Security analyst Tom Clonan is leading a tight race in the Seanad byelection as counting enters its final hours.
The current leader is followed by Dublin's former Lord Mayor, Hazel Chu of the Green Party, with psychologist Maureen Gaffney a close third.
In fourth position is former Irish rugby star Hugo MacNeill, who topped the poll after the first count on Wednesday with 2,068 votes.
The byelection is being held to fill the vacancy in the Seanad caused by former senator and current Labour leader Ivana Bacik being elected to the Dáil in the Dublin Bay South byelection of July 2021.
The elimination of Ms Bacik’s former staffer Ursula Quill from the race is likely to prove key, with her votes to set up the final stages.
In total, 17 candidates entered the race for the seat in the University of Dublin constituency, with voting in the constituency limited to the just under 68,000 eligible graduates of Trinity College Dublin.
The total number of ballots returned was 13,434, amounting to a turnout of just under 20 per cent.
The new senator in the Oireachtas will join Senators Lynn Ruane and David Norris in representing the Dublin University constituency.
