Minister O’Brien urges graduates to register for future Seanad Elections with new constituency open to many more voters

• registration is open until 23 January 2025 for Irish citizens who are over 18 and have a degree from 19 designated third level institutions
• www.seanadvoter.ie allows people to check eligibility and register online

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien today urged graduates to be sure to sign up and register to vote in the new Seanad constituency which is being established to broaden the amount of people who can take part in future Seanad elections.

The current National University of Ireland (NUI) and Trinity College Dublin (TCD) constituency elections will be the last under the current rules and a new electoral register is being created for future Seanad elections, with thousands of additional people now eligible to register.

Minister O’Brien this morning urged everyone to check if they are eligible and if so, to register to vote. He emphasised:

Applications to be included in the first Register of Electors for the new constituency can be made online to the Central Registration Authority via www.seanadvoter.ie or by post until 23 January 2025. The register will be published and come into force on 1 April 2025. An annual revision process will begin in 2026 and the updated register will be published on every 1 June.

Many more people are now entitled to take part in future Seanad elections with the two existing constituencies (NUI and Trinity College Dublin) to be replaced by a single new 6-seat Higher Education constituency. This expanded constituency now includes:

• Atlantic Technological University
• Dublin City University (DCU)
• Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design & Technology (IADT)
• Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT)
• Maynooth University
• Munster Technological University (MTU)
• National College of Art and Design (NCAD)
• National University of Ireland (NUI)
• Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI)
• South East Technological University
• Technological University Dublin
• Technological University of the Shannon Midlands Midwest
• University of Dublin (Trinity College)
• University College Cork
• University College Dublin
• University of Galway
• University of Limerick

Irish citizens who are over 18 with a degree from any of these institutions are now eligible to register. The NUI has been appointed as the Central Registration Authority for the constituency and will prepare and maintain the register of electors.

The last day to register is Thursday 23 January 2025. People will need to submit their applications and any required supporting documents either directly on the application portal on seanadvoter.ie or by post by the deadline.

People currently on the NUI and Trinity College Dublin registers will not be automatically added to the new expanded register and will have to re-register through a streamlined process on www.seanadvoter.ie. Letters have issued to some 170,000 existing electors to advise them of that and so far a significant number of them have submitted applications to register for the new constituency.

Current Seanad General Election

The ongoing Seanad General Election is being held on the basis of the two existing constituencies (NUI and University of Dublin – Trinity College Dublin), electing three Senators each. The polls close for both the NUI and University of Dublin constituencies at 11am on Wednesday 29 January 2025.

Whilst the timeline for this process and registration for the new future expanded constituency overlap, they are independent.

Who will manage the Register of Electors for the new constituency

The Seanad Electoral (University Members) (Amendment) Act 2024 provides for the NUI to be the Central Registration Authority (CRA). The CRA has appointed Dr. Patrick O’Leary to be Chief Registration Officer (CRO) and the Vice-Chancellor of the National University of Ireland shall be the returning officer for every election in the Higher Education constituency.

How people can register

seanadvoter.ie includes an online portal for application. Applicants will be asked to provide some personal data including name, address, date of birth, Personal Public Service Number (PPSN) and citizenship details. Where a new applicant does not provide a PPSN they are asked to have their form witnessed and upload this with their application. The information provided may be shared with other relevant bodies in line with the legislation where it is necessary and proportionate, including to verify the accuracy of a claim and to identify duplicates. A paper form is also available.

Whether existing NUI and Trinity electors will automatically be added to the new register

No. NUI and Trinity have issued letters to their existing electors to inform them of the necessary steps they need to take to be included on the register for the new constituency.

Important dates

23 January 2025: deadline for receipt of applications to be on the first register of electors- the easiest way to apply is on Seanadvoter.ie but paper forms are also available.

1 April 2025: first register of electors comes into force.

From 2026 an annual revision cycle will enable applications for inclusion up to 26 February in each year with the updated register coming into force on the following 1 June.

Timeline for a general election with a Higher Education constituency

Any Seanad General Election that takes place on foot of a Seanad Election Order made by the Minister after 21 March 2025 will be held on the basis of the new Higher Education constituency. This is in line with the Supreme Court judgment that required any Seanad University election held after 31 May 2025 will be on the basis of an expanded number of institutions.

Designated Institutions of Higher Education in the new Higher Education constituency

Designated institutions include:

• National University of Ireland (NUI)
• University of Dublin (Trinity College)

A designated institution of higher education, as provided for in the Higher Education Authority Act 2022:

• Atlantic Technological University
• Dublin City University (DCU)
• Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design & Technology (IADT)
• Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT)
• Maynooth University
• Munster Technological University (MTU)
• National College of Art and Design (NCAD)
• Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI)
• South East Technological University
• Technological University Dublin
• Technological University of the Shannon Midlands Midwest
• University of Dublin (Trinity College)
• University College Cork
• University College Dublin
• University of Galway
• University of Limerick

Further expansion to include other institutions

The Higher Education Authority Act 2022 provides for a process whereby higher education institutions not currently designated can in future apply for designation. Once this process is in place the constituency will automatically expand to include the newly designated institutions.

Dissolved institutions

Graduates of institutions that have been dissolved will be able to apply to be included on the register of electors if the functions of the institution from which they received or were awarded a degree have been transferred to an existing Designated Institution of Higher Education. The CRA has included a comprehensive list of institutions at Seanadvoter.ie.