Cllr Butler urges Louth graduates to register for new constituency

Cllr Marianne Butler is urging graduates from Louth to register for the new Seanad Higher Education Constituency, which is set to come into effect this April.

In comments to the Dundalk Democrat at the weekend, the Green Party councillor welcomed the new constituencey and shared some information for local graduates on how to register. The Dundalk South councillor explained: “At the end of this month six senators, three from Trinity College Dublin and three from National Universities (UCD, UCC, UCG and Maynooth) will be elected for the last time.

“Thankfully this very unfair system that has existed for too long, which restricted voting to only graduates from these third level institutions will finally end. The register for the new Higher Education Constituency will come into effect in April 2025. In order to be included in this new electoral register for this constituency local graduates need to take action and register their details on the website https://seanadvoter.ie/

“If you were already on either the Trinity or the National University register of electors, then you should have received a letter with details of how to register for the new Higher Education Constituency. If you went to another public college or university and you are a citizen, then you must register your details on the Seanad Voter website.

“It is really straightforward to register - you just need a copy of the photo page of your valid Irish Passport or your Certificate of Naturalisation to verify your citizenship and your Personal Public Service Number. A full List of Designated Institutions which includes the names of all Current, Affiliated and Historic Institutions can be easily found on the Seanad Voter website.”

Cllr Butler added “I really welcome this change for local graduates. The referendum to enable this change took place in 1979! There was a public consultation in relation to this change back in 2014. I made a submission in which I argued that in the spirit of the Good Friday Agreement, graduates from Institutions in Northern Ireland should also be included along with recipients of Level 6 qualifications. Unfortunately, neither of these cohorts were included.

“Hopefully this new Higher Education Constituency can be further expanded and made more inclusive in years to come.I am delighted those graduates living in Louth that attended DKIT (Dundalk RTC), DCU, Technological University Dublin (DIT) and many other institutions will now be able to participate in electing six Senators to Seanad Eireann once this new Register comes into force in April.”