Ireland prepares for 3-week campaign to decide next prime minister

Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Ireland’s President Michael Higgins has dissolved parliament to clear the way for a Nov. 29 election that will determine who controls government. Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris, who had to call for an election by March, had announced the date on Wednesday. A historic coalition government led by Harris’ Fine Gael party and its rival Fianna Fail has been in power since the 2020 race ended in a virtual dead heat. The two parties that arose from opposing sides of Ireland’s 1920s civil war put aside differences to share power, shutting out the left-wing nationalist Sinn Fein party that had won the largest share of votes.