Counting has begun in the Irish general election, as exit polls suggest a close contest between the three major parties.

Taoiseach (Irish prime minister) and Fine Gael leader Simon Harris has said it is "too close to call" how many seats his party will win in the Irish general election. Exit polls suggest a close contest between the three major parties. Figures show Sinn Féin slightly ahead of both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil in first preference votes.

Ireland's main opposition Sinn Fein looked on course to win the most votes at a general election by the narrowest of margins on Friday, but its two main centre-right rivals will likely have enough seats to govern again without it,

The exit poll put the left wing Sinn Fein on 21.1%, the centre-right Fine Gael of Prime Minister Simon Harris on 21.0% and like-minded coalition partner Fianna Fail on 19.5%. Fine Gael and Fianna Fail pledged ahead of the election to seek to form a coalition without Sinn Fein,

An exit poll in Ireland’s general election suggests the three biggest parties have won roughly equal shares and the country is headed for another coalition government

Ireland's main opposition party Sinn Fein looked on course to narrowly win the most votes at a general election on Friday, but its two main centre-right rivals will likely have enough seats to govern again without it,