1981 Irish general election
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The 1981 Irish general election to the 22nd Dáil was held on Thursday, 11 June, following the dissolution of the 21st Dáil on 21 May by President Patrick Hillery on the request of Taoiseach Charles Haughey. The general election took place in 41 Dáil constituencies throughout Ireland for 166 seats in Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas. The number of seats in the Dáil was increased by 18 from 148 under the Electoral (Amendment) Act 1980.
The 22nd Dáil met at Leinster House on 30 June to nominate the Taoiseach for appointment by the president and to approve the appointment of a new government of Ireland. Garret FitzGerald was appointed Taoiseach, forming the 17th government of Ireland, a minority coalition government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party.
Campaign
The general election of 1981 was the first one of five during the 1980s. The election also saw three new leaders of the three main parties fight their first general election. Charles Haughey had become Taoiseach and leader of Fianna Fáil at the end of 1979, Garret FitzGerald was the new leader of Fine Gael and Frank Cluskey was leading the Labour Party.
Haughey and Fianna Fáil seemed extremely popular with the electorate in early 1981. He was expected to call the election at the time of the Fianna Fáil ardfheis on 14 February, but the Stardust fire caused the ardfheis to be postponed, and the Republican hunger strike in the Maze Prison began in March.[1] By the dissolution in May, much of the earlier optimism in the party had filtered out. The Anti H-Block movement fielded abstentionist candidates in solidarity with the hunger strikers, undermining the Republican credentials of Fianna Fáil.
Fianna Fáil's manifesto promised more spending programmes and Fine Gael put forward a series of tax-cutting plans.
Result
Template:Irish general election electorate| Election to the 22nd Dáil – 11 June 1981[2][3][4][5] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Leader | Seats | ± | % of seats |
First pref. votes |
% FPv | ±% | |
| Script error: No such module "political party". | Charles Haughey | 78Template:Efn | –6 | 47.0 | 777,616 | 45.3 | –5.3 | |
| Script error: No such module "political party". | Garret FitzGerald | 65 | +22 | 39.2 | 626,376 | 36.5 | +6.0 | |
| Script error: No such module "political party". | Frank Cluskey | 15 | –2 | 9.0 | 169,990 | 9.9 | –1.7 | |
| Script error: No such module "political party". | Tomás Mac Giolla | 1 | +1 | 0.6 | 29,561 | 1.7 | 0 | |
| Script error: No such module "political party". | Noël Browne | 1 | New | 0.6 | 7,107 | 0.4 | – | |
| Script error: No such module "political party". | Eamonn O'Brien | 0 | New | 0 | 571 | 0.0 | – | |
| Script error: No such module "political party". | Eugene McCartan | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 358 | 0.0 | – | |
| Script error: No such module "political party". | N/A | 6 | +2 | 3.6 | 106,632 | 6.2 | +0.7 | |
| Spoilt votes | 16,168 | — | — | |||||
| Total | 166 | +18 | 100 | 1,734,379 | 100 | — | ||
Independents include Anti H-Block (42,803 votes, 2 seats) and Independent Fianna Fáil (13,546 votes, 1 seat).
Voting summary
Seats summary
Government formation
Fianna Fáil lost seats as a result of sympathy to the Anti H-Block candidates and the attractive tax proposals of Fine Gael. It was the worst performance for Fianna Fáil in twenty years. Meanwhile, Labour Party leader Frank Cluskey lost his seat, necessitating a leadership change with Michael O'Leary succeeding Cluskey. A Fine Gael–Labour Party coalition government came to power. Fine Gael and the Labour Party formed the 17th Government of Ireland, a minority coalition government, with Garret FitzGerald becoming Taoiseach.
Dáil membership changes
The following changes took place at this election:
- 20 outgoing TDs retired
- 18 additional seats added to the Dáil
- 127 outgoing TDs stood for re-election (also Pádraig Faulkner, the outgoing Ceann Comhairle who was automatically returned)
- 109 of those were re-elected
- 18 failed to be re-elected
- 56 successor TDs were elected
- 50 were elected for the first time
- 6 had previously been TDs
- There were 7 successor female TDs, replacing 3 outgoing, increasing the total by 4 to 11.
Where more than one change took place in a constituency the concept of successor is an approximation for presentation only. Where a number of related constituency changes took place in an area, such as Cork, the outgoing constituency for retiring TDs and the allocation of new seats are approximations for presentation only. Outgoing TDs re-elected in a new constituency, with no related changes, are not recorded as a change
| Constituency | Departing TD | Party | Change | Comment | Successor TD | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carlow–Kilkenny | Jim Gibbons | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | Governey: Former TD | Desmond Governey | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||
| Cavan–Monaghan | Jimmy Leonard | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | Doherty: Anti H-Block. Was on hunger strike at the time of his election | Kieran Doherty | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||
| Clare | Frank Taylor | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Madeleine Taylor | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Seat added | Loughnane: moved from Galway West | Bill Loughnane | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||||
| Cork East | Jerry Cronin | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired (from Cork North-East) | Carey Joyce | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Richard Barry | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired (from Cork North-East) | First TD to be elected for Official Sinn Féin/The Workers' Party. | Joe Sherlock | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Cork North-Central | Jack Lynch | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired (from Cork City) | Denis Lyons | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Seat added | Bernard Allen | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Seat added | Toddy O'Sullivan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Cork North-West | Frank Crowley | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Cork South-Central | Barry Cogan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat (moved from Cork Mid) | Hugh Coveney | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Cork South-West | Michael Pat Murphy | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | P. J. Sheehan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Joe Walsh | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | Crowley: Former TD | Flor Crowley | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Donegal North-East | No membership changes | |||||||
| Donegal South-West | Seat added | Pat "the Cope" Gallagher | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||||
| Dublin North | Joe Fox | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat (moved from Dublin County North) | Nora Owen | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Dublin North-Central | Seat added | George Birmingham | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||||
| Dublin Central | Vivion de Valera | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired (from Dublin Cabra) | (Ahern: moved from Dublin Finglas) | Bertie Ahern | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||
| Tom Leonard | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat (moved from Dublin Cabra) | (Colley: from Dublin Clontarf) | George Colley | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Luke Belton | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat (moved from Dublin Finglas) | Alice Glenn | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Dublin North-East | Liam Fitzgerald | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Seán Loftus | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||||||
| Dublin North-West | Mary Flaherty | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Timothy Killeen | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat (moved from Dublin Artane) | Michael Barrett | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Dublin South | Nuala Fennell | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Síle de Valera | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat (moved from Dublin County Mid) | Séamus Brennan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| John Horgan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat(moved from Dublin County South) | Alan Shatter | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Dublin South-West | Mary Harney | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Mervyn Taylor | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||||||
| Dublin West | Burke: Former TD | Richard Burke | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||||
| Mark Clinton | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired (from Dublin County West) | Brian Fleming | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Liam Lawlor | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat (moved from Dublin County West) | (Lemass: from Dublin Ballyfermot) | Eileen Lemass | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Dublin South-Central | Seat added | (Briscoe: from Dublin Rathmines West) | Ben Briscoe | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Seat added | Gay Mitchell | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Frank Cluskey | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | (O'Connell:from Dublin Ballyfermot) | John O'Connell | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Dublin South-East | Seat added | (Brady: from Dublin Rathimines West) | Gerard Brady | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Ruairi Quinn | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | (Ryan: from Dublin Rathimines West) | Richie Ryan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Dún Laoghaire | Liam Cosgrave | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Liam T. Cosgrave | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Seat added | Sean Barrett | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Galway East | John Donnellan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | (moved to Galway West) | Paul Connaughton Snr | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Mark Killilea Jnr | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | (moved to Galway West) | Kitt: Former TD | Michael P. Kitt | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Thomas Hussey | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | Seat abolished | |||||
| Galway West | John Mannion Jnr | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | (Donnellan: from Galway East) | John Donnellan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||
| Seat added | Michael D. Higgins | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Bill Loughnane | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | (moved to Clare) | (Killilea moved from Galway East) | Mark Killilea Jnr | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Kerry North | Kit Ahern | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | Denis Foley | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Dan Spring | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Dick Spring | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Kerry South | Timothy O'Connor | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | Michael Moynihan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Kildare | Seat added | Bernard Durkan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||||
| Seat added | Alan Dukes | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Laois–Offaly | Patrick Lalor | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Liam Hyland | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Limerick East | Michael Herbert | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Peadar Clohessy | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Michael Lipper | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | Jim Kemmy | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Seat added | Michael Noonan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Limerick West | No membership changes | |||||||
| Longford–Westmeath | Joseph Sheridan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Cooney: Former TD | Patrick Cooney | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||
| Louth | Paddy Donegan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Bernard Markey | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Joseph Farrell | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Agnew: Anti H-Block. Republican prisoner in Long Kesh, not on hunger strike. | Paddy Agnew | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Mayo East | No membership changes | |||||||
| Mayo West | No membership changes | |||||||
| Meath | Seat added | John Farrelly | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||||
| Roscommon | Joan Burke | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | John Connor | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Sligo–Leitrim | James Gallagher | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | John Ellis | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Eugene Gilhawley | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Joe McCartin | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
| Seat added | Ted Nealon | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Tipperary North | Michael O'Kennedy | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | David Molony | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Tipperary South | Noel Davern | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Retired | Carrie Acheson | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Seat added | Seán McCarthy | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Waterford | No membership changes | |||||||
| Wexford | Seán Browne | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | Lost seat | Hugh Byrne | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | |||
| Seat added | Ivan Yates | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||||
| Wicklow | Seat added | Brennan: Former TD | Paudge Brennan | Script error: No such module "Party name with color". | ||||
Seanad election
The Dáil election was followed by an election to the 15th Seanad.
Notes
References
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Further reading
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