How low is the turnout in this Presidential election?
The turnout in this Presidential election was 45.83%, or 1,656,436 votes (which includes 213,738 spoilt ballots). Excluding spoilt ballots, valid turnout was 39.9%, which is the lowest turnout ever in an Irish Presidential election.
There were also a record number of spoilt ballots, at 12.9%, compared to a previous high of 4.4%.
Here’s the turnout in all past contested Irish Presidential elections, and how many people spoiled their votes historically:
1945:
Turnout: 63%
Spoilt votes: 50,287 (4.4%)
1959:
Turnout: 58.3%
Spoilt votes: 24,089 (2.5%)
1966:
Turnout: 65.3%
Spoilt votes: 9,910 (0.9%)
1973:
Turnout: 62.2%
Spoilt votes: 6,946 (0.5%)
1990:
Turnout: 64.1%
Spoilt votes: 9,444 (0.6%)
1997:
Turnout: 47.6%
Spoilt votes: 9,852 (0.7%)
2011:
Turnout: 56.1%
Spoilt votes: 18,676 (1.0%)
2018:
Turnout: 43.9%
Spoilt votes: 18,438 (1.22%)
2025:
Turnout: 45.83%
Turnout (excl. spoilt ballots): 39.9%
Spoilt votes: 213,738 (12.9%)
Percentage turnout in contested Irish Presidential elections 1945-2018 (highest = 65.3%, lowest = 39.9% excluding spoilt)
Percentage spoiled ballots in contested Irish Presidential elections 1945-2018 (lowest = 4.4%, highest = 12.9%)
