Dublin County (Dáil Éireann constituency)

History

The constituency was created in 1921 as a 6-seater, under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, for the 1921 election to the House of Commons of Southern Ireland, whose members formed the 2nd Dáil.

Under the Electoral Act 1923, it became an 8-seat constituency for the 1923 general election to the 4th Dáil. It remained at that size until major boundaries changes for the 1937 election to the 9th Dáil, when its geographical area was reduced and its representation cut to 5 seats.

Further boundary changes for the 1948 general election to the 13th Dáil saw its area further reduced, and representation cut to 3 seats. It was expanded to a 5-seater again for the 1961 general election to the 17th Dáil, before its abolition for the 1969 general election. It was replaced by Dublin County North and Dublin County South.

Boundaries

Throughout its history the constituency consisted primarily of the area of County Dublin, excluding the area of Dublin city. However, at various points it also included some territory from within the boundaries of Dublin City, which were expanded under the Local Government (Dublin) Act, 1930.

1921–1923 (6 seats)

The boundaries covered all of County Dublin, excluding the area within Dublin city

1923–1937 (8 seats)

Under the Electoral Act 1923, the boundaries of the constituency were defined simply as "the administrative county of Dublin", that is County Dublin excluding the area within the boundaries of Dublin city. These boundaries took effect at the 1923 general election.

1937–1948 (5 seats)

The Electoral (Revision of Constituencies) Act 1935 followed the removal from the county to the city of heavily populated suburbs from former Pembroke Township. Most of those areas became part of a new 3 seat Dublin Townships constituency, but some wards which had become part of the city remained within the county constituency. The 1935 Act defined the new boundaries of the constituency as "The administrative County of Dublin. The following townlands or portions of townlands comprised in the County Borough of Dublin: Annefield, Crumlin, Kimmage (parish of Crumlin), Kimmage (parish of Rathfarnham), Larkfield, Newtown Little, Priesthouse, Rathfarnham, Saint Lawrence, Simmonscourt, Stannaway, Terenure and Tonguefield". These boundaries took effect at the 1937 general election.

1948–1961 (3 seats)

The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1947 reduced the size of the constituency, removing most of the areas within the boundary of Dublin city, and removing a further substantial area in the south of the county to form the new Dún Laoghaire and Rathdown constituency. A further area in the North–East of the county, from Killester to Malahide to Howth, was removed to a new Dublin North-East constituency. The boundaries were formally defined as "The Beann Eadair ward and the administrative county of Dublin except the portion thereof which is comprised in the county constituency of Dun Laoghaire and Rathdown and the portion thereof which is comprised in the borough constituency of Dublin North (East)". These boundaries took effect at the 1948 general election.

1961–1969 (5 seats)

The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1961 expanded the constituency boundaries again, restoring the areas which had been removed to Dublin North-East and adding part of Ballyfermot. The new boundaries were defined as "The administrative county of Dublin, except the part thereof which is comprised in the county constituency of Dun Laoghaire and Rathdown; and the part of the Ballyfermot ward in the county borough of Dublin which is not included in the borough constituency of Dublin South-West." These boundaries took effect at the 1961 general election.

TDs

Note: The columns in this table are used only for presentational purposes, and no significance should be attached to the order of columns. For details of the order in which seats were won at each election, see the detailed results of that election.

1947 by-election

A by-election was held to fill the seat left vacant by death of the Fianna Fáil TD Patrick Fogarty. It was won by Seán MacBride of Clann na Poblachta.

1935 by-election

A by-election was held to fill the seat left vacant by death of the Fine Gael TD Batt O'Connor. It was won for Fine Gael by Cecil Lavery.

1927 by-election

A by-election was held on 14 August 1927 to fill the seat in the 4th Dáil which had been left vacant by the assassination on 10 July of the Minister for Justice, Cumann na nGaedheal TD Kevin O'Higgins. The election was won for Cumann na nGaedheal by Gearóid O'Sullivan, who won nearly 70% of the first-preference votes.

1926 by-election

A by-election was held on 18 February 1926 to fill the seat in the 4th Dáil which had been vacated by the death of the independent TD Darrell Figgis. It was won by the Labour Party candidate William Norton. Norton's win was the first by a Labour Party candidate at any by-election since the establishment of the First Dáil. Labour did not repeat Norton's feat of winning a seat from another party in a by-election for 72 years, when Seán Ryan won the Dublin North by-election in March 1998.

1924 by-election

A by-election was held on 19 March 1924 to fill the seat in the 4th Dáil which had been left vacant by the death of the Cumann na nGaedheal TD Michael Derham. It was won for Cumann na nGaedheal by Batt O'Connor.

1921 general election

In the 1921 general election to the 2nd Dáil, no constituencies were contested. As in other constituencies, all 6 candidates in Dublin County were returned unopposed.