Ireland has proved a partial exception to the anti-incumbent mood in elections around the world. Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, which have dominated Irish politics for a century, remain in the driving seat, though their combined share of the vote has declined to just over 40%.

Voters across Ireland cast their ballots in the country’s general election on 29 November. First preference vote shares indicated that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are set to continue their coalition as support for Sinn Féin declines.

The Fianna Fail leader looks set for a return to the role of taoiseach – a position he held between 2020 and 2022.

Ireland’s two long-dominant center-right parties looked likely to form a new government as results came in Sunday from a fractured national election, though with a reduced vote share and complex coalition negotiations ahead.

Results from Ireland's election suggest the two dominant center-right parties look likely to form a new government

Ireland prepared on Sunday to reshuffle the same big parties into a new government after a general election returned incumbents that have channelled record corporation tax receipts into higher spending.

Ireland is heading for a return of the coalition government led by Prime Minister Simon Harris’s Fine Gael party and Fianna Fail, as voters bucked a recent international trend of ousting incumbent parties.