Polls open in Ireland\'s presidential election

The polls opened Thursday in Ireland's presidential election, with more than three million voters eligible to cast their ballots to choose the republic's ninth president. Polling stations opened at 7:00am (0600 GMT) and were to close at 10:00pm (2100 GMT). Seven candidates are standing, representing the largest-ever field for the post. The winner will succeed Belfast-born Mary McAleese, who has served the maximum two seven-year terms in the largely ceremonial role. Two referendums are also being held to amend Ireland's 1937 constitution and a by-election in the Dublin West constituency to fill a seat left vacant by the death of former finance minister Brian Lenihan. The seven candidates include Gay Mitchell, a European Parliament lawmaker standing for the centre-right Fine Gael senior governing coalition party, and Michael D. Higgins, a poet and former arts minister representing centre-left Labour, the junior coalition partners. Northern Irish Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness is standing for the left-wing Sinn Fein party. The four independent candidates are Sean Gallagher, a small businessman turned television personality; Senator David Norris, the first openly gay presidential candidate; 1970 Eurovision Song Contest winner Dana Rosemary Scallon, and Mary Davis. The winner of the seven-year post is responsible for representing the republic, receiving foreign heads of state and making visits abroad to promote Irish interests and strengthen links with the large global diaspora. The new president also gets the keys to the Aras an Uachtarain, the splendid official residence in Dublin's Phoenix Park. Voter trends show that most people cast their ballots in the evening, RTE television said. The ballot boxes will be opened on Friday morning, though the result may not be known until Saturday due to the complexities of the voting system. The single transferable vote system is used, whereby voters rank their choices. Candidates are eliminated one by one and their votes redistributed until one has an absolute majority.