A total of 44 candidates will fight for Ireland's 13 European Parliament seats in next month's election.
Among the more notable names standing for election on June 11th Ms Dana Rosemary Scallon who is defending a seat, disability rights campaigner Ms Kathy Sinnott and anti-Nice Treaty campaigner and anti-abortionist Mr Justin Barrett.
Eight TDs and two Senators are also in the field, nominations for which closed today.
Fianna Fáil are running eight candidates, with Fine Gael putting forward six, Labour five, Sinn Féin four and the Greens three. The Progressive Democrats are not contesting any seat.
In Dublin, 12 candidates will battle it out in the four-seat constituency that stretches across the city and includes Dún Laoghaire/Rathdown, Fingal and the south.
Lord Mayor Royston Brady and Dublin South East TD Mr Eoin Ryan are contesting the election for Fianna Fáil while Fine Gael is pinning its hopes for a seat on Dublin South Central TD Gay Mitchell.
Mr Proinsias de Rossa, who was first elected to the Parliament in 1989, is again defending a seat for Labour and is joined by Ms Ivana Bacik as his running mate.
Ms Patricia McKenna of the Greens is hoping to retain her seat but faces a formidable challenge from Sinn Féin's Mary Lou McDonald as well as Socialist Party leader and Dublin West TD Joe Higgins.
Four independents are also standing in the capital - Mr Tom Prenderville, Mr Barry Despard, Mr Brendan Price and Mr Paul Doonan.
In the new East constituency, Fine Gael's Ms Avril Doyle is defending her seat with former farming journalist Ms Mairead McGuinness also on the ticket.
The constituency, which was formerly Leinster, takes in Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Louth, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Wexford and Wicklow.
Two TDs, Mr Liam Aylward from Carlow-Kilkenny and Mr Seamus Kirk from Louth, are Fianna Fáil's standard bearers. Mr Peter Cassels is running for Labour while the Green Party is fielding Ms Mary White. Sinn Féin has nominated Mr John Dwyer.
Mr Barrett is the most notable name among six independents. The others are Mr Seanan O'Coistin, Mr Eoin Dubsky, Mr Joe Neal, Mr Clifford T Reid and Mr Liam O'Gogain.
Despite her failure to win a Dáil seat in Galway West in the 2002 General Election, Ms Scallon is hoping to retain her seat in Brussels and Strasbourg in the new North West constituency.
Nine candidates are running for three seats in a constituency that comprises Cavan, Clare, Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Monaghan, Roscommon and Sligo.
Donegal North East TD and junior transport minister Mr Jim McDaid has joined Galway-based MEP Mr Sean O'Neachtain on the Fianna Fáil ticket. Senator Jim Higgins and Ms Madeleine Taylor-Quinn are running for Fine Gael while Labour is pinning its hopes on Hughie Baxter.
Sinn Féin believes Mr Pearse Doherty could poll well in the constituency, which has another prominent independent, Ms Marian Harkin, who topped the poll in Sligo-Leitrim in the 2002 election, also standing. Ms Marie Hainsworth is running as an independent.
After losing out on a Dáil seat in Cork South Central by a mere six votes two years ago, disability rights campaigner Ms Kathy Sinnott is hoping to capture a European Parliament seat in what is now the South constituency.
Ten candidates are running for three seats in the constituency that covers Cork, Kerry, Tipperary, Limerick and Waterford.
Former minister for foreign affairs Mr Gerard Collins and Mr Brian Crowley are defending seats for Fianna Fáil.
Fine Gael's Cork South Central TD, Mr Simon Coveney, is also running while Labour is fielding Senator Brendan Ryan. Mr Chris O'Leary is running for the Greens, and Mr David Cullinane is Sinn Féin's candidate.
The other independent candidates are Ms Lily Moynihan, Mr Anthony O'Connor and Mr Gerard Hannan.