Kerry by election, 1872

The Kerry by-election of 1872 was fought on 6 February 1872[20 3]. The byelection was held due to the incumbent Liberal MP Valentine Browne succeeding to the peerage as Earl of Kenmare. It was won by the Home Rule candidate Rowland Blennerhassett. The by-election was important in the decline of the Catholic Union whose candidate was defeated by Blennerhassett, who although a Home Ruler was a Protestant. The Bishop of Kerry had condemned the Home Rule campaign.