SINN Féin's support has dropped in the Republic according to a new poll, but the party remains the most popular.
According to the Red C poll for the Sunday Business Post, Sinn Féin's approval rating dropped by four points following a strong year.
Fine Gael has gathered an extra three points in the poll but their coalition partners Fianna Fáil are now well behind by finishing in third place.
In total, Sinn Féin was polled as having 31 per cent of the popular support with Fine Gael finishing on 24 per cent and Fianna Fáil on 15 per cent.
For the smaller parties, the Greens added one more point to finish on 5 per cent, with Labour and the Social Democrats remaining at 4per cent.
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ndependents remain at 11 per cent while People Before Profit stays at 3 per cent and Aontú rising one point to 2 per cent.
Over 1,000 voters were interviewed for the online poll between Friday, November 18 and Wednesday, November 23.
It has been reported that in recent weeks, the daily coverage of the Regency Hotel murder and the links to former Sinn Féin councillor Jonathan Dowdall may have impacted the parties popularity.
Fine Gael also received a boost as Leo Varadkar prepares to resume the role of Taoiseach for a second time, while the drop for Fianna Fáil will be a concern as Micheál Martin will step down.
