Leaders
on both sides of Ireland's gay marriage referendum say the "yes" side
has won a resounding victory with the ballot count still under way.
Senior figures from the "No" campaign, who sought to prevent Ireland's constitution from being
amended to permit gay marriage, say the only question on Saturday is how large the "Yes" side's margin of victory will be from Friday's vote.
Leo Varadkar, an Irish Cabinet minister who came out as gay at the start of the government's campaign, said Dublin looked to have voted about 70 percent in favour of gay marriage, while most districts outside the capital also were reporting strong "Yes" leads.
"We're the first country in the world to enshrine marriage equality in our constitution and do so by popular mandate. That makes us a beacon, a light to the rest of the world of liberty and equality. It's a very proud day to be Irish," Varadkar said.
David Quinn, a leading "No" campaigner and director of the Iona Institute, told national broadcaster RTE it was "obviously a very impressive victory for the 'Yes' side".
He added that early tallies indicated that those in favour of gay marriage had secured a victory "roughly in the region of two to one".
"Well done and congratulations to the 'Yes' side," Quinn said. "Obviously there's a certain amount of disappointment but also I'm quite philosophical about the outcome."
No official results of the referendum have yet been announced and the nationwide result is expected later on Saturday.
Al Jazeera's Tim Friend, reporting from London, said this was a significant vote considering the power and reach of the Irish Catholic Church.
"Church leaders across the world will be looking closely at the results of Ireland's referendum," he said.
Legalising gay marriage would be a seismic change in traditionally Catholic Ireland, where homosexuality was illegal until 1993 and abortion remains prohibited except where the mother's life is in danger.
Gay couples are currently allowed to sign civil partnerships.
Senior figures from the "No" campaign, who sought to prevent Ireland's constitution from being
amended to permit gay marriage, say the only question on Saturday is how large the "Yes" side's margin of victory will be from Friday's vote.
Leo Varadkar, an Irish Cabinet minister who came out as gay at the start of the government's campaign, said Dublin looked to have voted about 70 percent in favour of gay marriage, while most districts outside the capital also were reporting strong "Yes" leads.
"We're the first country in the world to enshrine marriage equality in our constitution and do so by popular mandate. That makes us a beacon, a light to the rest of the world of liberty and equality. It's a very proud day to be Irish," Varadkar said.
David Quinn, a leading "No" campaigner and director of the Iona Institute, told national broadcaster RTE it was "obviously a very impressive victory for the 'Yes' side".
He added that early tallies indicated that those in favour of gay marriage had secured a victory "roughly in the region of two to one".
"Well done and congratulations to the 'Yes' side," Quinn said. "Obviously there's a certain amount of disappointment but also I'm quite philosophical about the outcome."
No official results of the referendum have yet been announced and the nationwide result is expected later on Saturday.
Al Jazeera's Tim Friend, reporting from London, said this was a significant vote considering the power and reach of the Irish Catholic Church.
"Church leaders across the world will be looking closely at the results of Ireland's referendum," he said.
Legalising gay marriage would be a seismic change in traditionally Catholic Ireland, where homosexuality was illegal until 1993 and abortion remains prohibited except where the mother's life is in danger.
Gay couples are currently allowed to sign civil partnerships.
Source: Al Jazeera and agencies