1998 Irish constitutional referendums
Two referendums were held together in the Republic of Ireland on 22 May 1998, each on a proposed amendment of the Irish constitution. Both measures were approved. A referendum in Northern Ireland was also held on the same day. The total number of people who voted (both countries) was 2,499,078.
Eighteenth amendment
[edit]The Eighteenth Amendment introduced two new articles into the constitution which allowed the government to ratify the Amsterdam Treaty.
| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
 Yes
|
932,632 | 61.74 |
| No | 578,070 | 38.26 |
| Valid votes | 1,510,702 | 97.85 |
| Invalid or blank votes | 33,228 | 2.15 |
| Total votes | 1,543,930 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | 2,747,088 | 56.20 |
Nineteenth amendment
[edit]The Nineteenth Amendment to the constitution allowed the government to ratify the Good Friday Agreement signed in Belfast on 10 April 1998, which included changing articles 2 and 3 of the Irish constitution which effectively claimed Irish sovereignty over Northern Ireland. The agreement was also endorsed in the simultaneous referendum in Northern Ireland. Articles 2 and 3 were subsequently changed in December 1999, and the territorial claim was replaced with an aspiration for a united Ireland to be achieved "by peaceful means with the consent of a majority of the people, democratically expressed, in both jurisdictions in the island".
| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| Yes
|
1,442,583 | 94.39 |
| No | 85,748 | 5.61 |
| Valid votes | 1,528,331 | 98.90 |
| Invalid or blank votes | 17,064 | 1.10 |
| Total votes | 1,545,395 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | 2,747,088 | 56.26 |
See also
[edit]- Constitutional amendment
- Politics of the Republic of Ireland
- History of the Republic of Ireland
- Politics of Northern Ireland
- History of Northern Ireland
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Referendum Results" (PDF). Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 December 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
