Counting has begun in the Irish general election, as exit polls suggest a close contest between the three major parties.

The Irish General Election 2024 will be held this Friday, November 29 - here, an overview of the major political parties running candidates. What parties are running in the Irish General Election 2024?

Irish political parties vying to lead the next government after a national election on Nov. 29 have published their manifestos, setting out their policies and how they will finance them.

An exit poll in the Republic of Ireland Ireland suggests that Sinn Féin has 21.1% of first preference votes with Fine Gael having 21%, making the result of the general election too close to call. The poll indicates Fianna Fáil has 19.

After an exit poll that showed the main three parties effectively neck-and-neck in the Irish General Election, there is some way to go before the final picture emerges and the options for government formation crystalise.

The exit poll put the left wing Sinn Fein on 21.1%, the centre-right Fine Gael of Prime Minister Simon Harris on 21.0% and like-minded coalition partner Fianna Fail on 19.5%. Fine Gael and Fianna Fail pledged ahead of the election to seek to form a coalition without Sinn Fein,

The polls are set to open for the Irish general election. Polling stations will be open between 07:00 and 22:00 local time on Friday to allow voters to choose representatives to serve as Teachtaí Dála (TDs) in the Dáil, the lower house of the Oireachtas (Ireland's parliament).

Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris’s Fine Gael party is locked in a virtual dead heat with Sinn Fein in the general election, suggesting his decision to go to the country early didn’t yield the advantage he predicted.