South (European Parliament constituency)
South is a constituency of the European Parliament in Ireland. It elects 5 Members of the European Parliament using proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote.
History and boundaries
It was created in 2004 with the same area as the old Munster constituency, except for County Clare which was then in North-West. It is sometimes referred to as Ireland South. The area of constituency has increased twice.For the 2019 European Parliament election, a reapportionment following Brexit and the loss of 73 MEPs from the United Kingdom gave two additional seats to Ireland. Following a recommendation of the Constituency Commission, South gained territory and an additional seat, from 4 to 5. However, the last candidate elected did not take her seat until after the United Kingdom left the European Union.
In 2016, 74.1% of the constituency's population lived in Munster, while the southern Leinster counties accounted for 25.9%.
It comprises the counties of Carlow, Clare, Cork, Kerry, Kilkenny, Laois, Limerick, Offaly, Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford and Wicklow; the cities of Cork, Limerick and Waterford.
The main urban areas are Cork, Limerick, Waterford, Bray, Kilkenny, Ennis, Carlow, Tralee, Tullamore, Port Laoise and Wexford.
| Elections | Area | Seats |
| 2004, 2009 | Counties of Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford; and the cities of Cork, Limerick and Waterford. | 3 |
| 2014 | Addition of counties Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford and Wicklow from East; and Clare from North-West. | 4 |
| 2019 | Addition of counties Laois and Offaly from Midlands–North-West | 5 |