| 23rd Seanad | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||
 | |||||||||
| Overview | |||||||||
| Legislative body | Seanad Éireann | ||||||||
| Jurisdiction | Ireland | ||||||||
| Meeting place | Leinster House | ||||||||
| Term | 13 September 2007 – 20 April 2011 | ||||||||
| Government |
| ||||||||
| Members | 60 | ||||||||
| Cathaoirleach | Pat Moylan (FF) | ||||||||
| Leas-Chathaoirleach | Paddy Burke (FG) | ||||||||
| Leader of the Seanad | Donie Cassidy (FF) | ||||||||
| Sessions | |||||||||
| |||||||||
The23rd Seanad was in office from 2007 to 2011. An election toSeanad Éireann, thesenate of theOireachtas (Irish parliament) took place in July 2007, following the2007 general election to the30th Dáil on 24 May.[1] There are 60 seats in the Seanad: 43 were elected on fivevocational panels by serving politicians; 6 were elected in twouniversity constituencies; and 11 werenominated by the Taoiseach. Under theConstitution of Ireland, a general election for the Seanad was required within 90 days of the dissolution of the29th Dáil on 30 April 2007. Polls closed on 24 July 2007, and the Taoiseach's nominees were announced byBertie Ahern on 3 August 2007. The 23rd Seanad first met atLeinster House on 13 September 2007.[2] The term of the 23rd Seanad was from 13 September 2007 to 20 April 2011, remaining in session until the close of poll for the24th Seanad.
On 13 September 2007,Pat Moylan (FF) was proposed asCathaoirleach byDonie Cassidy (FF) and seconded byDan Boyle (GP). He was elected without a division.[3][4] On 26 September 2007,Paddy Burke (FG) was proposed as Leas-Chathaoirleach byFrances Fitzgerald (FG) and seconded byMaurice Cummins (FG).[5]
There are a total of 60 seats in the Seanad. There are 43 Senators elected by thevocational panels, 6 elected by the Universities and 11 arenominated by the Taoiseach.
The following table shows the composition by party when the 23rd Seanad first met on 13 September 2007.
Origin Party | Vocational panels | NUI | DU | Nominated | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Admin | Agri | Cult & Educ | Ind & Comm | Labour | |||||||
| Fianna Fáil | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 28 | ||
| Fine Gael | 2 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | ||
| Labour Party | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Green Party | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| Progressive Democrats | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| Sinn Féin | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 7 | ||
| Total | 7 | 11 | 5 | 9 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 60 | ||
| Party | 20071 | Nov. 20102 | Mar. 20113 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fianna Fáil | 28 | 25 | 26 | ||
| Fine Gael | 14 | 15 | 6 | ||
| Labour Party | 6 | 6 | 2 | ||
| Green Party | 2 | 3 | 3 | ||
| Sinn Féin | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Progressive Democrats | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Independent | 7 | 9 | 8 | ||
| Vacant | 0 | 2 | 15 | ||
| Total | 60 | ||||
This is a graphical comparison of party strengths in the 23rd Seanad in January 2011.
Fourteen senators were elected to the 31st Dáil at the general election on 25 February 2011.[6]