DUBLIN– Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar announced on Tuesday that the country will hold general elections on Feb. 8.
In a statement issued by the Irish Government Press Office, Varadkar said that he had informed his cabinet about his election date decision on Tuesday morning and would ask President Michael D. Higgins to dissolve the Dail (lower house of the Irish parliament) in order to pave the way for the election.
Later on Tuesday, President Higgins signed the proclamation for the dissolution of the 32nd Dail after a brief meeting with Varadkar.
“I have always said the election should happen at the best time for the country. Now is that time,” Varadkar said in the statement.
“We have a deal on Brexit in Northern Ireland. … The next step is to negotiate a free trade agreement between the EU, including Ireland, and the United Kingdom. … There exists now a window of opportunity to hold a general election to have a new government in place … with a strong mandate to focus on these negotiations into the summer and autumn,” he explained.
In the statement, Varadkar also summarized the major achievements of his government and pledged to do more for his country if re-elected as prime minister in the coming election.
Varadkar had said on previous occasions that he would prefer a general election to be held around May 2020 as his government needed to focus on dealing with the Brexit issue.
His change of mind regarding the election date was partially due to the fact that Fianna Fail, the largest opposition party in the Dail, has recently refused to support Varadkar’s government in a proposed no-confidence vote in Health Minister Simon Harris in the coming sessions
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