The Guardian view on Ireland’s election: a contest with consequences | Editorial

The start of the American presidential race next month may seem more alluring. But the Irish general election is of more immediate importance for Britain

Britain's political class is insular. It rarely shows any interest in foreign elections. That general rule may get bent as the United States presidential election gets into gear in the coming weeks. But the evidence of this country's default inwardness is that there is an election on this side of the Atlantic in less than three weeks with a far more immediate bearing on Britain than the one in America. This one will get only a fraction of the attention that will be expended on the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary. But then this one is in Ireland.

Why does Ireland's 8 February election matter to Britain? Partly for the obvious reason that Ireland is one of Britain's nearest neighbours. Partly because the peoples of these islands are so intermingled. But more than anything it matters because of Brexit.

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