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The economy looms large for Irish voters ahead of tomorrow's election

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

Voters in Ireland go to the polls this week. The nation got the name of Celtic Tiger for a once-roaring economy fueled by the profits of multinationals. But the higher cost of living that followed has made life expensive for many, and that's a central issue, as Sinn Fein, a party long associated with the IRA, makes big gains. NPR's Fatima Al-Kassab reports from Dublin.

MARTIN LEAHY: (Singing) Some people's misery, other people's gain. Enrich the rich and make them richer.

FATIMA AL-KASSAB, BYLINE: Martin Leahy was evicted from his home two years ago and has been singing this song for a hundred weeks in front of Ireland's Parliament.

LEAHY: I've got my guitar and my sign - my sign that says, housing crisis protest. You can see that it's worn.

AL-KASSAB: Very few Irish voters may be singing about it, but the high cost of housing is the No. 1 issue in this race. Aoife Moore is a political reporter based in Dublin.

AOIFE MOORE: If you ask anyone, no matter what economic background they come from in Ireland - if you ask anyone what the No. 1 election issue is, it is housing. We, as a nation, declared a housing emergency in 2018, and it has only gotten worse since then.

AL-KASSAB: Young people are having to stay with their parents instead of setting out on their own.

ELLIE RIGGS: I didn't really have an option of living away from home, which shouldn't really be the case. I think we should be offered an affordable alternative.

AL-KASSAB: Ellie Riggs (ph) is a student at Dublin City University. She and her classmate Ciaran Molloy (ph) say anxiety may drive their vote more than anything else.

CIARAN MOLLOY: For us, it's feeling very much unheard and uncertain about our future. We're not secure in our future. We're not certain about getting a house. We're not certain about - of what lies ahead for us.

AL-KASSAB: In recent years, the party that has been promising to fix Ireland's housing problem is Sinn Fein, which used to be the political wing of the Irish Republican Army. The IRA has a long history but was designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the U.K. when it fought for Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K., to join the Republic of Ireland in the South. This period of time was known as The Troubles, and it ended with a peace agreement in 1998. A united island of Ireland is still one of Sinn Fein's top priorities. Here's Aoife Moore again.

MOORE: Their history has always been a stick to beat them with. The IRA carried out atrocities, both in the North and in mainland Britain.

AL-KASSAB: But under a new woman leader, the first leader of Sinn Fein not connected to The Troubles, the party has undergone a makeover, says Moore.

MOORE: They really try and cash in on that working class. You know, young people are at the heart of it. Workers are at the heart of it. Renters are at the heart of it.

AL-KASSAB: And for the past few years, this strategy has worked. Even though it has never been in government in the Republic of Ireland, for young people especially, Sinn Fein has for some time represented a left-wing alternative to the two centrist parties. Fine Gael and Fianna Fail have governed Ireland alone or in coalitions for more than a century. Nathan Murphy is from the Union of Students in Ireland. He says there's a desire for a political alternative.

NATHAN MURPHY: I think, for the first time, it's, like, we're looking at other possibilities then Fianna Faill and Fine Gael. And I think students and young people especially are looking towards parties that might actually be able to bring a change.

AL-KASSAB: Sinn Fein is now neck-and-neck in the polls with the more established parties, Fine Gael and Fianna Fail.

LEAHY: (Singing) They see property as opportunity. A business that'll...

AL-KASSAB: Voters go to the polls on Friday. Whatever happens, Sinn Fein have consolidated their place in mainstream Irish politics. They've capitalized on the need for more affordable housing and a lower cost of living. Martin Leahy says he'll keep singing until that is a reality for him and for many others like him in Ireland.

LEAHY: (Singing) Safe and warm where you belong. Everyone should have a home.

AL-KASSAB: Fatima Al-Kassab, NPR News, Dublin. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Fatima Al-Kassab
[Copyright 2024 NPR]
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