Columnist with The Sunday Times and Irish Catholic. Director of Iona Institute. Author of 'How we killed God (and other tales of modern Ireland)'. 
 
 Dublin ||||| DUBLIN The people of Ireland backed same-sex marriage by a landslide in a referendum that marked a dramatic social shift in a traditionally Catholic country that only decriminalized homosexuality two decades ago. 
 
 After one of the largest turnouts in a referendum there, 62 percent of voters said 'Yes', making Ireland the first country to adopt same-sex marriage via a popular vote. 
 
 'Yes' supporters crowded into the courtyard of Dublin Castle to watch in blistering sunshine as results trickled in from around the country were shown on a large screen. They cheered with joy as the final tally was announced and then burst into a rendition of the national anthem. 
 
 "We woke up today to a new Ireland. The real Irish Republic that I have dreamed of my whole life," said Jean Webster, a 54-year-old administrator who came out as a lesbian eight years ago after separating from her husband. 
 
 Government ministers waved a rainbow flag from the stage in front of the crowd and one lesbian senator proposed to her partner live on national television. 
 
 "The answer is yes to their future, yes to their love, yes to equal marriage. That 'Yes' is heard loudly across the world as a sound of pioneering leadership from our people," Prime Minister Enda Kenny told a news conference. "Ireland, thank you." 
 
 The Catholic Church, which teaches that homosexual activity is a sin, saw its dominance of Irish politics collapse after a series of child sex abuse scandals in the early 1990s and limited its 'No' campaigning to sermons to its remaining flock. 
 
 The archbishop of Dublin said the result presented a challenge. 
 
 "It is a social revolution. It's very clear that if this referendum is an affirmation of the views of young people, then the Church has a huge task ahead of it," Archbishop Diarmuid Martin told national broadcaster RTE. 
 
 "The Church needs to do a reality check." 
 
 TABOO 
 
 Ireland follows several Western European countries including Britain, France and Spain in allowing gay marriage, which is also legal in South Africa, Brazil, Canada and some U.S. states, while homosexuality remains taboo and often illegal in many parts of Africa and Asia. 
 
 U.S. Vice President Joe Biden tweeted: "We welcome Ireland's support for equality. #LoveWins" 
 
 After Irish expatriates flocked home to vote, 60 percent of registered voters cast their ballot, the highest in two decades. 
 
 "This is a big placard from the people of Ireland to the rest of the world saying this is the way forward," said David Norris, who began a campaign for gay rights in the late 1970s. 
 
 The proposal was backed by all political parties, championed by big employers and endorsed by celebrities, all hoping it would mark a transformation in a country that was long regarded as one of the most socially conservative in Western Europe. 
 
 Only a third of the country backed the decriminalization of gay sex for men over 17 in 1993, according to a poll at the time. When voters narrowly legalized divorce in 1995, only five of the 30 constituencies outside Dublin backed the proposal. 
 
 This time, all bar one of the 43 voting areas approved the marriage measure. 
 
 "It changes everything, the worries and fears I had as a young gay kid in Ireland, they're all gone," said Ger O'Keefe, 27, a 'Yes' campaigner from Waterford. 
 
 "This will tell kids now that you don't need to be afraid." 
 
 (Editing by Robin Pomeroy) ||||| Full list of results 
 
 Ireland has officially passed the same-sex marraige referendum with 1.2 million people voting in its favour. The result was confirmed just before 7pm on Saturday although the result was clear from very early in the count. The Yes vote prevailed by 62 to 38 per cent with a large 60.5 per cent turnout. 
 
 In total, 1,201,607 people voted in favour with 734,300 against, giving a majority of 467,307. The total valid poll was 1,935,907. 
 
 Roscommon-South Leitrim was the only county to reject same-sex marriage. The No vote there finished with 51.4 per cent. 
 
 Donegal, against some expectations, approved the amendment to the Constitution by a small margin. Donegal South West was on a razor edge with 50.1 per cent voting Yes, representing a margin of just 33 votes. 
 
 A referendum presented simultaneously on reducing the permissible age for presidential candidates was roundly defeated. 
 
 The Yes vote in Dublin in the same-sex marriage referendum was particularly pronounced. 
 
 Dublin Midwest recorded a Yes vote of 70.9 per cent, Dublin South West returned 71.3 per cent, Dún Laoghaire 71.6 per cent, Dublin North West 70.6 per cent and Dublin South Central 72.3 per cent, all in keeping with the 70 per cent-plus positive vote that had been anticipated in the capital. 
 
 As the result emerged on Saturday afternoon thousands of people gathered in the courtyard of Dublin Castle amid scenes of widespread jubilation. 
 
 Senior politicians welcomed the result, with Minister for Health Leo Varadkar saying the overwhelming Yes vote makes Ireland a “beacon of light” for the rest of the world in terms of liberty and equality. 
 
 “It’s a historical day for Ireland,” he told RTÉ, a “social revolution”, adding that had any constituencies voted No, it would only have been a handful. In the end there was just one. Mr Varadkar revealed publically during the referendum campaign that he was gay. 
 
 Well done, Ireland. -H — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) May 23, 2015 Ireland did it! The 1st country to legalize marriage equality by popular vote, but they won't be the last! What an incredible accomplishment — Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) May 23, 2015 
 
 Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin said it was now time to focus on other myriad inequalities in Irish society. 
 
 “I have the strong belief - there is a strong belief in the church - about the nature of marriage and the family,” he said, after the result was beyond dispute. 
 
 “I would like to have seen that the rights of gay and lesbian men and women could have been respected without changing the definition of marriage. That hasn’t happened, but that is the world we live in today.” 
 
 The eyes of the world have been trained on Ireland with the story featuring prominently in international media throughout the weekend. 
 
 Taoiseach Enda Kenny said the referendum turnout showed the “palpable movement” of people wanting to be involved. 
 
 He particularly noted how young people had travelled around the country to “to put a single mark” on a ballot paper, demonstrating the value of the issue at hand. 
 
 Paul Moran of Millward Brown told RTÉ voter turnout had proved vital and that youth had driven the result, if not entirely deciding it. Social media has played a central role, he said. 
 
 No campaigners congratulated the Yes side. Prominent No campaigner and director of the Iona Institute David Quinn seemed to concede the vote shortly after counting began when he tweeted: “Congratulations to the Yes site. Well done.” 
 
 The Iona Institute issued a statement congratulating the Yes side “on their win” which they described as “a handsome victory”. 
 
 “We hope the Government will address the concerns voters on the No side have about the implications for freedom of religion and freedom of conscience,” it concluded. 
 
 No campaigner Senator Ronan Mullen said he was not surprised by the seemingly “very substantial majority” in the Yes vote but remains concerned about changes to the Constitution and its negative impacts. 
 
 Nobody in the No campaign thought it was going to be easy, he said. 
 
 “We are operating in a political time and place in Irish culture”, up against a very skilled Yes campaign which had the support of all political parties. 
 
 Senator Fidelma Healy Eames, who also campaigned for a No vote, said the referendum “for me was never anti-gay”. She said she had switched her vote from Yes to No simply because of her concerns around constitutional change and its effect on a child’s birthright. 
 
 The No advocacy group Mothers and Fathers Matter expressed “warm congratulations” to the Yes side but said that one in three Irish people - the vote ratio - were not represented by the political establishment. 
 
 Yes campaigner and Fianna Fáil Senator Averil Power said gay campaigners who told their stories on the doorsteps of voters had “helped to change Ireland for all of us”, not just the gay community. 
 
 She said she had seen many of them reduced to tears by the experience they had during the campaign. For them, it was often “an incredibly difficult thing to do”. 
 
 Senator David Norris, who fought from the 1970s to 1993 to have homosexuality decriminalised, welcomed the result. “I believe that by the end of today gay people will be equal in this country. I think it’s wonderful,” he said. 
 
 Minister for Children James Reilly said while the same-sex marriage referendum yes vote is strong in Dublin, it is also strong around the country. He says a lot of voters have been thinking about their grandchildren and giving them the same opportunities in life, should they be gay. 
 
 US vice president Joe Biden tweeted: “We welcome Ireland’s support for equality #LoveWins.” 
 
 As with the last referendum, media facilities were made available at Dublin Castle, and a large international contingent was in attendance. 
 
 Following calls from politicians and members of the public on Friday Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW Simon Harris announced that Dublin Castle would also be open to 2,000 members of the public.
– The world is about to have its first country to accept gay marriage through a popular vote. Though final results aren't expected for hours, both sides say the "yes" side has won an easy victory in yesterday's referendum, reports the Irish Times. One of the main opponents conceded as much in a tweet: "Congratulations to the Yes side," wrote David Quinn of the Iona Institute, a Catholic think tank. "Well done." It's not a huge surprise given that all major political parties backed the idea, and massive turnout boded well for proponents. "The numbers of people who turned out to vote is unprecedented," says the nation's equality minister. "This has really touched a nerve in Ireland today." Reuters is typical in its coverage in describing the result as a "dramatic social shift" in the predominantly Catholic country, one in which homosexuality was still illegal just two decades ago.