Your Vote is Your Voice

Media Release

8 March 2023 – An Coimisiún Toghcháin, Ireland’s newly established Electoral Commission will be leading the work nationally on explaining the issues to be voted on in November’s gender equality referendum, and promoting people’s participation. 

Ireland’s independent Electoral Commission has, since its February 9^th establishment taken on a significant range of functions related to the operation of our democratic system.  Under the Electoral Reform Act (2022), An Coimisiún Toghcháin has subsumed the impartial role and functions of the Referendum Commission alongside a much wider range of other mandated work, which includes the current constituency review, the registration of political parties, reporting on elections, and new research and public engagement mandates.

November’s proposed referendum will be the first where the Electoral Commission takes the lead in oversight, secretariat and supporting services associated with explaining the referendum proposals, the promotion of public awareness of the referendum and encouraging the electorate to vote at referendum polls.

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For further information, please contact:

Brian Dawson, Communications and Public Engagement Manager,

An Coimisiún Toghcháin, The Electoral Commission,

Brian.dawson@electoralcommission.ie

Editor’s Note:

An Coimisiún Toghcháin, The Electoral Commission

An Coimisiún Toghcháin is a statutory, independent body, established on 9 February 2023 with responsibility for a broad range of electoral functions set out in the Electoral Reform Act 2022. An Coimisiún is central to Ireland’s electoral system, carrying out a range of existing electoral functions, including:

• responsibility for the registration of political parties, and for the preparation and maintenance of the Register of Political Parties.
• the decision-making, oversight, secretariat and supporting services associated with explaining the subject matter of referendum proposals, the promotion of public awareness of referendums and encouragement of the electorate to vote at referendum polls.
• the conducting of reviews and making reports in relation to the constituencies for the election of members to the Dáil and the election of members to the European Parliament.; and
• making reports for the Minister in relation to local electoral boundaries.

An Coimisiún is also tasked with several new electoral roles, including:

• preparing research programmes and conducting research on electoral policy and procedure, and providing advice, as required, to the Minister and Government.
• promoting public awareness of, and working to increase public participation in the State’s electoral and democratic processes through education and information programmes;
• overseeing the modernised Electoral Register, making recommendations and setting standards in relation to its maintenance and updating;
• responsibility of the regulation of online paid-for political advertising, ensuring transparency in respect of online political advertisements which have been purchased to run during the period of an election or referendum campaign;
• responsibility for the investigation and monitoring of online disinformation, online misinformation and manipulative or inauthentic behaviour online during election campaign periods, as well as functions to prevent manipulative or inauthentic behaviours online.
• the preparation of ex-post reports on the administration of electoral events.