The polls are buoying up Mr Ahern

Recent opinion polls have been predicting that Mr Ahern and his populist Fianna Fail party would win enough votes in an election to form a new coalition government.

The BBC's Dublin correspondent, Shane Harrison, says Mr Ahern has a solid record of achievements to show for his past five years in power.

He can point to the Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland and to the Republic of Ireland's booming economy.

He has also guided Ireland into the European single currency.

Sleaze allegations

But opposition parties say Fianna Fail remains an "ethically challenged party".

Six of the party's 77 members of parliament, elected five years ago, have suffered some form of humiliation or forced resignation.

Most cases were connected to tax evasion in the 1980s. But the whiff of scandal remains.

Opinion polls suggest that Mr Ahern is much more popular than Michael Noonan, the leader of the main opposition party Fine Gael.

If the polls are to be believed, the only question is with whom Fianna Fail will form the new government.