Oireachtas

The Oireachtas is the "National Parliament" of the Republic of Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of the President of Ireland and two houses: D?il ?ireann and Seanad ?ireann (also known as the Senate). However, the directly-elected D?il is by far the most powerful branch. The legislature is also sometimes known as Oireachtas ?ireann. Both Houses of the Oireachtas currently reside in Leinster House in Dublin.

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D?il ?ireann, the lower house, is directly elected under universal adult suffrage, at least once in every five years. However the house can be dissolved at any time at the request of the taoiseach (head of government). Elections occur under the system of proportional representation by means of the Single Transferable Vote. The Senate is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members selected in a number of ways, including indirect election and appointment by the taoiseach. The President of Ireland is directly elected once in every seven years, for a maximum of two terms. However if, as has occurred on a number of occasions, a consensus among political parties means that only a single candidate is nominated, then no actual ballot occurs.

Republic of Ireland: :For an explanation of often confusing terms like Ulster, (Republic of) Ireland, (Great) Britain and United Kingdom see British Isles (terminology) ....

President of Ireland: The President of Ireland (Irish: Uachtar?n na h?ireann) is the head of state of the Republic of Ireland. The President is usually directly elected by the people for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the President does exerc...

Leinster House: Leinster House is the former ducal palace in Dublin that has served since 1922 as the parliament building of the Irish Free State and the Republic of Ireland. It served as the headquarters of the Royal Dublin Society until 1922. The society's famous Dublin Spring Show and Dublin Horse Show were held...