Exit polls predict that Ireland has voted overwhelmingly to remove the 8th amendment.
Polls undertaken by the Irish Times and RTÉ have predicted a 68% and 69.4% ‘Yes’ vote respectively.
The Yes vote was strongest in Dublin where at least three in four people supported it.
The Irish Times poll found that the city voted 77% in favour of ‘Yes’ while RTÉ found that 79% voted in favour.
According to the polls, the only group to vote ‘No’ was the over 65s - with all other age groups emphatically voting 'Yes.'
Young people aged 18 to 24-years-old voted 87% in favour of repeal.
File photo of the Minister for Health Simon Harris TD at the Yes Campaign launch of their mobile banners in Dublin, 23-05-2018. Image: Sam Boal/RollingNews
The Irish Times poll surveyed 4,000 voters at 160 polling stations across the country, while RTÉ surveyed 3,800 people at 175 stations across the country.
Following the release of the polls last night the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar tweeted that it was “looking like we will make history tomorrow.”
Thank you to everyone who voted today. Democracy in action. It’s looking like we will make history tomorrow.... #Together4Yes
— Leo Varadkar (@campaignforleo) May 25, 2018
The Tánaiste Simon Coveney said the polls suggest a “stunning result that will bring about a fundamental change for the better.”
Thank you to everybody who voted today - democracy can be so powerful on days like today - looks like a stunning result that will bring about a fundamental change for the better. Proud to be Irish tonight. Thank u to all at @Together4yes
— Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) May 25, 2018
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said the “view of our Republic is clear and we as an Oireachtas should move efficiently to enact the will of our people.”
With exit polls published, it looks like #8thRef has been emphatically passed. Important though that we respect and count every vote. If the exit polls are accurate, the view of our Republic is clear and we as an Oireachtas should move efficiently to enact the will of our people.
— Micheál Martin (@MichealMartinTD) May 25, 2018
If the result is confirmed as expected the Government has said it is committed to introducing unrestricted access to abortion for women up to the 12th week of pregnancy.
Abortions will be permitted later in terms where there is a risk to a woman's life, or a risk of serious harm to the physical or mental health of a woman.
The Minister for Health Simon Harris is aiming to enact the legislation by the end of the year.
Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald shows her passport before casting her vote, 25-05-2018. Image: Eamonn Farrell/RollingNews
Reporting from Teena Gates and Michael Staines
