Two referendums were held together in the Republic of Ireland on 22 May 1998, each on a proposed amendment of the Irish constitution. Both measures were approved. A referendum in Northern Ireland was also held on the same day. The total number of people who voted (both countries) was 2,499,078.
Eighteenth amendment
The Eighteenth Amendment introduced two new articles into the constitution which allowed the government to ratify the Amsterdam Treaty.
| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
 Yes |
932,632 | 61.74 |
| No | 578,070 | 38.26 |
| Valid votes | 1,510,702 | 97.85 |
| Invalid or blank votes | 33,228 | 2.15 |
| Total votes | 1,543,930 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | 2,747,088 | 56.20 |
Nineteenth amendment
The Nineteenth Amendment to the constitution allowed the government to ratify the Good Friday Agreement signed in Belfast on 10 April 1998, which included changing articles 2 and 3 of the Irish constitution which effectively claimed Irish sovereignty over Northern Ireland. The agreement was also endorsed in the simultaneous referendum in Northern Ireland. Articles 2 and 3 were subsequently changed in December 1999, and the territorial claim was replaced with an aspiration for a united Ireland to be achieved "by peaceful means with the consent of a majority of the people, democratically expressed, in both jurisdictions in the island".
| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| Yes |
1,442,583 | 94.39 |
| No | 85,748 | 5.61 |
| Valid votes | 1,528,331 | 98.90 |
| Invalid or blank votes | 17,064 | 1.10 |
| Total votes | 1,545,395 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | 2,747,088 | 56.26 |
See also
References
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