Explained: How the transfers work as Day 2 of counting begins in 2020 General Election

There are certain words that are only used when there’s an election on – quotas, tallies, surplus and counts.

As Day 2 of 2020 General Election gets underway, we do our best to explain what you need to know.

Quotas and transfers – what are they?

We’ll break them up into two separate answers. Quotas first. The quota is the number of votes it takes to get elected. It is the total number of valid votes (ones that aren’t spoiled) divided by the number of seats plus one. When you get that number you add one again!

In Laois-Offaly for example, if 70,000 people vote and the number of seats is five, then the quota will be 70,000 divided by six (five plus one). You then add one again so the quota in this instance would be 11,668.

If someone gets more than that in first preferences, as Brian Stanley did are elected on the first count and their surplus (their extra votes) are distributed among the remaining candidates.

If nobody is elected on the first count, they will eliminate the bottom candidate and distribute their votes. That process continues until they have the required number of TDs elected. It is long process and it’s why it can often take 14 or 15 counts and a couple of days before there is a final result.

In Laois-Offaly, Brian Stanley’s surplus wasn’t enough to elect anyone else so they then started by eliminating the bottom-placed candidates in the 3rd count, in this case Noel O’Rourke of Renua and John Daly of the Irish National Party.

Two candidates were eliminated in this instance as even if Daly got all of O’Rourke’s transfers it would not have been enough for him to overtake Stephen Tynan who was next up.

Explain a bit more about these transfers?

This is where it gets confusing. Ireland uses a system of voting called Proportional Representation (PR). It is distinctly different than what is used in the UK for example where they use ‘a first past the post’  system where the constituencies are all one-seaters and the person who gets the most votes wins the seat.

Here, voters vote in order of preference giving their Number 1 to the first choice, 2 to their second choice and so on. It is deemed to be a fairer system overall.

It means that after someone is elected or eliminated, their Number 2 is given to that candidate. So for example if your first preference vote is is elected on the first count, your second preference will will get a transfer from the person you voted for Number 1.

And it gets even more complicated. If a candidate had 10,000 votes and the quota was 8,000, it means they have a surplus of 2,000. The counters, however, must go through all 10,000 of their votes and see where their second choices go.

But they only distribute 2,000 of them and they calculate that proportionally. So 2,000 is 20% of 10,000. A candidate may have got 1,000 Number 2s from the person the transfers are coming from – but the real figure that is transferred is 200, ie 20%. We know, it’s quite a lot to get your head around!

Likewise if someone is eliminated, those counting the votes will assign ALL of their Number 2s (or next preference if that person is already elected or eliminated) to the relevant places.

It also means that your 15th preference could eventually get your vote if they are still in the race way down the line and all other candidates are gone.

Example

Pauline Flanagan’s 1,874 votes (her Number 1s plus any transfers she got from Brian Stanley’s surplus and from the elimination of Noel O’Rourke and John Daly) have to be sorted again by the count staff.

Whoever got her Number 2 will get her vote next. If someone gave her Number 1 and Brian Stanley Number 2 (or some of the previous eliminated candidate), it will then move on to her third preference and so on.

As soon as anyone is reaches the quota they will be elected.

It is also likely that some of the candidates will have to be elected without reaching the quota as there will be no other candidates left in the race.

The state of play after the 4th count

1. 1. Brian Stanley (Sinn Fein) – 16,654, ELECTED on the 1st Count
   2. Barry Cowen (Fianna Fail) – 9,130 (+211)
   3. Sean Fleming (Fianna Fail) – 9,106 (+916)
   4. Charlie Flanagan (Fine Gael) – 7,791(+116)
   5. Carol Nolan (Independent) – 6,434 (+72)
   6. Marcella Corcoran-Kennedy (Fine Gael) – 4,643 (+49)
   7. Peter Ormond (Fianna Fail) – 4,320 (+183)
   8. Pippa Hackett (Green) – 4,081 (+90)
   9. John Leahy (Independent) – 3,876 (+14)
   10. Ken Smollen (Irish Democratic Party) – 3,274 (+13)
   11. Noel Tuohy (Labour) – 2,806 (+142)
   12. Stephen Tynan (People Before Profit) – 2,273 (+30) – Eliminated
   13. Pauline Flanagan (Fianna Fail) – 1,874 – Eliminated
   14. John Daly (Irish National Party) – 557 – Eliminated
   15. Noel O’Rourke (Renua) – 356 – Eliminated

   Quota – 11,571

SEE ALSO – Fianna Fail benefit from Pauline Flanagan’s transfers but no further elections as Stephen Tynan next to go