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?

I'm not Irish, but I hope the result is a resounding yes, and I think it will be 🤞🏻

Am hoping it will be a yes but i don't have high hopes. Hearing the thoughts of some no voters has left me baffled & sickened tbh. Everything crossed for a bloody sensible outcome of YES

@Nancy75, yes, last Saturday I was chatting to some yes campaigners in town and they pointed out a man, a youngish man, 30-ish, who was campaigning for No. He had flown over from America to join the No campaign. Words fail me. But, the Yes had banners ''beep for repeal'' and it was really really really heartening to hear all the beeping as cars were driving past.

So, tentatively, I predict a very close win for repeal

The No voters won't read the ''in her shoes'' stories. They don't want to know about women's pain and suffering and grief.

@cocopuffsingodsmode, it makes me feel so sad and frustrated that my brother's yes vote and my yes vote will merely cancel out our parents' no votes.

Couple of people here saying their husbands are no voters....not being funny but how could you ever look them in the eye again? Let alone sleep with them....
I'd straight up LTB if he was a no voter (not that I'd be with him in the first place).

#togetherforyes

Horseoutside, ask your husband how he would feel if voting NO went with a pledge to support mothers who went ahead with crisis pregnancies. Like the property tax, it could be taken out of your salary.

To earn the right to vote no you have to commit to actually doing something to alleviate the poverty of the children being raised on the breadline by single mothers (mostly)

I think yes will just about take it.

NotLinkedIn I honestly don’t understand how anyone can feel so strongly about something that never has to affect them. That American guy is never going to need to make a choice on abortion & for the all the women that don’t agree with abortion, fine just don’t have one!
Hopefully those beeping horns will turn in to yes votes.

I'm afraid it would be divorce here too if dh voted no.

@miggeldyHiggins, I agree, that'd be a deal breaker for me. If they were out there on the streets campaigner for free childcare like in Scandinavia and campaigner to lessen the isolation and stigma of single motherhood then that might be a redeeming feature, but a man who has done nothing to help a woman in crisis voting no.............. NOT attractive. I would be so turned off.

I was thinking no but all #hometovotes are giving me a lift.

I will be waiting outside to voted at 7am before work

#repealthe8th

I’d be sickened and disgusted if my DH was a no voter as well, and would seriously reconsider our relationship.

Although it would never happen I do wonder if a vote on a subject like this should be limited to women, why should men get a vote over a woman’s choice?

nancy75 I said as much to my FIL and he said "but all those babies have daddies". I have never wanted to slap him so much.

When are the results actually announced?

I really hope it’s a yes. Had a lump in my throat reading all the home to vote tweets earlier today. I can’t believe in this day and age women even have to put up with this shit.

All those babies have daddies until daddy finds another woman, or decides to spend his wages down the pub instead of paying maintenance to the Mum. If the Daddies were left holding the baby ( excuse the pun) you can bet men would have a different view

Daddies who can walk away if they want to, from the financial and practical responsibility. They can choose to say no thank you. And the mother is powerless to vote to make those daddies meet their responsibilities.

They all have plenty of rights these days mind you.

I had a slightly surreal chat with my Irish Mom yesterday. Having been raised in a fairly liberal house in the nineties in Ireland I think I had falsely assumed that both parents would be voting yes. Dad was cagey and then said of course he was a yes (has three daughters and has seen us all go through difficulties, not exactly the same but I think he can get to a 'in her shoes' situation fairly easily). Then my mother pipes up with a 'I'm leaning no', I won't lie I think i actually screamed.
At the end of our conversation where she at one point wasn't going to vote at all, I think I managed to persuade her to realise that it's not really about her, it's about all the other versions of her. She got pregnant at 19 by my dad and they had a bit of a rushed wedding, what about all the other versions of her 19 year old self that didn't have such an outcome, or the 24 yr old versions of her that found out there was something wrong with their baby, or the 32 yr old version of herself that found out she had cancer when she was 4 mths pregnant. Jesus - this is my own mother.
Anyway I think I got through to her, but ffs of all people I just didn't think at all that I would have to get through to her. And that scares me for tomorrow. Will be watching anxiously.
Wish I still had my vote, lost it years ago.

My grandmother is conservative NI Protestant, and she supports abortion.

I hope there are more like her, but I'm reservedly optimistic.

I'm a weekly mass goer and I would not say that the church has stayed out of it. There have plenty of homilies and guest speakers pleading their case but I have been heartened by people who have walked out of church to avoid listening to these "sermons". I will be devastated if the 8th is not repealed.

Exactly.

I just put the #hometovote into twitter, it actually made me emotional, it's pretty amazing to see just how far we have come in many ways, just hope we get a yes tomorrow

Miami81, I'm also so shocked by how little empathy my mother seems to have. She got married when she was about 20 so she has no idea of the SHAME that is loaded on to an unmarried woman. Or if she does, she gets behind it, pays lip service to feeling sympathetic but really thinks the woman brought it on herself................ by not getting married at 20 .

I think it is too close to even try and call.

I have a range of friends, some who will vote yes, some will vote no. I have one friend who is a 'yes' canvasser. He has been surprised by the people he would have stereotyped as being 'no' voters as saying they would vote for 'yes'.

On the other hand, my FB feed is filled with 'no' stories.

We both feel that this may come down to the slimmest of margins. He thinks it will be 'no', but we both hope for 'yes'.

Local church has a huge banner where the fundraising for the church sign used to be, sporting a 'vote no' slogan. There are far more 'no' posters than 'yes' where I live.

Too close to call at this point IMHO.

Inisfree I meant in the media, I don't go to church but I would have expected endless interviews on TV and radio with bishops banging on about how precious human life is etc etc and I haven't seen or heard anything like that.