The official results are in. Ireland is the first country in the world to vote "yes" to gay marriage, as the vote won by landslide with 62 percent of the total tally. The result Saturday marked history books and was deemed an intense shift for the country, especially as Ireland is considered traditionally Catholic, reported Reuters.

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Catholic Church leaders and gay rights advocates said the results marked a social revolution in the nation, where only three decades ago abortion and divorce were banned.

Irish "Yes" supporters congregated outside Dublin Castle, watching the entire progress of the tally. As results were shown from a large screen, everyone cheered, hugged, and even cried with joy.

It was not only Irish citizens who celebrated in Dublin Castle's grounds. From the stage, government ministers were also present, who in support proudly waved rainbow flags as the crowd cheered.

"We woke up today to a new Ireland. The real Irish Republic that I have dreamed of my whole life," said Administrator Jean Webster, 54.

Eight years ago, Webster separated from her husband and came out as a lesbian.

Another government official, a lesbian senator, proposed to her partner on national television.

"The answer is yes to their future, yes to their love, yes to equal marriage. That 'Yes' is heard loudly across the world as a sound of pioneering leadership from our people," Prime Minister Enda Kenny told reporters in a news conference. "Ireland, thank you."

The Catholic Church had a large influence on Ireland decades ago. Homosexual activity used to be seen as a sin, but in the early 1990s, Church support started to wane after a series of child molestation scandals by some of the clergy.

 Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin said the Saturday results present a challenge to the Church.

"It is a social revolution. It's very clear that if this referendum is an affirmation of the views of young people, then the Church has a huge task ahead of it," said Martin. "The church needs to do a reality check right across the board."

There are only nineteen other countries in the world, including most U.S. states, where gay marriage is legalized, but only through legislatures and courts, according to the Associated Press.

Ireland is the first country to vote for the legalization of same-sex marriage. Not only was the referendum backed by all political parties, it also gained support from celebrities and big employers who aimed to convert the most conservative country in Western Europe, according to Reuters. 

Sean Donnelly, a political analyst, said the Saturday results is a big shift for the country, as it is used to be seen as extremely conservative.

Donegal, an area that used to vote against the nation's moods, also voted "yes" to same-sex marriage.

"We're in a new country. When I was reared up, the church was all powerful and the word 'gay' wasn't even in use in those days. How things have moved from my childhood to now," said Donnelly.

Gay marriage is also legal in other countries such as Britain, France, Spain, South Africa, Brazil, and Canada.

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