Voting begins throughout Ireland in major abortion decision

By: The Associated Press

Friday, May 25, 2018 12:45 AM

DUBLIN (AP) Voters throughout Ireland have begun casting votes in a referendum that may lead to a loosening of the country's strict ban on most abortions.

The referendum Friday will decide whether the eighth amendment of the constitution is repealed, which would open the way for more liberal legislation.

The amendment, in place since 1983, requires authorities to equally protect the right to life of a mother and that of a fetus, from the moment of conception.

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar tweeted his support for the bill before a moratorium on campaigning took effect Thursday. He urged people to vote "yes" in favor of repeal.

Results are not expected until Saturday afternoon or evening.

Voting has already taken place on Ireland's offshore islands.

Voting begins throughout Ireland in major abortion decision

Presiding officer Carmel McBride looks on as a woman casts her vote in the referendum on the 8th Amendment of the Irish Constitution, on Thursday May 24, 2018, a day early for the people that live off the coast of Donegal on the island of Inishbofin, Ireland. The referendum on whether to repeal the country's strict anti-abortion law is being seen by anti-abortion activists as a last-ditch stand against what they view as a European norm of abortion-on-demand, while for pro-abortion rights advocates, it is a fundamental moment for declaring an Irish woman's right to choose. (Clodagh Kilcoyne/PA via AP)

The Associated Press

Election warehouse manager Michael Leonard checks the seals on the ballot boxes in Dublin, Thursday May 24, 2018, ready to be delivered to polling stations for Friday's referendum on the 8th Amendment of the Irish Constitution. (Niall Carson/PA via AP)

The Associated Press

In this May 17, 2018 photo, pro and against posters are displayed on a lamppost in Dublin, Ireland ahead of the abortion referendum on Friday, May 25.. An abortion debate that has inflamed passions in Ireland for decades will come down to a single question on Friday: yes or no? The referendum on whether to repeal the country's strict anti-abortion law is being seen by anti-abortion activists as a last-ditch stand against what they view as a European norm of abortion-on-demand, while for pro-abortion rights advocates, it is a fundamental moment for declaring an Irish woman's right to choose. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)

The Associated Press

In this May 17, 2018 photo, a woman walks past a "Yes" campaign logo on a shop window in Dublin, Ireland, ahead of the abortion referendum on Friday, May 25. An abortion debate that has inflamed passions in Ireland for decades will come down to a single question on Friday: yes or no? The referendum on whether to repeal the country's strict anti-abortion law is being seen by anti-abortion activists as a last-ditch stand against what they view as a European norm of abortion-on-demand, while for pro-abortion rights advocates, it is a fundamental moment for declaring an Irish woman's right to choose. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)

The Associated Press