Participating in local government
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
There are several ways you can participate in local government, from keeping informed, contacting your councillors, voting or running for election.
If you are interested in what’s going on at a council meeting, or if you would like to attend a meeting yourself, you can access meeting agendas, minutes, and scheduled dates on your local authority website.
Ordinary council meetings are open to members of the public, which means anyone can attend. Some local authorities broadcast council meetings online. To find out how to attend or watch a meeting, visit your local authority website.
If you would like to contact a councillor from your local authority, you can get in touch with them in several ways:
To vote in local elections, you must be:
In line with electoral law for many decades, Irish citizens, British citizens, European (EU) citizens and Non-EU citizens can all vote in local elections if they are eligible to do so and on the electoral register.
Information on registering to vote and how members of Local Authorities are elected is available in 16 languages.
Anyone over the age of 18 who is ordinarily resident in Ireland is eligible to run as a candidate in a local election (with some exceptions ).
Candidates must be nominated – they can nominate themselves, or be nominated by another person who is registered to vote in the local electoral area.
Government is actively working towards a more diverse and representative local government for Ireland. Several supports are available to promote inclusion and diversity among elected members.
If you would like to know more about councillors and local government, more Information is available at:
The ssociation of Irish Local Government (AILG) is a body that represents elected Councillors and their member local authorities. It is a networking, policy development and training resource for the elected Councillors of Ireland’s 31 County and City Councils.
The Local Authority Members’ Association (LAMA) represents elected councillors nationwide. LAMA promotes the interests of Councillors and is involved in a number of initiatives throughout the calendar year.