Afp Dublin
Dublin
Updated Saturday, March 9, 2024-16:39
Politics Towards the unity of Ireland?
Leaders Leo Varadkar and Rishi Sunak: two premiers of Indian origin united by destiny
This Saturday he
does not
lead the first results of the
referendum
organized in Ireland to
modernize the references to women and the family in the Constitution
of this country where the Catholic Church imposed its dogma for a long time.
If this first trend is confirmed, it would be a serious blow both for the center-right government coalition of Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, which proposed the consultation, and for the country's main parties, which also campaigned in favor of
yes
.
The count at the end of the morning gave an advantage to the
no
, which in some places represented 70% of the votes counted.
"It seems that there was more of a
no
vote ," Transport Minister
Eamon Ryan
told reporters at midday.
If at the end of the count the answer "is
no
for both (questions), we will have to respect it."
According to estimates published by the Irish press,
participation on Friday did not exceed 50%
.
The almost 3.5 million people with the right to vote had to answer two questions.
The first concerned the definition of family and proposed expanding it beyond the basis of
marriage
, including "long-term relationships," such as unmarried couples and their children.
The second question proposed deleting an obsolete reference to the
role of women in the home
, which suggests that they should take care of the people who live with them.
A new formula would extend the responsibility of caring for each other to all members of a family.
The two amendments refer to article 41 of the Constitution, but those who oppose these changes criticized vague formulations, especially in the second question, and the disappearance of the words "woman" and "mother" from the text.
Before the vote, Varadkar considered that a victory for the
no
would be
"a step backwards" for the country
.