DUBLIN (Reuters) – Support for left-wing Irish nationalists Sinn Fein surged in an election on Saturday, leaving it tied with the party of Prime Minister Leo Varadkar but not likely to emerge with the greatest number of seats, an exit poll showed.
Instead Varadkar’s Great Gael is likely to take on fellow center-right competing Fianna Fail to secure the most seats and the right to try to form a union federal government – a task experts called very challenging.
The Ipsos MRBI exit poll revealed Great Gael on 22.4%, Sinn Fein on 22.3%and pre-election favorites Fianna Fail on 22.2%.
Sinn Fein, the former political wing of the Irish Republican Army (Individual Retirement Account), is likely to fall back the other 2 parties since it fielded far fewer candidates.
Still, its development represents a major realignment of Irish politics, which for a century has actually been dominated by Great Gael and Fianna Fail.
” It’s a very, great outcome for Sinn Fein … but despite the fact that it is an analytical tie, we would expect Great Gael and Fianna Fail to eliminate it out to get the most s