At stake in this Referendum:

• Whether the constitution should be amended in order to enable ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon.

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Mary MCALEESE *
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Brian COWEN
• Assembly: Ireland has a bicameral Parliament (Oireachtas) consisting of the Senate (Seanad Éireann) with 60 seats* and the House of Representatives (Dáil Éireann) with 166 seats**.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by a majority system with preferential vote to serve a 7-year term.
• The Prime Minister (Taoiseach) is appointed by the President.
• In the Senate (Seanad Éireann), 43 members are elected by indirect vote to serve 5-year terms, 11 members are appointed by the President to serve 5-year terms and 6 members are elected by indirect vote to serve 5-year terms*. In the House of Representatives (Dáil Éireann) 166 members are elected through a single transferable vote (STV) proportional representation system to serve 5-year terms.**

* 43 members are elected by five panels representing vocational interests. Six are elected by graduates of two colleges.

** One seat is reserved for the Speaker of the House. There are 43 multi-member districts with magnitudes from 3 to 5.

Main provisions in the Referendum:

• Whether the constitution should be amended in order to enable ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 4,535,375 (2009)
• Registered Voters: 3,078,132 (October 2009)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 2,274,574 (2009)

·         Is Ireland a signatory to CEDAW: No

·         Has Ireland ratified CEDAW: Yes, accession (23 December 1985)

·         Gender Quota: Yes

·         Female candidates in this election: N/A

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 22 (House of Representatives); 12 (Senate) (following the 2007 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 6 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A

Disability Data:

·         Is Ireland a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has Ireland ratified CRPD: No

·         Population with a disability: 680,306 (est.)