Leo Varadkar has announced that he is to stand down as Fine Gael Leader and he will leave the office of Taoiseach when the Dáil returns after the Easter break.
A new Fine Gael Leader will be in place by the Fine Gael Ard Fheis on Saturday 6 April.
This was a seismic political announcement which caught some of Leo Varadkar's party colleagues by surprise.
However, there always was something in Mr Varadkar's political personality that suggested a day like this.
He always said he was going to leave politics by the age of 50 and he has been true to his word on that.
The starting gun has already sounded on the search to find a new Fine Gael leader, with Minister for Further and Higher Education Simon Harris the early frontrunner.
The outgoing Taoiseach said his reasons are both personal and political, but after careful consideration he did not feel he was the best person for the job anymore.
That was no doubt a veiled reference to the resounding defeat of the recent referendums and the upcoming electoral tests at local and European level.
Leo Varadkar said serving as Taoiseach was the most fulfilling time of his life.
Amid much speculation about what he does next, he insisted that he had nothing lined up and it was part of leadership to know when to pass on the baton.
Despite the prospect that this Government is set to elect its third Taoiseach, Tánaiste Micheál Martin has insisted that it does still have a mandate and a Dáil majority and he wants it to serve a full term.
That would mean no general election until 2025, and it is that point which seems to be unifying Government today.
Leo Varadkar too was adamant in the Dáil this afternoon that the coalition will stay in place.
Seasoned observers think today's events will ultimately have a binding effect and there will be a major effort to ensure there is no internal turmoil.
"They'll stick together now, sure they've no other choice," said one.
It will all result though in calls for a general election growing louder.
FG National Executive Council to meet tonight to set the rules for a leadership contest which will conclude in time for FG Ard Fheis on April 6th. New Taoiseach could then be elected by the Dáil on Tuesday April 9th.
— Mícheál Lehane (@MichealLehane) March 20, 2024
Generally, the mood around Leinster House, following the news of Leo Varadkar's impending exit from the upper echelons of Irish political life, was one of giddiness.
That was largely due to the sudden and unexpected nature of it all.
Yet, Leo Varadkar always had the potential to deliver such a dramatic departure day.
He had told us many years ago that he was going to exit the political scene by the age of 50.
Although he was for the most part assured in the role of Taoiseach, crucially for him, he did not spread election winning dust in the direction of his colleagues.
The trouncing the Government received in the referendums added to this sense of heightened anxiety within Fine Gael as more elections loom.
Mr Varadkar could probably have fended off criticism if Fine Gael failed badly in those elections, but he departed weeks in advance of that challenge.
Some in the party believe he reached his decision during his recent visit to the US, although some colleagues who spoke to him yesterday had no inkling of what was going to happen.
Attention has already turned with staggering swiftness to the election of a new Taoiseach.
It is not entirely clear yet if there will be a contest or an agreed Fine Gael candidate.
If it is the latter, then Simon Harris would be the most likely to get the nod.
