Voting Behaviour in the Republic of Ireland

This is a study of the clash between traditional and modern cultural values in present-day Ireland as revealed by voting behaviour. The period 1981-6 in which there were three closely fought general elections and two referendums on the sensitive issues of abortion and divorce provided an opportunity to measure the relative balance of these forces across the country. Analysis of the results of these contests showed that for many people, especially in rural areas, locality and kinship were still important factors in electoral choice, while traditional Catholic teachings were still the basic guidelines of life which they believed should be enshrined in law. The results also revealed the growth of a significant, mainly urban minority with a more volatile voting behaviour which had been influenced by foreign investments and the advent of the mass media and which was more liberal in outlook with the concept of Ireland as a secular society.