Elections in Ireland (1918-1949)

The following list contains details of the previous elections in Ireland for the Dáil Éireann , the Irish lower house (since 1923) and the revolutionary parliament (from 1918 to 1923).

Elections under British rule

1918

The Irish general election of 1918 was part of the United Kingdom election . It is considered a key point in Irish history as the way to an independent Ireland was opened by the overwhelming defeat of the nationalist Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), which dominated Irish politics since the 1880s, and the victory of Sinn Féin .

Sinn Féin had already achieved political successes by winning by-elections (including George Noble Plunkett , WT Cosgrave and Eamon de Valera ) in 1917 , even if the party had not won all by-elections and there were allegations of fraud in one case. ³ Despite these successes, the party benefited mainly from various other factors in the 1918 election:

• The last election was 8 years ago, because the election in 1915 had not taken place due to the First World War . As a result, all citizens between the ages of 21 and 29 were practically first-time voters and unencumbered in terms of previous elections and parties. An unusually large number of this young electorate still lived in Ireland, as emigration had become much more dangerous as a result of the war and the crossing to America. Furthermore, many older voters (who usually voted for IPP) died during these 8 years.
• The Representation of the People Act (e.g. by allowing women over 35 to vote for the first time) increased the electorate from 700,000 to just under 2,000,000.
• The Easter Rising caused a change of mood within the population, which was clearly directed towards the Home Rule .
• In connection with the (new) young electorate, as a young party (Collins was 28, de Valera 36) , Sinn Féin had an advantage over the older IPP candidates.

The election, at the time of which there were four major Irish parties ( Irish Parliamentary Party , Sinn Féin , Unionist Party and Labor Party ), took place in most of the Irish constituencies on December 14, 1918. However, for fear of falling into the crossfire between Sinn Féin and IPP, the Labor Party did not run in the 1918 election.

In Ireland, 105 parliamentarians were elected in 103 constituencies. Many of the seats were awarded without any real election, as there were no opposing candidates due to the clear balance of power. However, there were also allegations that possible opposing candidates were advised against voting by militant Republicans .

After Sinn Féin, the Unionists were the second strongest party, but their success was mostly limited to the counties in Ulster . The IPP, on the other hand, experienced a debacle; not even their leader managed to win a seat.

    

A total of 105 seats

• SF : 73
• Independent: 1
• Otherwise: 28
• ILP : 3

Political party	Distribution of seats
	number	%-Distribution
Sinn Féin	73 4	69.53%
Unionist Party	22nd	20.95%
Irish Parliamentary Party	6th	5.71%
Labor unionist	3	2.86%
Belfast Labor Representative Committee	-
Independent	1	0.95%
	105

1921

In 1921 there were two elections to the Lower Houses of Southern Ireland and Northern Ireland under the Government of Ireland Act . In Southern Ireland, this election served as the Second Dáil election for Irish Republicans . The election took place on the basis of the single transferable vote principle .

In Northern Ireland the election took place on May 24th. The unionists won 40 seats , 6 moderate nationalists and a further 6 seats for Sinn Féin .

In Southern Ireland there was no actual election as all 128 candidates were directly elected with no opposing candidates. Sinn Féin and 4 independent unionists representing Trinity College reached 124 seats .

1922

The election in 1922 (Irish general election of 1922) took place in southern Ireland on June 16, 1922 under the provisions of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 to create a constitutional assembly in preparation for the Irish Free State . For the Irish Republicans, this represented the election to the Third Dáil of the Irish Republic ; according to the Anglo-Irish treaty it was a provisional parliament, which should replace the southern Irish parliament . From December 6, 1922, this assembly was the lower house ( Dáil Éireann ) of the Free State.

As in the election in Southern Ireland the previous year, Sinn Féin nominated a candidate for every seat, except for those awarded at the University of Dublin . But the Anglo-Irish treaty split the party into two camps: opponents (57 candidates) and supporters (65 candidates). But in contrast to the 1921 election, opposing candidates were put up by other parties in most of the constituencies, so that Sinn Féin lost 30 seats.

In order to prevent an even deeper rift between the two camps under Eamon de Valera and Michael Collins , both of them agreed on a kind of “pact” before the election, through which the election should be contested together and then a coalition should be formed. This prevented the voters from having to choose between the pros and cons of the treaty. After the election, opponents of the treaty boycotted the southern Irish parliament and the Irish civil war broke out, resulting in a majority of those in favor of the treaty in parliament. So the Provisional Irish Government under WT Cosgrave and later the Executive Council of the Free State came into being.

Political party	leader	Distribution of seats
		number	+/-	%-Distribution
Sinn Féin (proponent of the treaty)	Michael Collins	58 (17 unopposed)	−30	45.31%
Sinn Féin (other party to the contract)	Eamon de Valera	36 (16 unopposed)		28.15%
Labor Party	Thomas Johnson	17th	+17	13.27%
Farmers' party		7th	+7	5.47%
Independent		10 (4 unopposed)	+6	7.80%
		128	± 0

Elections during Free State Time

1923

The election took place on August 27, 1923, and the members of the 4th Dáil met for the first time at Leinster House in Dublin on September 19, along with the newly formed Executive Council of the Irish Free State. This was the first choice of an (almost) independent Ireland. In this election, all parties - with the exception of the Labor Party (see below) - won additional seats as the total number of parliamentarians in the Dáil was increased. The term of office of the 4th Dáil was 1382 days.

     

A total of 153 seats

• Independent: 17
• Otherwise: 15
• ILP : 14
• SF : 44
• FG : 63

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (11) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Cumann na nGaedheal	WT Cosgrave	63	+5	41.18%	4th	1	11	−3
Sinn Féin (other party to the contract)	Eamon de Valera	44	+8	28.76%	1	4th		+3
Labor Party	Thomas Johnson	14th	−3	9.15%		1		+1
Farmers' party	Denis Gorey	15th	+8	9.80%
Independent		17th	+7	11.11%	1			−1
		153	+15

1927 (June)

There were two elections in 1927. The first (for the 5th Dáil) took place on June 9th. The new government first met on June 23rd. The 5th Dáil had the shortest tenure in history at just 98 days.

     

A total of 153 seats

• Independent: 16
• Others: 24
• ILP : 22
• FG : 47
• FF : 44

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (1) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Cumann na nGaedheal	WT Cosgrave	47	−16	30.71%		1	1	+1
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	44	+44	28.76%	1			−1
Labor Party	Thomas Johnson	22nd	+8	14.38%
Farmers' party	Michael Heffernan	11	−4	7.19%
National League	William Redmond	8th	+8	5.23%
Sinn Féin (other party to the contract)		5	−39	3.27%
Independent		16	−1	10.46%
		153	± 0

1927 (September)

The second election in 1927 took place on September 15th. The members of the 6th Dáil first met on October 11th and the term of office lasted 1615 days.

This choice became necessary due to uncertainties within the Dáil. Since only 3 votes separated the two strongest parties Cumann na nGaedheal and Fianna Fáil , the ability to govern was on very shaky legs and could collapse at any time. When Fianna Fáil first attended meetings in August, the party and the Labor Party and National League initiated a vote of no confidence in the government of Cumann na nGaedheal. However, on the day of the vote, John Jinks (a National League MP ) did not show up and the vote of no confidence ended in a draw. The Ceann Comhairle voted for the government and so the vote had failed.

WT Cosgrave realized that no reasonable government work was possible in this situation and so another election was called which, it was hoped, would produce a better result.

The individual parties came up with different statements for the election. Cumann na nGaedheal was the ruling party and the new Fianna Fáil party promised to break new ground and achieve economic independence. The Labor Party, although internally divided, hoped for a similarly good result as in the last election and the Farmer's Party represented the interests of the agricultural voters. Sinn Féin already suffered a crash in the last election (when Fianna Fáil was founded) and did not win a seat this time.

After the election Cumann na nGaedheal managed to form a stable government with the Farmer's Party and the independents. Labor leader Thomas Johnson failed to get a seat in his constituency and withdrew from politics.

     

A total of 153 seats

• Independent: 13
• Otherwise: 8
• ILP : 13
• FG : 62
• FF : 57

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (7) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Cumann na nGaedheal	WT Cosgrave	62	+15	40.52%		3	2	+3
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	57	+13	37.25%	1	1	1
Labor Party	Thomas Johnson	13	−9	8.50%	1			−1
Farmers' party	Michael Heffernan	6th	−5	3.92%
National League	William Redmond	2	−6	1.31%
Independent		13	−3	8.50%	2			−2
Others (Sinn Féin)		0	−5
		153	± 0

1932

The 1932 election took place on February 16, 1932, just two weeks after parliament was dissolved on January 29. The (still) 153 members of the newly elected Dáil met for the first time on March 9th at the Leinster House in Dublin , and the term of office was 343 days. The election was plotted in 30 constituencies and was one of the most important in the 20th century.

Cumann na nGaedheal led the election campaign with 10 years of stable government behind them after the chaotic years of the civil war. But support diminished as the party was unable to come up with any real solutions to the slump in trade due to the Great Depression . Instead of treading new political paths, the party did nothing and took advantage of the fear of communism and compared Éamon de Valera with Stalin .

In contrast, Fianna Fáil had a well-designed electoral platform that covered a wide range of the electorate. The party promised to pardon IRA prisoners, to abolish the controversial oath of allegiance and to limit the powers of the Senate and the Governor General . Further promises were the support of industrial development, economic independence and improvements in social matters. The election campaign between the two parties was relatively peaceful. But the government sued de Valera's newly established newspaper, the Irish Press, and brought its publisher to court, which many voters saw as an interference with freedom of the press and freedom of speech. Playing with fear of communism also ultimately turned out to be the government's own goal.

When the results of the election were announced, Fianna was only five seats away from an absolute majority, making it the only party that could form a secure government. Negotiations began immediately after the election, and the coalition partner became the Labor Party.

On March 9, 1932, the Free State's first change of government took place. Many citizens of the country (and outside) wondered whether the country would survive this democratic test and whether the party that emerged victorious from the civil war would hand over power to its former opponents. As in 1927, when the former opposition first joined the Dáil, many of the parliamentarians carried weapons with them, but the coup did not take place. WT Cosgrave adhered to the democratic principles that he had always practiced during the years in government, and the Irish Army, Garda Síochána and the civil service also accepted the change of government, even if they now had to take orders from those who still had them Fought and murdered 10 years earlier. After a brief and quiet meeting of the Dáil, Eamon de Valera was elected President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State . Fianna Fáil, the party that had fought against the existence of the Free State ten years ago, was now its ruling party, which should not change for the next 16 years.

     

A total of 153 seats

• Independent: 13
• Otherwise: 4
• ILP : 7
• FG : 57
• FF : 72

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (0) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	72	+15	47.06%
Cumann na nGaedheal	WT Cosgrave	57	−5	37.25%
Labor Party	Thomas Johnson	7th	−6	4.58%
Farmers' party		4th	−2	2.61%
Independent		13		8.50%
Others (National League)		0	−2
		153	± 0

1933

The election for the 8th Dáil took place on January 24, 1933. The 153 members met for the first time on February 8, and his tenure lasted 1619 days. This was the first choice at the Fine Gael , the successor party of Cumann na nGaedheal participated.

     

A total of 153 seats

• Independent: 9
• Otherwise: 8
• ILP : 11
• FG : 48
• FF : 77

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (0) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	77	+5	50.33%
Fine Gael	WT Cosgrave	48	−9	31.37%
National Center Party	Frank MacDermot	11	+11	7.19%
Labor Party	William Norton	8th	+1	5.23%
Independent		9	−4	5.88%
Others (Farmers' Party)		0	−4
		153	± 0

1937

The election for the 9th Dáil took place on July 1, 1937. The 138 MPs (15 fewer than in the previous election) met for the first time on July 21, and the term of office lasted 351 days.

    

A total of 138 seats

• Independent: 8
• ILP : 13
• FG : 48
• FF : 69

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (0) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	69	−8	50.00%
Fine Gael	WT Cosgrave	48		34.78%
Labor Party	William Norton	13	+5	9.42%
Independent		8th	−1	5.80%
Others (National Center Party)		0	−11
		138	−15

Elections after 1937

1938

The election for the 10th Dáil took place on June 17, 1938 and was the first under the new Irish constitution. The 138 parliamentarians met for the first time on June 30th and the term of office lasted 1,832 days.

    

A total of 138 seats

• Independent: 7
• ILP : 9
• FG : 45
• FF : 77

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (0) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	77	+8	55.80%
Fine Gael	WT Cosgrave	45	−3	32.61%
Labor Party	William Norton	9	−4	6.52%
Independent		7th	−1	5.07%
		138	± 0

1943

The election for the 11th Dáil took place on June 23, 1943. The 138 parliamentarians met for the first time on July 1 and the term of office lasted 342 days.

     

A total of 138 seats

• Independent: 14
• Otherwise: 8
• ILP : 17
• FG : 32
• FF : 67

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (0) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	67	−10	48.55%
Fine Gael	WT Cosgrave	32	−13	23.19%
Labor Party	William Norton	17th	+8	12.32%
Clann na Talmhan	Michael Donnellan	14th	+14	10.15%
Independent		8th	+1	5.79%
		138	± 0

1944

The election for the 12th Dáil took place on May 30, 1944, 3 weeks after the 11th Dáil was dissolved. The 138 parliamentarians met for the first time on June 9 and the term of office lasted 1345 days.

This choice was the result of a failed transport law by Fianna Fáil that was not adopted even after 2 readings. The Taoiseach , Eamon de Valera , decided to hold another election just a year after the last one in order to get a better position. Before the election there were talks for a coalition between Fine Gael , the Labor Party and Clann na Talmhan , which was not taken seriously by the ruling Fianna Fáil party. At that time, the Labor Party was internally divided and unable to conduct a proper election campaign - the result of the election was correspondingly poor. Fianna Fáil managed to shift the blame for the (unnecessary) new election on to the opposition parties and so de Valera's tactic of a quick election (as in 1933 and 1938) worked again.

     

A total of 138 seats

• Independent: 9
• Otherwise: 15
• ILP : 8
• FG : 30
• FF : 76

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (4) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	76	+9	55.07%	2	3	3	+1
Fine Gael	Richard Mulcahy	30th	−2	21.74%	2			−2
Clann na Talmhan	Joseph Blowick	11	−3	7.97%	1	1
Labor Party	William Norton	8th	−9	5.80%			1
National Labor	James Everett	4th	+4	2.90%
Independent		9	+1	6.52%	1			−1
Others (Clann na Poblachta)		0	± 0			2		+2
		138	± 0

1948

The election for the 13th Dáil took place on February 4, 1948. The now 147 (9 more than in the last election) parliamentarians met for the first time on February 18 and the term of office lasted 1211 days. This was the first multi-party coalition government in Ireland.

The 1948 election was held at the request of Taoiseach Eamon de Valera in order to take the new Clann na Poblachta party by surprise and lose as few seats as possible. De Valera's plan worked - but other problems arose during the election campaign that no one had foreseen.

Fianna Fáil had been in power for 16 uninterrupted years. Many voters believed they saw a kind of standstill within the party and were looking for a breath of fresh air . The Second World War was only for 3 years to an end, there was still limping before rationing and the economy, leading to massive inflation led. During the last term of office, a prolonged teachers' strike damaged the reputation of the ruling party, which was unable to find a compromise to settle the strike. Bad weather and the resulting bad harvest also created a depressed mood at the ballot boxes. The allegations of nepotism and corruption by de Valera and Seán F. Lemass also raised questions about various officials.

Nevertheless Fianna Fail was again the strongest force, but lost 8 seats. Clann na Poblachta only won 10 seats despite predicted bigger wins. It seemed that Fianna Fáil was the only possible ruling party.

Fianna Fáil, however, was unable to win either the Labor Party or the independents into a coalition. United by their aversion to the previous ruling party, all other parties then formed a coalition.

As the largest party in the new government, it was Fine Gael's job to propose a new Taoiseach . The obvious choice was its leader Richard Mulcahy , but Republicans like Seán MacBride refused to work on a government led by the Free State Forces of the Irish Civil War . Therefore the choice fell on the relatively unknown John A. Costello . Mulcahy resigned and became Minister of Education. William Norton , leader of the Labor Party, became Tánaiste and Minister of Social Affairs.

The new government appeared weak and was considered unlikely to last long, as it was a community of completely different parties. But contrary to expectations, Costello kept the parties together, so that the coalition lasted for several years.

     

A total of 147 seats

• Independent: 12
• Otherwise: 22
• ILP : 14
• FG : 31
• FF : 68

Political party	leader	Allocation of seats 1			By-elections (3) 2
		number	±	%-Distribution	Lost	Won	To keep	±
Fianna Fáil	Eamon de Valera	68	−8	46.26%	1		1	−1
Fine Gael	Richard Mulcahy	31	+1	21.09%		1		+1
Labor Party	William Norton	14th	+6	9.52%			1
Clann na Poblachta	Seán MacBride	10	+10	6.80%
Clann na Talmhan	Joseph Blowick	7th	−4	4.76%
National Labor	James Everett	5	+1	3.41%
Independent		12	+3	8.16%
		147	+9

Footnotes

1. The (+/-) comparisons relate to the previous election and do not take into account any seat shifts caused by by-elections
2. If a member of parliament leaves (e.g. through resignation, expulsion or death), his seat must be reassigned in a by-election . This can lead to a loss or gain of seats for individual parties. The number in brackets indicates the number of post-election dates; several seats can be re-elected on one appointment. This list includes seat changes due to changes in the party of individual parliamentarians.
3. The "victory" of the Sinn Féin candidate Joseph McGuinness in a by-election in Longford is said to have been achieved by using a weapon to "persuade" the officer who was supposed to announce the victory of the IPP candidate to reconsider his announcement . When they were re-examined, all of a sudden countless ballot papers turned up which helped the Sinn Féin candidate to win with 1,498 to 1,459 votes.
4. Arthur Griffith, Eamon de Valera and Liam Mellows were elected in 2 constituencies, so that Sinn Féin claimed 70 seats in the end.

See also

• Elections in Ireland (1951–1969)