Irish general election, 1944

Irish general election, 1944

30 May 1944
137 of 138 seats in Dáil Éireann 70 seats were needed for a majority
Turnout	69.2%
First party Second party Third party   92px Leader Éamon de Valera Richard Mulcahy Joseph Blowick Party Fianna Fáil Fine Gael Clann na Talmhan Leader since 26 March 1926 1944 1944 Leader's seat Clare Tipperary Mayo South Last election 67 seats, 41.9% 32 seats, 23.1% 10 seats, 9.0% Seats before 67 32 13 Seats won 76 30 9 Seat change 9 2 4 Percentage 48.9% 20.5% 10.8% Swing 7.0% 2.6% 1.8%   Fourth party Fifth party   Leader William Norton James Everett Party Labour Party National Labour Party Leader since 1932 1944 Leader's seat Kildare Wicklow Last election 17 seats, 15.7% N/A Seats before 12 5 Seats won 8 4 Seat change 4 1 Percentage 8.7% 2.7% Swing 7.0% 2.7%
400px Percentage of seats gained by each of the five biggest parties, and number of seats gained by smaller parties and independents.
Taoiseach before election Éamon de Valera Fianna Fáil Subsequent Taoiseach Éamon de Valera Fianna Fáil

The Irish general election of 1944 was held on 30 May 1944, three weeks after the dissolution of the Dáil on 9 May. The 138 newly elected members of the 12th Dáil assembled on 9 June when the new Taoiseach and government were appointed. The outgoing Fianna Fáil government won re-election, and achieved an overall majority.

The general election took place in 34 parliamentary constituencies throughout Ireland for 138 seats in the lower house of parliament, Dáil Éireann. The election was fought while the Emergency Powers Act 1939 was still in force.

Campaign

The general election of 1944 was caused by a defeat for the ruling Fianna Fáil government on the second reading of the Transport Bill. The Taoiseach Éamon de Valera, decided to call a snap general election, just one year after the last. It was a campaign that Fianna Fáil needed to have a more comfortable position in the Dáil, however, the campaign was not wanted by the opposition parties.

Fianna Fáil fought the election on its record in government and also in the hope of securing a fresh mandate for its policies. During the campaign Fine Gael put forward the proposal of forming a coalition government with the Labour Party and Clann na Talmhan, however, this was ridiculed by Fianna Fáil as untenable. A split in the Labour movement meant that the party was by no means ready to fight an election, and the results showed this.

Due to the fractured nature of the opposition, Éamon de Valera's tactic of calling a snap general election had succeeded, as it had in 1933 and 1938.

Result

12th Irish general election – 30 May 1944

Party		Leader	Seats	±	% of seats	First Pref votes	% FPv	±%
	Fianna Fáil	Éamon de Valera	76	+9	55.1	595,259	48.9	+7.0
	Fine Gael	Richard Mulcahy	30	–2	21.8	249,329	20.5	–2.6
	Clann na Talmhan	Joseph Blowick	9	–1	6.5	122,745	10.1	+0.3
	Labour Party	William Norton	8	–9	5.8	106,767	8.8	–6.9
	National Labour Party	James Everett	4	New	2.9	32,732	2.7	–
	Monetary Reform Party	Oliver J. Flanagan	1	0	0.7	9,856	0.8	+0.5
	Ailtirí na hAiséirghe		0	0	0	5,809	0.5	+0.3
	Independent	N/A	10	0	7.2	94,852	7.8	–0.9
Spoilt votes						12,790	—	—
Total			138	0	100	1,203,139	100	—
Electorate/Turnout						1,816,142	69.2%	—

• Fianna Fáil majority government formed.

First time TDs

• Thomas Brennan
• Harry Colley
• Eamonn Coogan
• Walter Furlong
• Michael Lydon
• Patrick McAuliffe
• John S. O'Connor
• Mary Ryan
• Patrick Shanahan (December 1945 by-election)

Re-elected TDs

• John A. Costello
• Frank Loughman
• Peter O'Loghlen
• Eamonn O'Neill
• Laurence Walsh
• Richard Walsh

Outgoing TDs

• Ernest Benson (Lost seat)
• W. T. Cosgrave (Retired)
• John Esmonde (Lost seat)
• Timothy Linehan (Lost seat)
• Jeremiah Ryan (Retired)
• Richard Stapleton (Lost seat)

See also

• Members of the 12th Dáil
• Government of the 12th Dáil
• Parliamentary Secretaries of the 12th Dáil

Sources

• Manning, Maurice, 1972. Irish Political Parties: An Introduction. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-7171-0536-6