Hilarious memes erupt on Twitter as Irish celebs and Yes supporters celebrate historic vote to

IRELAND made history yesterday by voting to ditch its ban on abortion in a landslide referendum result and social media reacted in suitable fashion.

Yes campaigners celebrated wildly as 66.4 per cent voted to change the country's strict abortion laws and people were quick to poke fun at the serious issue which divided the nation.

Graham Linehan, the writer of the comedy Father Ted, was quick off the mark with a mocked-up image showing the eponymous priest giving the boot to 'The 8th Amendment'.

Comic David Schneider also picked up on the Father Ted reference, using a picture of the show's character Mrs Doyle to make his point.

Some women said they felt like Wonder Woman as they went to cast their vote, using an image from the superhero show.

Irish funnyman Dara O'Briain also backed the Yes campaign, sending his "special congratulations".

TV and radio presenter Dermot O'Leary lent his support, saying that "no state should have the right to tell a woman what to do with their body".

The public decided by a two-to-one landslide to repeal part of the state's constitution which effectively prohibits terminations unless a mother's life is endangered.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, who led the Yes campaign, said Ireland is not "divided" but has "stepped out from under the last of our shadows and into the light".

Marking this landmark result as the day Ireland "came of age as a country", he added: "The X marked on the ballot paper represented much more than an individual vote.

"In 1983, 841,000 people voted to insert the eighth amendment into our constitution. In 2018, 1.4 million voted to remove it."

Donegal was the only constituency out of 40 to vote "No" in what Varadkar described as a "quiet revolution".

The historic vote saw thousands of Irish citizens living overseas flocking back to the Emerald Isle to exercise their democratic right on the emotive issue.

MOST READ IN NEWS

Mr Varadkar, a medical doctor who came to power last year, described the victory as "the culmination of a quiet revolution" that has been unfolding in the past 10 to 20 years.

Addressing crowds at Dublin Castle earlier today, he said: "The people have spoken."

The Together For Yes organisation said: “This is a vote for dignity and decency.

“If exit polls are reflected in the official vote count later today, this will be a moment of profound change in Ireland's social history, a moment when the nation collectively stood up for women and for their healthcare, and voted for constitutional change.”

We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368. You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTErKynZpOke7a3jqecsKtfa4B5hJhpaGisp57BtbHRZqSepZWoeqa%2B1KmrZqGimrmiusNmmJunoqm2sLqMq5yfnaKau6XBzGawnqtf