A full recount of European Election ballot papers in the Ireland South constituency is to get underway this morning.
Sinn Fein requested the recount after only 326 votes separated Liadh Ní Riada and the Green Party's Grace O'Sullivan.
The some 756-thousand ballot papers from the 12 county constituency have been stored at Nemo Rangers GAA Club in Cork.
It's expected that the recount will take 28 days to complete, at a cost of one million euro.
Senator O'Sullivan said last week she understood why Sinn Féin requested the re-count, but she was hopeful she could hang on to her lead.
"I would have loved to go home here this evening knowing that I have that fifth seat and no contention - but that is not the case."
"You can understand that when it comes down to a few hundred, an error could have been made".
All eight seats in Ireland's two other European constituencies have been filled.
