A General Election is just around the corner after the Government put in an order for 3.5 million ballot papers, the Irish Mirror can reveal.
Printers are being told to have them ready for February 1, ahead of a possible vote later that month.
Once the Taoiseach sets a date, under the Electoral Act, the country must go to the polls within 17 to 25 days, excluding Sundays.
A source said: “An election is not far off. Once the election is called in the New Year, parties have already selected their candidates so the printers will be able to get all the names on the voting papers.
“When the papers are printed they will distributed around the country ready to go to the polling stations.
“There will be about three weeks of campaigning once the election is called, with a possible date for the election in late February.” In 2016 there were 40 constituencies and 158 TDs elected.
But changes for the next General Election means the total number of TDs will increase by two to 160 and the number of constituencies will be reduced by one to 39.
Following the UK’s General Election results, it’s clear Prime Minister Boris Johnson is determined to push through his Brexit withdrawal plan. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will now be anxious to go the polls – once this country brings in new laws to handle the Brexit fall-out.
Fianna Fail, who have been propping up Fine Gael in government in a confidence and supply agreement, are on a war footing and ready to go to the country. This week tensions mounted between the parties when Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin branded the Taoiseach “a nasty piece of work” in the Dail.
The outbust came as Mr Varadkar appeared to defend controversial ex-TD Dara Murphy, whose double-jobbing in Europe and absence from the Dail caused outrage.
Sources said the gloves between the pair are now
off and the order for the printing of ballot papers points towards only one thing – a General Election.
