Counting has begun in the Irish general election, as exit polls suggest a close contest between the three major parties.

An exit poll on Friday night suggested that Sinn Fein would narrowly get the highest share of first-preference votes, 21.1%, ahead of Fine Gael and Fianna Fail at 21% and 19.5% respectively, but in fact the latter two parties outpolled SF in the end.

Vote counting is underway in Ireland’s national election. An exit poll suggests the contest is a close-fought race among the country’s three largest political parties.

Counting will start across the Republic of Ireland at 09:00 local time Exit polls in the Irish election suggest a close contest between the three major parties. Figures from Friday's exit poll show Sinn Féin slightly ahead of both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil in first preference votes.

The three main parties were deadlocked in an exit poll after voting finished on Friday. Counting starts on Saturday morning, but could take several days due to Ireland's system of proportional representation.

An exit poll by public broadcaster RTE found Sinn Féin, Fianna Fáil, and Fine Gael all within two points of each other, with each winning around 20% of the national vote.