Your Vote is Your Voice

Bye-election

A bye-election is an election to fill a seat that has been vacated in between general or Seanad elections.

The most recent bye-elections were held on Friday 22 May 2026 to fill previously vacant seats in the Dublin Central and Galway West constituencies.

There is a glossary of terms related to elections on the Glossary of electoral terms – Electoral Commission webpage

A bye-election is an election to elect a new member of the Dáil (TD) by filling a vacant (free) seat in a Dáil constituency between planned elections. This is different to a general election where multiple seats are filled across all Dáil constituencies.
 
If an elected member of the Dáil (TD) dies, resigns or retires, the election to fill their seat must be called within six months. This can be done by means of a bye-election in the constituency where the vacancy occurs, or it can also be filled if a general election is called within the six-month period.
 

When a TD dies or resigns, the Dáil passes a resolution directing the returning officer of the TD’s constituency to hold an election to fill the vacancy. The Dáil issues a writ (a legal order) to the returning officer to hold an election. Under electoral law the writ must be issued to the returning officer within six months of the death, resignation or retirement of the TD.

As the next planned general election is not due to take place until the term of the current Dáil ends in 2029, the most recent bye-elections took place in Dublin Central and Galway West on Friday 22 May to fill two seats in the Dáil that have become vacant. Seán Kyne and Daniel Ennis were elected to the 34th Dáil and assumed office on 26th May 2026, filling the vacancies in Galway West and Dublin Central respectively.

You can check your constituency on What constituency am I in? – Electoral Commission webpage using your Eircode or address.

You can vote in a bye-election if you are:

• Registered to vote – you can check if you are registered to vote here: Check the Register
• An Irish or British citizen
• Aged over 18 on poling day
• Ordinarily resident in one of the two constituencies in which a bye-election is taking place  – you can check your constituency here: What constituency am I in? – Electoral Commission

Under electoral law, applications to register to vote or amend the register must be received by your local authority 15 days before polling day (excluding Sundays, Good Friday and Public Holidays). Nonetheless, it is possible to register any time outside of an election period.

The easiest and quickest way to register is online at www.checktheregister.ie

However, you can also register by using the ERF 1 paper form. This is available on www.checktheregister.ie or from your local authority.

Voter registration is managed directly by each local authority. An Coimisiún Toghcháin does not manage voter registration.

Checktheregister.ie has a full list of local authority postal addresses

The voting process in a bye-election is the same as in a general election. There will be a number of candidates on the ballot paper for each constituency. When marking your ballot paper start with ‘1’ for your first preference/choice candidate, then ‘2’ for your second preference/choice candidate and so on. You can vote for as many or as few candidates as you wish. This is entirely up to you.
 
At the election count, the quota is calculated. The quota is the number of votes that a candidate must get to be elected. The counting of votes will take place in line with the rules for the counting of votes as set out in the Electoral Act, 1992

As usually happens at election counts, the number of first preference votes for each candidate will be counted. After this first count takes place, if no candidate reaches the quota, the candidate with the lowest number of first preferences will be excluded and the next preferences of those ballot papers will be distributed among the remaining candidates.

To ensure your vote is counted make sure you mark your preferences/choice as clearly as possible. If you do not want to fill out a preference for all candidates on the ballot paper, the box beside those you are not voting for should be left empty.

To make sure that your vote is not considered invalid, do not make any other mark on the ballot paper.