The Republic of Ireland elects its government using a system of proportional representation known as the single transferable vote. Voters rank candidates in their constituency in order of preference, marking their favourite with a number one, a number two beside their next choice and so on.

Counting is to get under way later on Saturday morning in the Irish general election, as exit polls suggest a close contest between the three major parties. Figures from Friday's exit poll show Sinn Féin slightly ahead of both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil in first preference votes.

Ireland goes to the polls on Friday with the incumbent coalition parties neck-and-neck with opposition party Sinn Fein after a campaign marked by rancour over housing and cost-of-living crises.

The polls are set to open for the Irish general election. Polling stations will be open between 07:00 and 22:00 local time on Friday to allow voters to choose representatives to serve as Teachtaí Dála (TDs) in the Dáil,