 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
153 seats inDáil Éireann[a] 77 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnout | 76.5% 7.5pp | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Election results and first-preference votes in each constituency Number of seats gained by each party in each constituency | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The1932 Irish general election to the7th Dáil was held on Tuesday, 16 February, following thedissolution of the6th Dáil on 29 January byGovernor-GeneralJames McNeill on the advice ofPresident of the Executive CouncilW. T. Cosgrave. The general election took place in 30parliamentary constituencies throughout the Irish Free State for 153 seats inDáil Éireann. It was the first election held in theIrish Free State since theStatute of Westminster 1931 removed almost all of the authority of theParliament of the United Kingdom to legislate for theDominions, including the Irish Free State—effectively granting the Free State internationally recognised independence.
The 7th Dáil met atLeinster House on 9 March to nominate the President andExecutive Council of theIrish Free State for appointment by the Governor-General. This resulted in the firstchange of government in the Irish Free State.Cumann na nGaedheal, which had been the governing party since 1922, was succeeded byFianna Fáil, which became the largest party in the chamber andformed a government led byÉamon de Valera, with the support of theLabour Party. Fianna Fáil would be the largest party in Dáil Éireann at every general election thereafter until 2011.
The election campaign between the two ideologically opposed parties was reasonably peaceful. However, during the campaign, the government prosecuted de Valera's newly established newspaper,The Irish Press. The editor was also brought before amilitary tribunal. This was seen by many as a major blunder and a serious infringement on freedom of speech. The "red scare" tactics also seemed to backfire on the government.
Two days before the election,Patrick Reynolds, aCumann na nGaedheal TD was assassinated inBallinamore. Agarda detective was murdered in the same incident. The poll inLeitrim–Sligo was postponed and Reynolds' widowMary was elected.[4]
 | This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(March 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Cumann na nGaedheal fought the general election on its record of providing ten years of stable government. The party claimed to have brought stability following the chaos of theIrish Civil War and to have provided honest government. However, by 1932 this provision of solid government was wearing thin, particularly since the party had no solution to the collapse in trade which followed thedepression of the early 1930s. Instead of offering new policies, the party believed that its record in government would be enough to retain power. Cumann na nGaedheal also played the "red scare" tactic, describing Fianna Fáil ascommunists and likeningÉamon de Valera toJoseph Stalin.
In comparison to Cumann na nGaedheal, Fianna Fáil had an elaborate election programme, designed to appeal to a wide section of the electorate. It played down itsrepublicanism to avoid alarm, but provided very popular social and economic policies. The party promised to freeIRA prisoners, abolish theOath of allegiance and reduce the powers of theGovernor-General and theSenate. It also promised the introduction ofprotectionist policies, industrial development, self-sufficiency and improvements in housing and social security benefits.[5][6]
| Election to the 7th Dáil – 16 February 1932[7][8][9] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||||||
| Party | Leader | Seats | ± | % of seats | First pref. votes | % FPv | ±% | |
| Fianna Fáil | Éamon de Valera | 72 | +15 | 47.1 | 566,498 | 44.5 | +9.3 | |
| Cumann na nGaedheal | W. T. Cosgrave | 57[a] | −4 | 37.3 | 449,506 | 35.3 | −3.4 | |
| Labour | Thomas J. O'Connell | 7 | −6 | 4.6 | 98,286 | 7.7 | −1.4 | |
| Farmers' Party | 3 | −3 | 1.9 | 22,899 | 1.8 | −4.6 | ||
| Irish Worker League | James Larkin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3,860 | 0.3 | –0.8 | |
| Revolutionary Workers' Groups | 0 | New | 0 | 1,087 | 0.1 | – | ||
| Independent | N/A | 14 | +2 | 9.1 | 131,890 | 10.4 | +2.5 | |
| Spoilt votes | 20,804 | N/a | N/a | |||||
| Total | 153 | 0 | 100 | 1,294,830 | 100 | N/a | ||
| Electorate/Turnout | 1,695,175 | 76.5% | N/a | |||||
| Fianna Fáil | 44.47% | |||
| Cumann na nGaedheal | 35.28% | |||
| Labour | 7.71% | |||
| Farmers' | 1.80% | |||
| Others | 0.40% | |||
| Independent | 10.35% | |||
| Fianna Fáil | 47.06% | |||
| Cumann na nGaedheal | 37.25% | |||
| Labour | 4.58% | |||
| Farmers' | 1.96% | |||
| Others | 0.40% | |||
| Independent | 9.15% | |||
Although Cumann na nGaedheal only lost five seats, the minor parties were decimated. Most of their support bled to Fianna Fáil, leaving it five seats short of an overall majority. Despite this, Fianna Fáil looked like the only party that could realistically form a government. Discussions began immediately after the election and an agreement was reached in which theLabour Party would support Fianna Fáil. The party now had the necessary votes to form aminority government. After the results were announced, newly elected Fianna Fáil TDSeán Moylan proclaimed that the election was a victory of "the owners of the donkey and cart over the pony and trap class".[10]
On 9 March 1932 the first change of government in the Irish Free State took place. Many in the country and abroad wondered if the true test of democracy would be passed. The men who won acivil war only ten years before now had to hand over power to their opponents. Similar to when the party first entered the Dáil in 1927, a number of Fianna FáilTDs arrived at Leinster House with guns in their pockets. It later emerged thatEoin O'Duffy,Commissioner of theGarda Síochána, had urged a military coup. However,W. T. Cosgrave was determined to adhere to the principles of democracy that he had practised while in government. Likewise, thearmy, Garda and the civil service all accepted the change of government, despite the fact that they would now be taking orders from men who had been their enemies less than ten years previously. After a brief and uneventful meeting in the Dáil chamber, Éamon de Valera was nominated asPresident of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State. He was then formally appointed by theGovernor-General,James McNeill, who had come to Leinster House to make the appointment rather than require de Valera travel to theViceregal Lodge, formerly a symbol of British rule. He formed the6th Executive Council of the Irish Free State. Fianna Fáil, a party led by many of the men most closely identified with opposing the existence of the state ten years earlier, were now the party of government. The 1932 general election was the beginning of a sixteen-year period in government for Fianna Fáil.
 |
| Executive |  | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legislative | |||||
| Judiciary | |||||
| Elections |
| ||||
| See also | |||||
.jpg)
.jpg)
