To think the Irish Abortion Referendum outcome will be a close call?

[Jellyfish456]

Polling day is within touching distance and from what I’ve seen on my social media channels, the vast majority seem to be swaying towards voting to Repeal. Do we think this is a true reflection of the majority or are the No side just less likely to be vocal on their social media channels? Whatever the outcome, I think it will be close.

What are everyone else’s thoughts?

It is those in their 30’s & 40’s who have surprised me most with their ‘no’ stance as I would have expected the opposite.

According to the Exit Poll that age group was the second highest Yes supporters 71% or something

That doesn't surprise me at all. It's the demographic most likely to have, or know, someone who has had a relatively recent experience caused by the 8th. Also that age group would be slightly less ashamed to talk about it than older voters who might have been through the same, and so they might have been able to be open enough to influence their friends and families.

have just seen an angry tweet suggesting the yes vote is because of the "radical denaturing of women" words fail me... What the actual fuck is denaturing? How insidious a phrase...

Congratulations women of Ireland!

I don't dare believe it yet - I have clearly been living in England for too long as I keep hearing myself think " why aren't they even starting to count till 9am ?"
After 35 years of this shizzle, another 12 hours is neither here or there

But o my actual god. can it really be true?

Really hope the exit polls are right. Northern Ireland next. And soon.

yeah you can't trust those denatured women, they'll be killing babies right left and centre come Monday morning.

I so hope the exit polls are correct. I know there's a margin of error but they can't be completely wrongly can they? I want to believe it but I'm actually half afraid to!!

Feel like theirs a weight off my shoulders! It can't be too wrong with the exit polls all at 68 or 69%

The exit polls only canvassed 7800 people between them so it could still go the other way...

But still. Hope.

Yes of course there could be a difference tomorrow but for two polls to produce such similar results it’s unlikely to be a radically different result tomorrow.

Goooooo on my Irish sisters. Absolutely over the moon for you you made history 🇮🇪

Here's hoping! Repeal the 8th!

Actually I feel like this isn't just a momentous day for the Irish. It's a momentous day for women as a whole. You have stood up and said - hang on, we should be in control of our own bodies. You no longer have a say in what we do with our own bodies. That is not ok. And you bloody won. You won it on behalf of, and with the support of all of us, you beautiful women. Supporters across the world flew in to vote if they could. If they couldn't afford it, the ones who could paid for strangers instead. And I believe this is a momentous day in history for feminists, and for women as a whole. The first day, probably since we got the vote, where we won against our oppressors. You won on behalf of us all, and hopefully this is just the beginning, and equality will continue to be sought and won 🙌🏼 thank you Ireland. ❤️🇮🇪

Even if the margin of error was 10% it would still be an emphatic win.
A landslide victory would make it so much easier to get the legislation through the Dail.

I have woken up to this, fantastic news. Well done to everyone who went out to vote whether it was a 100m stroll or a flight from the other side of the world.

I have been waking through the night and checking, I hadn’t realised they don’t count until 9am. Please please let the exit polls be right.

Oh I am so so happy for Irish women this morning! Congratulations. Women deserve this.

The exit polls only canvassed 7800 people between them so it could still go the other way

Polls are based on asking voters in every constituency in the country, throughout the day, asking every age group. I refuse to believe they could be that wrong.

I'm proud today and happy, but mixed emotions too thinking of the women who had to suffer so badly to bring us to this day.

I really believe people voted out of compassion. Perhaps they knew a woman who'd had to travel or they accepted the Yes campaign's clear message that we already had abortion in Ireland, we'd just exported the actual procedure out of the country, like hypocrites, and we had to stop pretending and look after these women at home. No doubt the horrible cases of women like Savita also weighed on voters.

A vote this overwhelming means that the politicians who are anti choice won't easily be able to go against the legislation. This should speed up the passage of the bill. I had been afraid that even if we voted to Repeal there would have been another campaign to get the legislation severely curtailed and to lobby TDs to vote against. With an election in the offing in the relatively near future and such a strong vote, I think that'll take care of that though.

There's no fucking way the exit poll could be that wrong!!

Time to celebrate

The sample sizes for both polls are much more than adequate for an accurate read. The companies who conducted the polls are highly experienced.

Exit polls are historically pretty accurate. The biggest concern would be that significant numbers have lied to the pollsters, but the margin of victory seems strong enough for confidence.

Not that we can fully relax until the actual vote is in, but it's looking very good.

I was confident it would be a yes. Firstly because of the huge youth vote, but I did think there would be a rural urban divide. However during the week a heard a vox pop on the radio which was a game changer.

Interviewer was at the mart in Ballyjamesduff, Co Cavan, the quintessential rural scene. Interviewee's were farmers in their 60s and 70s. I assumed 'no' all round but I was so moved to hear that they were all voting yes. The oldest of the three said 'when a girl's in trouble she needs to be looked after'. I am in my 40s and grew up with the Kerry babies, Anne Lovett, etc. That turnaround in rural attitudes to abortion is so significant, you can see it in the exit poll stats. It is hugely healing I think to know that the urban/rural divide is not nearly as stark as it once was and I think it has really positive implications for Irish society.

Personally I am incredibly happy to see that the grip of the catholic church is wasting away. My mother's and grandmother's generations lives were so negatively impacted by the influence of the local priest. I have always had an instinctive dislike for the church and all it stood for and it has always made me feel like an outsider in my own country. Even trying to ensure a non Catholic education for my dc is a battle in 2018.

I think it's going to be very interesting to see how this works in practice. I hope that this might finally be a mechanism to separate the church and hospitals, many hospitals are owned by nuns, remember the Holles St/ Vincent's debacle? The church should have no involvement in healthcare or education IMO. I had thought it was a pipe dream to ever separate them but maybe not now.

I think the 'yes' campaign played a blinder by focusing on women's personal stories. Huge kudos to all the (mostly young) women who have been driving this campaign for the last few years when older people had given up the fight because they thought it was hopeless.

Feeling very hopeful for my children's future, particularly my daughter's future today.

Has an actual result been announced?

That young woman on The Pat Kenny show was so inspirational and brave.Im sure she played a part on the undecided voting yes.

All of the women who shared their harrowing stories have my undying gratitude and respect.Im so proud to be Irish today

Not announced yet. Though 70/30 is the prediction.

Save the 8th have conceded defeat.