General Election to be held on February 8th

The Taoiseach is expected today to seek President Higgins' approval to dissolve the Dáil and confirms the General Election will be held on Saturday, 8 February. Posters for Varadkar's re-election began appearing across Dublin today just before news broke.

According to reports on RTÉ, the date was revealed by the Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, this morning at the regular Tuesday cabinet meeting.

Assuming that the date is confirmed, it promises a short campaign of just over three weeks. While that might suit the incumbents, what it is likely to produce is a higher temperature during the time that is available, with the opposition parties working hard to drum up the kind of momentum which might sweep Fine Gael from their position as the party with the highest number of TDs.

The short campaign is likely to work against smaller parties, potentially wrong-footing the Green Party and Labour. That Fine Gael are ready for the fray seems axiomatic. Fianna Fáil too have been in election mode for some time. There will certainly be a frantic stock-taking required on all fronts, with parties racing to get their candidates in place within a very short time-frame.

For those who have registered to vote in the past few months, there are concerns that they may not be added to the register in time for the election, according to a thread by Gavan Reilly on Twitter. According to the Electoral Act of 1992, the register of electors is updated each year on 15 February, which would not be in time for the election on the 8th.

🚨 Bit of a twin-track shambles emerging with the electoral register...

Anyone who registered to vote in the last eight months is NOT (yet) eligible to vote in #ge2020.

Here’s why: [thread]

— Gavan Reilly (@gavreilly) January 13, 2020

For those who fall into this category, they may still be added to the supplementary register. However, the deadline to do so is January 23rd.

There IS one way for them to get registered in time - to apply to be added to the *supplementary* register of electors.

But time is of the essence: if #ge2020 polling DOES take place on February 7, the deadline for getting added is close of business on Thursday 23 January.

— Gavan Reilly (@gavreilly) January 13, 2020

This is an important point: the forms currently available for voter registration, are to get added to *NEXT* year’s register - and NOT for the supplement of the one that will apply for #ge2020.

The correct forms will likely be published only when #ge2020 is officially called.

— Gavan Reilly (@gavreilly) January 13, 2020

Credit to @SeanFlemingTD who spotted the timing anomaly - he intends to raise it in the Dáil on Wednesday (if it hasn’t been dissolved already by then).

But unless emergency legislation is passed, recent registrants will have to re-register... and can’t yet actually do so!

— Gavan Reilly (@gavreilly) January 13, 2020

Twitter immediately lit aflame when news of the election broke, with many complaints about the lack of desirable options, the Taoiseach's decision to put up posters before the Dáil dissolves, and the fact that the election will be held on Sunday.

"BREAKING Leo Varadkar And Kevin Humphreys Diagnosed With Premature Election," wrote one user, with a picture of each politician's signs going up.

Lads, it time to pick between a Giant Douche and a Turd Sandwich again. Yes, its General Election time. #GE2020 pic.twitter.com/3SAaYFdV8i

— Can I Have 2 Biscuits (@WillyWoollyman) January 14, 2020

Neither President Higgins nor the Taoiseach has made an official comment on the Elections, but stay tuned to Hotpress.com for more updates.