonkers".
There are five vocational panels which represent different professional spheres.
Administrative panel - seven seats (19 candidates)
Agricultural panel - 11 seats (25 candidates)
Cultural and Educational panel - five seats (20 candidates)
Industrial and Commercial panel - nine seats (34 candidates)
Labour panel - 11 seats (20 candidates)
Candidates can seek selection through either “inside” or “outside” nominations.
What are these "outside" and "inside" nominations?
Anyone can seek a nomination from what is termed an "outside" nominating body so long as they have knowledge, expertise and practical experience of the sector represented on the panel they are contesting.
These nominating bodies are the civic society organisations representing those professional and sectoral interests and there are currently 111 in total.
They include for example on the Cultural and Educational panel organisations like the Irish Georgian Society and the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) while the Agricultural panel has organisations like the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association and the RDS.
To get an “inside” nomination a candidate needs the support of four TDs and/or Senators who must sign their nomination papers. An Oireachtas member can only sign one candidate’s papers.
How many people can they nominate?
Each nominating body can nominate one candidate and while candidates can get the backing of more than one body, they only require one nomination.
“Inside” nominations – to receive an inside nomination a candidate must get four TDs and/or Senators to sign their nomination papers and Oireachtas members can only nominate one person.
What is the rule about balance of Senators from inside and outside nominations?
It is one of the complications in this system that each panel must have a minimum number of "inside" and "outside" Senators.
It is a harsh system because in some cases a candidate may reach the quota but will not be elected because not enough candidates on the other side have been elected.
For example on the 11-seat Agricultural panel there must be a minimum of four Senators each from inside and outside nominations.
Is it a one person one vote system?
No. On the vocational panels each Senator, TD and local authority councillor has a vote on each panel. That means they get to vote five times. And if they have an NUI and/or Trinity degree they have an extra vote or two extra votes, giving them up to seven in total.
What is the problem with the new Seanad that it cannot pass legislation?
While 49 Senators are elected, 11 are nominated by the Taoiseach, but under Article 18 of the Constitution, they have to be selected by the incoming Taoiseach of a new administration.
Outgoing Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is not empowered to nominate them.
So?
The Government has interpreted this to mean that until there is a new government in place no further legislation can be passed, hence the need to have all emergency legislation passed before the final session of the last Seanad.
However the Labour party and a number of legal academics take a differing view that a new Seanad can sit without the 11 nominees.
What happened to abolition of the Seanad?
Former taoiseach Enda Kenny sought the abolition of the Seanad in a 2013 referendum but a slight majority of 52 per cent to 48 per cent voted to retain it in what Mr Kenny subsequently called a "wallop" from the electorate.
What happened to Seanad Reform?
Abolition would have been the ultimate reform for the Upper House which has seen 14 reports on the issue over the last 80 years, gathering dust.
But in 2014 a commission led by NUI Chancellor Maurice Manning produced a report on changes that would not require another referendum. It proposed every citizen should have a vote as should every citizen in the North and to all Irish citizens living abroad. It suggested that 36 of the seats was would be filled this way and that 13 would be voted for by councillors, TDs and Senators.
And?
Seanad reform is an issue that is perennially one report short of a decision. And so an implementation group on the Manning report was established, chaired by Michael McDowell.
It proposed a modified version of the plan which included expanding the university panels to all third level colleges.
But the report lapsed with the general election.
