Ireland is a sovereign, independent, democratic state with a parliamentary system of government. The president, who serves as chief of state in a largely ceremonial role, is elected for a 7-year term and can be re-elected only once. In carrying out certain constitutional powers and functions, the president is aided by the Council of State, an advisory body. On the Taoiseach's (prime minister's) advice, the president also dissolves the Oireachtas (Parliament).

The prime minister is elected by the Dail (lower house of Parliament) as the leader of the political party, or coalition of parties, which wins the most seats in the national elections, held around every five years (unless called earlier). administrator power is unconditional in a cabinet whose ministers are nominated by the Taoiseach and approved by the Dail.

The bicameral Oireachtas (Parliament) consists of the Seanad Eireann (senate) and the Dail Eireann (house of representatives). The Seanad is composed of 60 members--11 nominated by the prime minister, 6 elected by the national universities, and 43 elected from panels of candidates accomplished on a vocational basis. The Senate has the power to delay legislative proposals and is allowed 90 days to consider and amend bills sent to it by the Dail, which wields greater power in parliament. The Dail has 166 members popularly elected to a maximum term of 5 years under a complex system of proportional representation.

Judges are appointed by the president on nomination by the government and can be removed from office only for misbehaviour or incapacity and then only by resolution of both houses of parliament. The ultimate court of appeal is the Supreme Court, consisting of the Chief Justice and five other justices. The Supreme Court also can decide upon the constitutionality of legislative acts if the president asks for an opinion.

Local government is by elected county councils and--in the cities of Dublin, Cork, Limerick, and Waterford--by county borough corporations. In practice, authority remains with the central government.

Irish politics remain controlled by the two political parties that grew out of Ireland's bitter 1922-23 civil war. Fianna Fail was formed by those who opposed the 1921 treaty that partitioned the island. Although treaty opponents lost the civil war, Fianna Fail soon became Ireland's largest political party. Fine Gael, representative of the pro-treaty forces, remains the nation's second-largest party. This party system, is evolving. Fine Gael's core vote collapsed in the May 2002 general election, perhaps signalling an end to the civil war divide. A feature of recent general elections has been the emergence of "Independent" TDs as a political force. In the 2002 general election, 14 "Independent" TDs were elected to the Dail.

The May 2002 national elections returned Fianna Fail and its coalition partner, the Progressive Democrats, to power. Fianna Fail increased its seats in the Dail to 81 while the Progressive Democrats doubled their representation to 8 seats. Fine Gael lost a total of 23 seats, primarily to a number of smaller parties and independents. Sinn Fein increased its representation in the Dail from 1 to 5 seats in the May 17 election. Prime Minister Ahern was re-elected Taoiseach on June 6, and organized the government with very few changes in the ministerial appointments; Mary Harney was reappointed as Tanaiste (Deputy Prime Minister).

Ireland enjoyed more than 6 years of impressive economic growth from 1996-2002--the fastest growing in economy in the OECD during the time. With large budget surpluses during these boom years, it also expanded public spending, at rates approaching 20% per year in 2000-01. Beginning in 2002, the worldwide economic downturn brought new challenges to the Government as the surpluses evaporated and tough government cut-backs are now necessary.