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Irish Anti-Gay-Marriage Leader Tweets Election Concession

Votes are counted as the ballot boxes are opened Saturday at an election center in Dublin.
Charles McQuillan Getty Images
Votes are counted as the ballot boxes are opened Saturday at an election center in Dublin.

Votes are counted Saturday as the ballot boxes are opened at the RDS count centre on Saturday.
Charles McQuillan Getty Images
Votes are counted Saturday as the ballot boxes are opened at the RDS count centre on Saturday.

The head of the Iona Institute, which ran the No campaign in Ireland's vote to legalize same-sex marriage, has tweeted his congratulations to the yes campaign.

Some are interpreting this as conceding defeat, reports NPR correspondent Ari Shapiro.

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Early results certainly suggest as much, Shapiro says. Conservative areas that voted against legalizing divorce in the 1990s have come in with a Yes vote for same-sex marriage, he reports.

Counting of votes began Saturday on the question of whether the heavily Catholic country will amend its constitution to make same-sex marriage legal.

Here's the tweet from Iona Director David Quinn:

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