1925 Irish Seanad election

An election for 19 of the 60 seats in Seanad Éireann, the Senate of the Irish Free State, was held on 17 September 1925. The election was by single transferable vote, with the entire state forming a single 19-seat electoral district. There were 76 candidates on the ballot paper, whom voters ranked by preference. Of the two main political parties, the larger (Cumann na nGaedheal) did not formally endorse any candidates, while the other (Sinn Féin, whose TDs were abstentionist) boycotted the election. Voter turnout was low and the outcome was considered unsatisfactory. Subsequently, senators were selected by the Oireachtas rather than the electorate.

1925 Irish Seanad election

17 September 1925
19 of 60 seats in Seanad Éireann 31 seats were needed for a majority
Turnout	23.4%
First party Second party Third party   FP Leader W. T. Cosgrave Thomas Johnson Denis Gorey Party Cumann na nGaedheal Labour Party Farmers' Party Leader since April 1923 1922 1922 Last election 14 seats, 23.3% 6 seats, 10% 1 seats, 1.7% Seats before 14 6 1 Seats won 15 5 3 Seat change 1 1 2 Popular vote 126,218 46,776 42,785 Percentage 41.3% 15.3% 8.9%

Vacancies

Under the provisions of the 1922 Constitution of the Irish Free State, Senators were to be elected for twelve-year terms, with the 60 Senators divided into four cohorts of 15, and an election every three years for one of the cohorts.[1][2] As part of the initial transitional measures, 30 of the original 60 Senators in 1922 were selected by the Dáil, of whom the last 15 to secure election formed the cohort whose term would end after the first triennial period.[1][3] As well as this cohort, four further Senators were required to vacate their seats: these had been temporarily co-opted to fill casual vacancies which had arisen in previous years.[4]

Candidates

There were three methods of being included on the ballot. Outgoing Senators could nominate themselves for re-election,[5] and all 19 did so.[6] The Seanad could nominate an equal number of candidates, and the Dáil could nominate twice the number of vacancies.[5] Both Dáil and Seanad selections were by single transferable vote and secret ballot.[7] The minimum age for Senators was 35 years.[8]

The Seanad resolved on 30 April to form a committee to decide procedure for its nominations; the committee drafted a resolution in June,[9] which was amended and passed by the Seanad on 19 June.[10] 29 applicants contested the Seanad nominations on 1 July.[11][12][13] Apart from two Labour Party members, the candidates were Independents.[14] 47 of the 60 Senators voted, including 18 of the 19 who were themselves standing for re-election.[13] Donal O'Sullivan, clerk of the Seanad throughout its existence, suggests that these 18 had an incentive to vote for less popular candidates since the nominees would be rivals in the ensuing election.[15] O'Sullivan describes the results as "a very great disappointment ... the list [of successful candidates] could not compare with the list of the ten rejected."[13] Oliver St. John Gogarty made a similar remark in the Seanad itself after the results were announced.[16]

The rejected ten were: David Barry, general manager of the British and Irish Steam Packet Company; Sir Laurence Grattan Esmonde, brother of Senator Thomas Grattan Esmonde, Bart; Lady Gregory; John J. Horgan; Hugh A. Law; John McCann, a stockbroker; The McGillicuddy of the Reeks; William Lombard Murphy, son of William Martin Murphy and proprietor of the Irish Independent; Sir John Harley Scott, a Unionist former Mayor of Cork; and J.J. Stafford, a County Wexford businessman.[15][17]

Cumann na nGaedheal, the party which backed the incumbent government, decided not to formally support any candidates as a result of internal divisions. There was tension between ministers, backbenchers, and grassroots members, and between factions of Kevin O'Higgins and W. T. Cosgrave. The 1924 Army Mutiny had shaken the year-old party, and the appointment of public servants to lead the new state's institutions created resentment among those passed over. The parliamentary party held two selection conventions, on 2 and 6 July 1925, and when the leadership's candidates did badly a free vote was offered in the Dáil with all candidates nominally endorsed by the party.[18]

The Dáil nominations were decided on 8 July.[15][19] 57 candidates contested; 101 TDs voted, with one ballot deemed ineligible.[15][20] 52 TDs did not vote, including all 44 abstentionist Sinn Féin TDs, who were ineligible to vote as they had not taken the Oath of Allegiance.[21] TDs supported candidates on party lines.[14] Of the 38 successful nominees, O'Sullivan classifies 21 as supporters of the Cumann na nGaedheal Government, 9 as Independent, 5 as in the Farmers' Party, and 3 as in the Labour Party.[15] Four of the ten candidates rejected by the Seanad were also among the Dáil candidates, with John J. Horgan securing a nomination at the second attempt.[6]

Campaign

The usual Irish local, personal canvassing strategy was impractical across a nationwide constituency, leading to a relatively quiet campaign.[22] While the Farmers' Party and Labour produced newspaper advertisements for their respective slates of candidates, Cumann na nGaedheal did not at a national level formally endorse candidates, even those its TDs had nominated.[23] It presented the election as nonpartisan.[24] It published a booklet, Who's who in the 1925 Senate Election, and did not oppose candidates "put forward by any of the elements that accept the State and Constitution", i.e. other than republicans opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty.[18]

Numerous interest groups produced lists of approved candidates, including doctors, publicans, motorists, ex-servicemen's associations, and the livestock trade.[25] Candidates endorsed by temperance groups fared badly.[24] The Catholic Truth Society circulated, to little effect,[26] a list of outgoing Senators it condemned for not having opposed a controversial motion pertaining to divorce.[27][28]

Sinn Féin, under the leadership of Éamon de Valera, called for a boycott of the election.[29] Sinn Féin had not boycotted the 1923 Dáil election, but rather contested it on an abstentionist platform. De Valera would later lead his Fianna Fáil party, founded in 1926, into the Oireachtas after the June 1927 Dáil election.

Election

The election was by single transferable vote, with the entire Irish Free State forming a single, 19-seat constituency. All citizens over 30 had a vote. Since the voting age for Dáil and local elections was 21, a separate electoral roll was maintained for the Seanad election.[4]

The 76 candidates were arranged alphabetically on a ballot paper 22 inches (56 cm) long and 16 inches (41 cm) wide.[24] The Electoral (Seanad Elections) Act, 1925 was passed to allow the ballot to be presented as four parallel columns of 19 names rather than a single long column of all 76.[30][31]

The low voter turnout was blamed on the Sinn Féin boycott,[29][32] wet weather across the country,[24][29] and the shorter than usual hours of polling.[24] Turnout varied widely, from 8.2% in Mayo North to 43% in Monaghan.[24] Another factor was the large, intimidating ballot paper;[24] O'Sullivan describes it as "a fiasco",[29] saying it was unreasonable to expect voters to "make an intelligent choice of nineteen persons from a list containing seventy-six names, most of which they had never seen or heard of before."[33]

Results

Party		FP votes	%
	Cumann na nGaedheal supporters	126,218	41.3
	Labour Party	46,776	15.3
	Farmers' Party	42,785	14.0
	Independent	65,230	21.3
	Unknown affiliation	24,692	8.1
Spoilt votes		9,466	–
Total		315,167	100
Electorate/Turnout		1,347,195	23.4
Source: Nohlen & Stöver[34]

Counting

The ballots were initially collected to one centre within each Dáil constituency to count and sort the first-preference votes.[4] This took almost a week.[24] On 25 September, the ballots were sent to Dublin, the totals checked centrally, and redistribution of transfers begun.[4][24] Initially there were 10 count officials, rising to 40 by the end.[35] On 5 October, the first candidate was returned, on the 45th count.[24] Counting continued until 19 October.[24]

Harold Gosnell that there was more news coverage of the count than of the preceding campaign: "the counting of the ballots under [STV] applied on a national scale attracts wide attention, and the results are sure to reflect the opinions (or lack of them) manifested by the electors".[36]

Details

Although the election was national, many of the candidates relied on local support: 23 gained more than half their first preferences from their own constituency.[37] Almost 12% (37,714) of valid ballots were exhausted (supported no successful candidate).[35]

Candidates of the two parties contesting the election, Labour and the Farmers', did relatively well.[38] Some interest groups also did well – vintners, ex-servicemen.[39][40] Others did not — doctors,[39] academics, women, and especially Irish language revivalists: all four candidates supported by the Gaelic League lost, including outgoing senator and future president Douglas Hyde.[40][41]

Ex-Unionist candidates did not fare well, even though the original design of the Seanad was intended in part to provide enhanced representation for the unionist minority.[42]

Results of the 1925 Seanad election[43]

Name	County	Occupation[r 1]	Nomination	First-preference votes	Final result	Final count	Party[r 2]	Notes
Charles Austin	Galway	Director of various public companies and chairman of the Irish Branch of British Shareholders' Trust	Seanad	734	Eliminated	7		Baron ffrench
Henry Barniville	Dublin	Surgeon	Outgoing	8,279	Elected w/o quota	65
Sir Edward Bellingham	Louth	Baronet	Seanad	8,043	Elected	65
Thomas Westropp Bennett	Limerick	Farmer	Outgoing	7,117	Elected w/o quota	65	(pro-CnaG)
Sir Edward Coey Bigger	Dublin	Medical Doctor	Seanad	5,658	Elected w/o quota	65
P. J. Brady	Dublin	Solicitor	Seanad	4,328	Eliminated	63
Samuel Lombard Brown	Dublin	Barrister-at-law	Outgoing	2,787	Eliminated	33
Kathleen Browne	Wexford	Farmer	Seanad	2,044	Eliminated	25	(pro-CnaG)	Sought women's vote
Richard A. Butler	Dublin	Farmer	Outgoing	5,943	Eliminated	61	Farmers' Party
Laurence Patrick Byrne	Dublin	Journalist	Dáil	1,612	Eliminated	20	Labour Party	Wrote under the pen name "Andrew E. Malone"
Francis Cahill	Dublin	Teacher	Dáil	1,057	Eliminated	11	(pro-CnaG)
Sir Arthur Chance	Dublin	Surgeon	Seanad	3,792	Eliminated	57
Walter L. Cole	Dublin	Fruit merchant	Seanad	1,393	Eliminated	19
John Counihan	Dublin	Farmer	Outgoing	6,431	Elected w/o quota	65	(pro-CnaG)	Supporter of livestock trade
George Crosbie	Cork	Journalist	Dáil	2,056	Eliminated	32	(pro-CnaG)
John Patrick Cuffe	Dublin	Farmer	Dáil	3,180	Eliminated	35		Supporter of livestock trade
William Cummins	Kildare	National school teacher	Outgoing	10,693	Elected	51	Labour Party
Peter de Loughry	Kilkenny	Iron founder and manufacturer	Outgoing	5,938	Eliminated	60	(pro-CnaG)
Liam de Róiste	Cork	Secretary-director of public company	Dáil	2,993	Eliminated	42	(pro-CnaG)
James Dillon	Kilkenny	Farmer	Dáil	7,499	Elected	62	Farmers' Party
John Charles Eason	Dublin	Merchant	Dáil	2,621	Eliminated	30	(pro-CnaG)	Of Eason & Son newsagents.[44]
Michael Fanning	Dublin	Grocer and vintner	Dáil	9,024	Elected w/o quota	65		Licensed vintners' lobby
Darrell Figgis	Dublin	Author	Dáil	512	Eliminated	4		Committed suicide on 27 October 1925
Edward John Fitzgerald	Cork	Joiner	Seanad	5,754	Eliminated	64	Labour Party
Thomas Foran	Dublin	Trade union official	Outgoing	6,844	Elected	65	Labour Party
John William Garvey	Dublin	Solicitor	Dáil	2,799	Eliminated	38
Henry Harrison	Dublin	Journalist	Dáil	2,000	Eliminated	22	(pro-CnaG)
Sir William Hickie	Tipperary	Major-General (retired)	Dáil	9,712	Elected	45		Ex-servicemen's lobby
Patricia Hoey	Dublin	Journalist and industrial organiser	Seanad	334	Eliminated	1		Sought women's vote
Patrick Hooper	Dublin	Journalist and barrister-at-law	Seanad	3,346	Eliminated	40
John J. Horgan	Cork	Solicitor	Dáil	2,037	Eliminated	23	(pro-CnaG)
Denis Houston	Dublin	Trade union organiser	Dáil	4,828	Eliminated	50	Labour Party
Charles Howard-Bury	Westmeath	Lt.-Colonel (retired)	Seanad	785	Eliminated	8		Ex-servicemen's lobby
Douglas Hyde	Dublin	Dean of the Celtic Faculty in the National University of Ireland	Outgoing	1,721	Eliminated	28	(pro-CnaG)
Owen Hynes	Dublin	General secretary	Seanad	1,273	Eliminated	18	Labour Party
Cornelius Irwin	Wexford	Farmer and businessman	Outgoing	2,884	Eliminated	37	(pro-CnaG)
Joseph Johnston	Dublin	Fellow and tutor of Trinity College	Dáil	1,168	Eliminated	14	(pro-CnaG)
Michael Jordan	Wexford	Farmer	Dáil	4,777	Eliminated	49	Farmers' Party
Cornelius Kennedy	Wicklow	Merchant and farmer	Dáil	11,857	Elected	54	(pro-CnaG)	Licensed vintners' lobby
Denis Kennedy	Dublin	Surgeon	Dáil	3,202	Eliminated	36	(pro-CnaG)	Hospitals' lobby
Thomas Linehan	Cork	Farmer	Outgoing	6,624	Elected w/o quota	65	Farmers' Party
Joseph Clayton Love	Cork	Merchant	Outgoing	2,249	Eliminated	27	(pro-CnaG)
Anthony MacBride	Mayo	Surgeon	Dáil	2,059	Eliminated	26	(pro-CnaG)
Alexander McCabe	Dublin	Estate agent	Dáil	4,034	Eliminated	46
Patrick McCartan	Dublin	Surgeon	Seanad	626	Eliminated	5
Seaghán Pádhraic MacEnri	Galway	Medical doctor and university professor[r 3]	Dáil	1,636	Eliminated	21	(pro-CnaG)
Edward MacEvoy	Laois	Wholesale merchant	Outgoing	5,423	Eliminated	56	(pro-CnaG)
Francis McGuinness	Longford	Merchant	Dáil	7,662	Elected w/o quota	65	(pro-CnaG)
Thomas Patrick McKenna	Cavan	Farmer	Dáil	5,768	Eliminated	55	(pro-CnaG)
Edward Patrick McLoughlin	Dublin	Medical profession	Dáil	1,183	Eliminated	15	(pro-CnaG)
Edward MacLysaght	Clare	Proprietor of the Raheen Rural Industries	Outgoing	4,025	Eliminated	48
Valentine McSwiney, Marquis of Mashanaglass	Dublin	Gentleman	Dáil	789	Eliminated	9	(pro-CnaG)	Created a marquis in the Papal nobility by pope Leo XIII.[45]
Jeremiah McVeagh	Dublin	Barrister-at-law	Dáil	3,601	Eliminated	43
Sir Simon William Maddock	Dublin	Secretary and director of public companies	Dáil	3,876	Eliminated	44		Business candidate
Seán Milroy	Dublin	Journalist	Dáil	1,697	Eliminated	24	(pro-CnaG)
Mary Josephine Mulcahy	Dublin	Married woman	Seanad	2,659	Eliminated	39		Wife of Richard Mulcahy, and sister of James Ryan
Daniel Nealon	Tipperary	National school teacher (retired)	Dáil	1,278	Eliminated	16
George Nesbitt	Dublin	Merchant and manufacturer	Outgoing	1,210	Eliminated	17	(pro-CnaG)
Liam Ó Briain	Galway	Professor of Romance Languages in University College Galway	Seanad	1,056	Eliminated	13
Conor O'Brien	Dublin	Architect	Seanad	497	Eliminated	3
Joseph O'Connor	Kildare	Cattle salesman and farmer	Dáil	6,740	Elected w/o quota	65	(pro-CnaG)	Supporter of livestock trade
Michael O'Dea	Dublin	Merchant	Outgoing	4,011	Eliminated	58	(pro-CnaG)
J. T. O'Farrell	Dublin	Irish Secretary Railway Clerks' Association	Outgoing	12,336	Elected	51	Labour Party	Railwaymen's candidate
Ristéard Ó Foghludha	Dublin	Manager[r 4]	Dáil	660	Eliminated	6	(pro-CnaG)
Michael F. O'Hanlon	Dublin	General secretary	Dáil	8,238	Elected	59	Farmers' Party
Stephen O'Mara, Snr	Limerick	Merchant	Dáil	6,205	Elected w/o quota	65	(pro-CnaG)
Sean Ó Muirthile	Dublin	Gentleman	Dáil	1,022	Eliminated	10	(pro-CnaG)
John O'Neill	Wicklow	Cycle manufacturer and motor trader	Outgoing	2,448	Eliminated	31	(pro-CnaG)
James Parkinson	Kildare	Veterinary surgeon and bloodstock breeder	Outgoing	6,248	Elected w/o quota	65	(pro-CnaG)
Patrick Phelan	Kildare	Farmer	Dáil	5,423	Eliminated	53	Farmers' Party
John Henry Pigot	Dublin	Barrister-at-law	Seanad	413	Eliminated	2
John Ryan	Limerick	Farmer	Dáil	4,281	Eliminated	41	Farmers' Party
Thomas Ryan	Waterford	Insurance agent	Dáil	3,436	Eliminated	34	Labour Party
Michael Staines	Dublin	Wholesale merchant	Seanad	2,028	Eliminated	29
Frederick Summerfield	Dublin	Managing director	Seanad	1,123	Eliminated	12		Motorists' lobby
Thomas Toal	Monaghan	Farmer	Dáil	14,082	Elected	47	(pro-CnaG)

Notes

1. As listed on the official notice of election
2. (pro-CnaG) indicates candidates identified by Coakley as unofficially pro-Cumann na nGaedheal
3. In Irish: "Dochtúir leighis agus ollamh ollsgoile"
4. In Irish: "Bainisteoird"

Legacy

The shortcomings of the 1925 election created a consensus that a single national constituency was unworkable.[46] In 1928, in the lead-up to the next triennial Seanad election, the Oireachtas formed a joint committee to change the selection procedures.[46][47] While some members favoured retaining some form of voting by the general electorate, Fianna Fáil in particular wanted to ensure the Seanad was subordinate to the Dáil by restricting the franchise to Oireachtas members.[48] This was effected by a constitutional amendment enacted on 23 July and an electoral act on 25 October.[30][49][50] Thus, the 1925 election remains the only Seanad popular election.[51]

See also

• Members of the 1925 Seanad

References

Sources

• Coakley, John (September 2005). "Ireland's Unique Electoral Experiment: The Senate Election of 1925". Irish Political Studies. 20 (3): 231–269. doi:10.1080/07907180500359327.
• Gosnell, Harold F. (1926). "An Irish Free State Senate Election". The American Political Science Review. 20 (1): 117–120. doi:10.2307/1945103. ISSN 0003-0554. JSTOR 1945103.
• O'Sullivan, Donal (1940). The Irish Free State and its Senate: A Study in Contemporary Politics. London: Faber & Faber. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
• "Constitution of The Irish Free State (Saorstát Éireann)". Irish Statute Book. Office of the Attorney General of Ireland. 1922. Retrieved 30 October 2008.

Citations

1. Coakley, p.233
2. Constitution of The Irish Free State: Articles 31 & 32
3. Constitution of The Irish Free State: Article 82 §§ (a), (c), & (e)
4. Coakley, p.234
5. Constitution of The Irish Free State: Article 33
6. Coakley, p.237
7. O'Sullivan, pp.151–52
8. Coakley, p.232
9. "Report". Committee on Procedure for the Triennial Election. Seanad. 16 June 1925. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
10. Seanad debates Vol.5 No.10 p.5
11. "Panel for triennial election". Parliamentary Debates - Seanad Éireann. 1 July 1925. Vol.5 No.13 p.4 cc.768–771. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
12. "Seanad - selection of panel". Parliamentary Debates - Seanad Éireann. 1 July 1925. Vol.5 No.13 p.7 c.782. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
13. O'Sullivan, p.153
14. Coakley, p.236
15. O'Sullivan, p.154
16. Gogarty, Oliver St. John (7 July 1925). "Seanad Elections". Parliamentary Debates - Seanad Éireann. Vol.5 No.15 p.3 cc.865–66. Retrieved 29 October 2015. Reading the list of Senators who have been rejected, they are, if anything, a few points better than those who have been successful.
17. "A Small List". Irish Independent. 27 June 1925. p. 7.
18. Regan, John M. (1999). The Irish Counter-revolution, 1921-1936: Treatyite Politics and Settlement in Independent Ireland. Gill & Macmillan. pp. 249–250. ISBN 9780717128853.
19. "Selection of Dáil panel for Seanad election". Parliamentary Debates - Dáil Éireann. 8 July 1925. Vol.12 No.21 p.5 cc.2161–62. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
20. "Announcement of results". Parliamentary Debates - Dáil Éireann. 8 July 1925. Vol.12 No.21 p.5 cc.2162–64. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
21. "Dáil in Committee - Election of Seanad members". Parliamentary Debates - Dáil Éireann. 19 June 1925. Vol.12 No.12 p.10 cc.1314–48. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
22. Gosnell 1926 p.118
23. Coakley, p.242
24. Coakley, p.244
25. Coakley, p.242–43
26. O'Sullivan, p.170–71
27. Coakley, p.243
28. "Seanad Resumes - Debate on divorce legislation resumed". Parliamentary Debates - Seanad Éireann. 11 June 1925. Vol.5 No.7 p.10 cc.434–482. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
29. O'Sullivan, p.155
30. Coakley, p.235
31. "Electoral (Seanad Elections) Act, 1925 §3: Form of ballot papers". Acts of the Oireachtas. Government of Ireland. 11 July 1925. Retrieved 23 October 2008.
32. Coakley, p.245
33. O'Sullivan, pp.144–145
34. Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p1016 ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7
35. Gosnell 1926 p.119
36. Gosnell 1926 p.120
37. Coakley, p.250
38. Coakley, p.247
39. Coakley, p.248
40. O'Sullivan, p.156
41. Coakley, p.249
42. Coakley, p.256
43. Coakley, pp.261–68
44. Rankin, Kieran; Paul Sweeney; Bill Keating (April 2014). "Biographical Portraits of the Past Presidents of the Statistical and Social Inquiry Society of Ireland" (PDF). Statistical and Social Inquiry Society of Ireland. p. 31. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
45. "Estate Record: McSweeney/MacSwiney (Cork)". Landed Estates Database. NUI Galway. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
46. O'Sullivan, p.231
47. Oireachtas joint committee on the Constitution (16 May 1928). "Report into the constitution and powers of, and methods of election to, Seanad Éireann". Committee Reports. Archived from the original on 11 March 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
48. O'Sullivan, pp.232–34
49. "Constitution (Amendment No. 6) Act, 1928". Acts of the Oireachtas. Government of Ireland. 23 July 1928. Retrieved 30 October 2008.
50. "Seanad Electoral Act, 1928". Irish Statute Book. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
51. Coakley, p.231–32

External links

• Whyte, Nicholas (17 February 2002) [23 April 2000]. ""An exceedingly severe test": The Irish Senate elections of 1925". CAIN. Retrieved 23 October 2008.