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Ireland Celebrates 'Yes' To Same-Sex Marriage

Ireland has voted to legalise same-sex marriage in a historic referendum that saw more than 62% of voters support the campaign to amend the country's constitution.

Some 1.2 million people backed the "yes" campaign in the nationwide poll, which saw a voter turnout of more than 60%.

The referendum marks the first time a country has voted to approve same-sex marriage in a popular vote .

Only one of Ireland's 42 constituencies voted "no". The strongest support for the "yes" campaign was in Dublin, where support was over 70% in most districts.

Voters were asked whether they wanted to amend Article 41 of the 1937 Constitution by adding a new clause to a section titled The Family.

It asked them to support or reject a change to the 78-year-old document to make it read: "Marriage may be contracted in accordance with law by two persons without distinction as to their sex."

The vote has not yet made same-sex marriage legal - new laws will now be put to the Irish parliament before the summer.

It is expected that the first same-sex marriage ceremonies will take place before the end of the year.

Leo Varadkar, Ireland's health minister and the country's first openly gay cabinet member, said: "Something has been awakened in the Irish people.

"It was not just a referendum, it was more like a social revolution."

Thousands of people packed into the upper courtyard at Dublin Castle to await the result and cheered as it was announced.

Same-sex marriage was legalised in England and Wales by the UK Parliament in July 2013 and in Scotland by the Scottish Parliament in February 2014.

The move puts renewed pressure on the devolved Northern Ireland government to follow suit after the executive said it has no intention of introducing legislation.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny paid tribute to the 60,000 young people who registered to vote in recent weeks and thousands of emigrants who came home from as far afield as Canada, the US and Australia to cast their ballots.

"It's a piece of history," he said.

One of Ireland's most senior Catholic clerics, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin, said the church had to be aware that Ireland had changed.

He told RTE: "It's a social revolution that's been going on... I think really the Church needs to do a reality check."