Looking at the role that money plays in elections in the US and UK, including recent revelations about a £5 million (€5.7 million) payment to Nigel Farage from a crypto billionaire, there may be a temptation for voters here to feel quite smug.

Modern Irish political campaigning is less about big donations and large online spends and more about shaking hands, hanging posters and knocking on doors. But this rose-tinted view of Irish campaigning overlooks the large sums politicians spend trying to influence our votes.

In 2024, parties collectively spent about €10 million on the general election. Add in the local and European elections, and Fine Gael alone spent €3.2 million that year. We only learn these figures months after power has been allocated, and when our attention has moved on to how it is being wielded.

New rules from Brussels are starting to change this, and are letting us know for the first time in real time how much is being spent on posters and ads in these byelections – €225,000, as of last week. But for now, these figures have a limited usefulness. Without some significant changes, there is a risk the opportunity to help us better understand who is trying to influence our vote will be lost.

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