Irish Court To Review Divorce Referendum

Ireland’s Supreme Court decided Friday to review the validity of a referendum in which voters approved divorce in the predominantly Roman Catholic country.

The review could overturn the result of the Nov. 24 referendum. Ireland was the last European country to outlaw divorce.

Des Hanafin, leader of the anti-divorce campaign that lost the referendum, alleges that the government misspent about $800,000 on ads promoting a “yes” vote. The Supreme Court ruled those ads illegal the week before the referendum.

Hanafin now seeks to invalidate the referendum, arguing that the ads unlawfully swung the vote in favor of the measure.