The Chair of Votes for Irish Citizens Abroad campaign group has called for citizens abroad to be given a vote in all elections and referendums, not just the presidency.
Mary Hickman said that young emigrants, particularly those who have left in the last seven or eight years, want to participate in Irish elections.
An initiative was announced by then-taoiseach Enda Kenny in March this year to allow Irish citizens living in Northern Ireland and abroad the right to vote in Presidential elections.
A referendum on the issue is planned for 2019.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Ms Hickman said that many countries allow citizens who emigrate to keep a vote indefinitely, while others allow them to keep a vote for a limited period of time.
She said the group was not being prescriptive of how a scheme should be implemented, but added that Ireland did seem to be out of step with the rest of the world on the issue.
Ms Hickman said the Government embraces the diaspora and wants them to return.
She said that giving them a vote in elections would give emigrants "an ongoing embrace by the Irish State".
The Votes for Irish Citizens Abroad group is due to meet TDs and Senators at Leinster House today.
