Irish abortion referendum: Exit polls suggest landslide for repeal

Exit polls published after Ireland's referendum on abortion suggest a large vote in favour of liberalising the law.

Polls by The Irish Times and RTÉ suggest about 69% voted to repeal a part of the constitution that effectively bans terminations.

Taoiseach (prime minister) Leo Varadkar, who supported the reforms, said it looked as if the country was about to "make history".

Official counting of votes will begin at 09:00 local time, BBC reports. 

Those taking part in Friday's referendum were asked whether they wanted to repeal or retain a part of the constitution known as the Eighth Amendment, which says an unborn child has the same right to life as a pregnant woman.

Broadcaster RTÉ's exit poll suggested 69.4% in favour of the Yes side and 30.6% for No. In Dublin, 79% of people voted for repeal, according to the RTÉ poll.

An exit poll released by The Irish Times points to 68% Yes to 32% for No.

Currently, abortion is only allowed when a woman's life is at risk, but not in cases of rape, incest or fatal foetal abnormality.

The turnout looks to have been higher than that for the country's referendum on same-sex marriage and its most recent general election.

More than 3.2 million people were registered to vote in the referendum, with more than 100,000 new voters registering ahead of the poll.

The referendum was the result of a decades-long debate about abortion in the Republic of Ireland and was the country's sixth vote on the issue.