Participating in local government

There are several ways you can participate in local government, from keeping informed, contacting your councillors, voting or running for election.

If you are interested in what’s going on at a council meeting, or if you would like to attend a meeting yourself, you can access meeting agendas, minutes, and scheduled dates on your local authority website.

Ordinary council meetings are open to members of the public, which means anyone can attend. Some local authorities broadcast council meetings online. To find out how to attend or watch a meeting, visit your local authority website.

If you would like to contact a councillor from your local authority, you can get in touch with them in several ways:

• contact them or their office - contact details are available on your local authority website
• attend public meetings run by councillors in your local community
• speak to them if they canvass in your local area
• visit their website for more contact opportunities

To vote in local elections, you must be:

• resident in Ireland
• 18 years or over on the day of the election
• registered to vote

In line with electoral law for many decades, Irish citizens, British citizens, European (EU) citizens and Non-EU citizens can all vote in local elections if they are eligible to do so and on the electoral register.

Information on registering to vote and how members of Local Authorities are elected is available in 16 languages.

Running for election

Anyone over the age of 18 who is ordinarily resident in Ireland is eligible to run as a candidate in a local election, with some exceptions.

Candidates must be nominated – they can nominate themselves, or be nominated by another person who is registered to vote in the local electoral area.

Government is actively working towards a more diverse and representative local government for Ireland. Several supports are available to promote inclusion and diversity among elected members.

• funding is offered to local authorities and political parties for initiatives that promote the participation of women and people from diverse backgrounds in local politics. Varied initiatives like party diversity officers, community outreach programmes and International Women’s Day Events receive support through these schemes
• funding is provided to local authorities for the establishment of women’s caucuses, at local or regional level. These caucuses offer women councillors an apolitical space to discuss issues affecting them in their role and beyond
• grant funding is provided to organisations such as Women for Election, See Her Elected, the National Women’s Council and the Immigrant Council of Ireland, which offer information, training, and supports to women and people from migrant and minority backgrounds who are interested in participating in local government and running for local elections
• these organisations also produce useful resources such as the SHE Guide to Running in the 2024 Local Elections and the WFE Women in Irish Politics DataHub
• since December 2022, elected councillors can avail of maternity leave. They have the option to have a temporary substitute while on maternity leave, through co-option. They can also avail of an allowance for administrative support after having a baby, whether they choose to avail of maternity leave or not

If you would like to know more about councillors and local government, more Information is available at:

Association of Irish Local Government (AILG).

The association of Irish Local Government (AILG) is a body that represents elected Councillors and their member local authorities. It is a networking, policy development and training resource for the elected Councillors of Ireland’s 31 County and City Councils.

Local Authority Members Association (LAMA)

The Local Authority Members’ Association (LAMA) represents elected councillors nationwide. LAMA promotes the interests of Councillors and is involved in a number of initiatives throughout the calendar year.

125 Years of Irish Local Government is a digital exhibition produced as a collaboration between the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Local Government Archivists and Record Managers network.