Limerick people will be able to get a glimpse into what local elections were like in the past with a new pop-up museum exhibition in the Council’s Corporate Headquarters in Merchant’s Quay.
Local Elections is produced by the Local Authority Archivists Group and will feature local authority collections around the country from the first local election in 1899, and will inform the public on how elections work and how people have used their vote in the past.
While there have been huge advances in technology and in society in the past 120 years, elections in Ireland have remained the same.
It is this ongoing traditional use of pens and paper on the day and the manual count following that makes elections in Ireland so fascinating and intriguing to watch.
The exhibition is brought to you by the Limerick Archives Department of Limerick City and County Council.
Jacqui Hayes, Senior Archivist with Limerick City and County Council said: “The timing of Limerick receiving this exhibition is particularly fortuitous as it will overlap with the Local Elections being held on 24th May. Local government is celebrating 120 years in existence this year and we are delighted to be able to bring this exhibition to the people of Limerick. It’s interesting to see that elections-wise, not much has changed from those pioneering times of 1899.”
The free exhibition is now open in Merchant’s Quay and will run until Friday 31 May 2019.
