It was exactly two months ago when I went to see the play ‘Juno and the Paycock’ in London’s West End. One of the greatest masterpieces of Irish art, it was written by Sean O’ Casey and concerns the life of a couple in the working-class housing of Dublin during the period of the Irish Civil War (1922-1923).

The Catholic cross dominated the scene and immediately put you in the mood of what you think an Irish family stands for to this day. However, one particular expression is one that is etched in my memory: “I didn’t understand everything,” said a young British woman to her friend as we washed our hands in nearby sinks.

This “statement” had a double reading. Either the excellent Irish accent of the actors was not fully realized or the issue the play touches on in such detail is so complex that it cannot be understood in a two-hour play. Whatever the case may have been, it is a view that continues to be held by all of us who have not examined this country in detail.

The first official language is English, yet the relationship between the Irish and the British is one of “hate” because of the hundreds of fights between them. As the years go by, however much the “hate” argument may be waning, religion remains a tricky field: Catholics versus Protestants and Tubalins.

The results of the national elections

With a heavy and complicated history behind them, Friday’s national elections were held in the Republic of Ireland. The counting only started on Saturday at 9 am, but until the final results, it will take several hours or even days due to the difficult and complex electoral system.

This is a “conception” that dates back to 1850 and yet it is what the Irish have decided to keep. This is the so-called proportional representation (Proportional Representation) with a single transferable vote (Single Transferable Vote). So far, the three biggest parties Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Sinn Féin are in the lead, in a head-to-head battle.

It is recalled that in the previous elections of 2020 the Republic of Ireland had a coalition government between Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party. A basic condition to form a government in Dáil Éireann, i.e. the Lower House or in other words the parliamentary body made up of the country’s MPs (Teachtai Dala TDs) is to gather 88 seats out of a total of 174. How many seats does the Irish parliament, after the changes made to the constituencies (43 in total).

The profile of the parties

Initially, Fianna Fáil is a centre-right party led by Michael Martin, who is Deputy Prime Minister (Tánaiste) but also holds the position of both Foreign Secretary and Defense Secretary. It is worth noting that the party was created in 1926 by members who broke away from Sinn Féin. One of his biggest campaign promises was investment in public health.

Fine Gael also moves in the conservative space, led by the Prime Minister of Ireland (Taoiseach), Simon Harris, while it is characterized as pro-European. A key point of his program is tackling the housing crisis and the promise of 300,000 additional homes by 2030 with parallel tax breaks for low incomes.

Finally, Sinn Féin which had won the most votes in the previous national elections and prevailed in the Irish parliament with 37 seats, is a nationalist party and a political successor to the IRA, the Irish Democratic Army. It is led by Mary Lou Macdonald, who is trying to separate the party from its bloody IRA past and establish it as social democratic. Nevertheless, in the run-up to the election he promises to hold a referendum on the full unification of the island of Ireland (ie the Republic of Ireland with Northern Ireland).

All three leaders secured their seats in this election as well, although both of the ruling parties have ruled out a possible collaboration with the nationalist party. According to the analyses, however, Sinn Fein may even consider a minority government with other smaller left-wing parties and independent MPs.

The social peculiarities of the country

Ireland was one of the countries that formed – during the crisis – the PIGS states (Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain), which were then on the verge of bankruptcy.

Nevertheless, Ireland has managed to stand out, not because it participated in this financial crisis but because of how quickly it managed to slip out of it. According to recent figures, Ireland has the highest GDP per capita in the EU – apart from Luxembourg. This is also due to the giant investments made in the last decade.

Ireland is considered – mainly – for American companies to be a “bridge” to the EU, in a territory that simultaneously speaks the language of the American giants and has one of the most favorable tax systems. For example, Google, Adobe, Amazon, Apple, HP, IBM, Microsoft are just some of the American tech giants that have chosen Ireland as their European base. According to the American-Irish Chamber, 970 American companies employ 378,000 workers, while contributing to the Irish economy 41 billion euros a year.

But this does not mean that the Irish people are “enjoying” the benefits of this development. The cost of living is one of voters’ main concerns, with Irish people facing prices 46.4% higher than the European average. Of course, this has created major problems in everyday life, with a prolonged housing crisis and rents, which especially the younger ones cannot afford.

An additional issue at the top of the list is the same one that concerns most of Europe: immigration. The figures showed record arrivals for this year, with polarization among citizens growing. In fact, according to polls, the Guardian reports, 2/3 of Irish people want tougher border controls. It remains to be seen what will be the final results of the national elections and what will be the “magic” combination that will manage to maintain the economic prosperity of the country, but without leaving its citizens behind.