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A deal was reached between Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Regional
Independent Group to form the next government a month and a half
after the election gave no party a majority of seats needed to
control parliament, Irish media reported.
Party members will have to ratify the decision in the coming
days. A new parliament is due to meet Jan. 22.
In the November election, Fianna Fail had won 48 seats of the
174 legislative seats and Fine Gael had 38. The two center-right
parties, who have governed in coalition since 2020, fell just
short of the 88 needed to achieve a majority without third-party
support.
Left-of-center party Sinn Fein won 39 seats in the Dail, the
lower house, but Fine Gael and Fianna Fail have refused to work
with them because of their historic ties with the Irish
Republican Army during three decades of violence in Northern
Ireland.
Fianna Fail leader Micheál Martin is likely to be the next
taoiseach, or prime minister, a position he held in the first
half of the last government. Simon Harris, the Fine Gael leader,
is currently prime minister.
Fianna Fail and Fine Gael are longtime rivals with origins on
opposing sides of Ireland’s 1920s civil war. They formed an
alliance after the 2020 election ended in a virtual dead heat.
Under the agreement reached Tuesday, two members of the mostly
conservative Regional Independent Group will be given super
junior ministerial positions.
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