People vote in referendum on the equal right to life of the mother and the unborn.
On 7 September 1983, a referendum took place over the equal right to life of the mother and the unborn. The Eighth Amendment of the Constitution inserted a subsection recognising the equal right to life of the pregnant woman and the unborn. The amendment was initially proposed by a Fianna Fáil government led by Charles Haughey and was adopted during the Fine Gael Labour coalition led by Garret FitzGerald.
Turnout on voting day was low. Just 50 per cent of the 2.3 million voters on the register cast their votes. The amendment was passed by 66.9 per cent to 33.1 per cent.
Across the country, people cast their votes including President Patrick Hillery and a group of nuns who were driven to and from the polling station.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 7 September 1983. The footage shown here is mute.
