Ireland : Divorce (change) referendum set to pass by wide margin

[OnDoutside]

The constitutional referendum on divorce is set to pass by a wide margin, with all constituencies so far reporting strong votes in favour of the proposal.Amid reasonable turnout, with the national figure above 53 per cent and some constituencies reporting more than 60 per cent, the strongest vote in favour of the proposal so far was in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, where 86.7 per cent of ballots were cast in favour of the proposal.


The referendum to ease restrictions on divorce looks set to be passed according to a prediction by an exit poll by Red C commissioned by RTÉ and TG4. The survey suggests a majority of 87% have voted in favour of the referendum with 12% voting against and 1% refusing to answer or saying they don't know. The poll has a margin of error of 3% and was conducted in 156 locations around the country today.

The question put to voters focused on two issues about divorce. The first regarded how long people must be living apart before applying for a divorce and the second related to the recognition of foreign divorces.

The vote will pave the way for the government to legislate for a shorter period of separation between spouses before applying for divorce, which currently stands at four years. The government has said it will legislate to bring the period down to two years. The Yes vote will also make the recognition of foreign divorces explicit in the constitution.

https://www.rte.ie/news/elections-2019/2019/0524/1051565-referendum-exit-poll/

[msongs]

1. 2 year wait? sounds like something that benefits men nt

[OnDoutside]

3. Not once, in either the original Divorce Referendum or this Referendum, has anyone suggested

that this is about benefiting men. Not even from the pro-divorce side. It has been entirely about saving the marriage, if it could be saved. That is why originally the 5 years was to give people the space to see if there was any point at which they could reconcile. It became clear that 5 years was too much time, so that's why this Referendum has brought it back to 2 years. Generally, the view is that we shouldn't become like the US where you can get married and divorced at the drop of a hat. It is a serious commitment.

[Blue_true]

2. My feeling on divorce is they happen because people fail to realize that people change.

For example, the man that is fun for his girlfriend to be around may change drastically when the monotony of sleeping beside someone each night sets in and seeing the worst of that person daily. A stranger will always be at his or her best, a husband or wife won't. Also financial realities and the reality that dreams of success often don't pan out changes people, often for the worst.

I honestly believe that people should not get married until around the age of 29-30, and should avoid having kids during early years. With time I realized that there is always a better woman coming along (speaking from the standpoint of a heterosexual man), if I don't give myself fully to the woman that I chose, there will always be temptation coming along.

[OnDoutside]

4. I think that is very fair comment. We married in our early 30s, where both of us were in a very good

financial position, and we had only a tiny mortgage, so never experienced the financial pressures that hung over friends of ours. That said, it's a tough station from the point of view of having a family. We would love to have had more kids than the one we have, but financially he is wanting for nothing and is going to the top school in Ireland. My brother and his wife got married at 21 & 19 respectively, and their kids are 37 and 33, and my brother is only 59 ! They've spent the last 15 years working to go on holiday, and have been to India 5 times, Vietnam/Cambodia 4 times, Australia twice and South America once, all interspersed with countless weekends away all over Europe !

[OnDoutside]

5. The final vote was 1,304,949 in favour of the changes (82.1%), with 284,735 against (17.9%).

The government would then introduce legislation that would serve a similar function; the laws currently planned by Fine Gael would reduce the timeframe to wait before getting a divorce to two of the previous three years, rather than four out of the previous five years.

Turnout for the vote nationally was 50.83% where over 1,727,056 voted.

https://www.msn.com/en-ie/news/newsireland/its-a-yes-ireland-has-voted-resoundingly-to-pass-the-divorce-referendum/ar-AABVT6g?li=BBr5KbJ&ocid=mailsignout