(Bloomberg) — Ireland is set to hold an early general election as Prime Minister Simon Harris capitalizes on positive poll results and declining support for Sinn Fein, the leading opposition party, which is entangled in multiple scandals. Harris announced that the election will occur in November. 29, although he doesn’t need to conduct an election until March 2025. The anticipated announcement comes after an October budget that was viewed as a strategy to appeal to voters. At 38, Harris became Ireland’s youngest prime minister, or Taoiseach, in April when he assumed leadership of Fine Gael, the primary party in the coalition government. He has faced challenges related to immigration, housing, and healthcare but has so far maintained a favorable relationship with voters. Meanwhile, the opposing party Sinn Fein has experienced a decline in support from its recent peaks and is currently behind in the polls. Harris has vowed to introduce new approaches to topics such as immigration and has gained an advantage by having the means to maintain public support. Tax earnings from multinational corporations such as Google and Amazon, along with a one-time back-tax payment of €14 billion ($15 billion) from Apple Inc. have set the country on course for a significant fiscal surplus this year. Harris allocated part of that for a €10.5 billion budget windfall, which included various tax credits and additional welfare payments to be distributed before Christmas. Harris revealed the date on RTE Television. On Friday, he will meet with the president to request the dissolution of the Dáil, which is the name for the parliament. “I am eager for the upcoming weeks and to ask the people of Ireland for their mandate,” Harris stated. Immigration is expected to be a key topic in the election. Although Ireland lacks a significant far-right party similar to Germany’s AfD or France’s National Rally, there has been a rise in backing for independent anti-immigration individuals. The nation was stunned by violent riots at the end of last year, and there have been ongoing protests and confrontations with law enforcement at sites housing asylum seekers. More similar stories can be found on bloomberg.com.
