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Donegal is a
parliamentary constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...
which has been represented in
Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland read ...
, the lower house of the Irish parliament or
Oireachtas The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of: *The President of Ireland *The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...
, since the 2016 general election. The constituency elects 5 deputies ( Teachtaí Dála, commonly known as TDs) on the system of
proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...
by means of the
single transferable vote Single transferable vote (STV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which voters cast a single vote in the form of a ranked-choice ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vote may be transferred according to alternate p ...
(PR-STV). It covers
County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...
with the exception of nine southern
electoral division An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...
s which are part of the neighbouring Sligo–Leitrim constituency.


History and boundaries


1921 to 1937

The Donegal constituency was first created in 1921 under the
Government of Ireland Act 1920 The Government of Ireland Act 1920 (10 & 11 Geo. 5 c. 67) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act's long title was "An Act to provide for the better government of Ireland"; it is also known as the Fourth Home Rule Bill ...
, for the 1921 election to the
House of Commons of Southern Ireland The Parliament of Southern Ireland was a Home Rule legislature established by the British Government during the Irish War of Independence under the Government of Ireland Act 1920. It was designed to legislate for Southern Ireland,"Order in Coun ...
, whose members formed the
Second Dáil The Second Dáil () was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 16 August 1921 until 8 June 1922. From 1919 to 1922, Dáil Éireann was the revolutionary parliament of the self-proclaimed Irish Republic. The Second Dáil consisted of members elect ...
. It elected 6 deputies in 1921, and again at the 1922 general election. It covered the whole territory of
County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...
in north-west Ireland. Under the
Electoral Act 1923 The Electoral Act 1923 was a law in Ireland which established the electoral law of the Irish Free State and provided for parliamentary constituencies in Dáil Éireann. Franchise Article 14 of the Constitution of the Irish Free State adopted o ...
, the constituency's boundaries remained unchanged, and were defined simply as "the administrative county of Donegal". However, its representation was increased from 6 to 8 seats. The Donegal constituency was abolished by the
Electoral (Revision of Constituencies) Act 1935 The Electoral (Revision of Constituencies) Act 1935 (No. 5) was a law in Ireland which replaced the Dáil constituencies which had been defined in the Electoral Act 1923. Unlike the constituencies in the 1923 Act, it included many instances of ...
, with effect from the 1937 general election. It was replaced by two new constituencies: the 4-seat Donegal East and the 3-seat Donegal West.


1977 to 1981

A Donegal constituency was re-established under the
Electoral (Amendment) Act 1974 The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1974 (No. 7) was a law in Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies. It was a review of parliamentary constituencies passed in Ireland by the governing Fine Gael– Labour Party National Coalition. It was intended ...
, and used at the 1977 general election only. The new 5-seat constituency did not cover all of County Donegal; an area in the south of the county, including the rural hinterland of
Ballyshannon Ballyshannon () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is located at the southern end of the county where the N3 from Dublin ends and the N15 crosses the River Erne. Incorporated in 1613, it is one of the oldest towns in Ireland. Location B ...
and the town of
Bundoran Bundoran () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. The town is located near the N15 road near Ballyshannon, and is the most southerly town in Donegal. The town is a tourist seaside resort, and tourism has been at the heart of the local economy s ...
, was included in the Sligo–Leitrim constituency. The revived constituency was short-lived, as under the
Electoral (Amendment) Act 1980 The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1980 (No. 17) was a law of Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies. It took effect on the dissolution of the 21st Dáil on 21 May 1981 and a general election for the 22nd Dáil on the revised constituencies too ...
, it was replaced by two new 3-seat constituencies, Donegal North-East and Donegal South-West.


Since 2016

In 2012 the
Constituency Commission The Constituency Commission ( ga, An Coimisiún um Thoghlaigh) is an independent commission in Ireland which advises on redrawing of constituency boundaries of Dáil constituencies for the election of members to Dáil Éireann (the lower house ...
proposed that at the next general election, the constituencies of Donegal North-East and Donegal South-West should be replaced by a new constituency called Donegal. The report proposed changes to the constituencies of Ireland so as to reduce the total number of TDs from 166 to 158. The Donegal constituency was re-established by the
Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013 The Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013 (No. 7) is a law of Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies in light of the 2011 census and a requirement to reduce the number of Dáil seats. The new constituencies took effect on t ...
, with effect from the 2016 general election. The
Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2017 The Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2017 (No. 39) is a law of Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies. It took effect on the dissolution of the 32nd Dáil on 14 January 2020 and a general election for the 33rd Dáil on t ...
defines the constituency as: The area of the county of Donegal within the Sligo–Leitrim constituency is:


TDs


TDs 1921–1937


TDs 1977–1981


TDs since 2016


Elections


2020 general election


2020 Donegal opinion poll


2016 general election


2016 Donegal opinion poll


1980 by-election

A by-election was held on 6 November 1980 to fill the vacancy caused by the death on 13 July 1980 of the Fianna Fáil TD
Joseph Brennan Joseph Brennan may refer to: Politicians * Joseph Brennan (senator) (died 1950), Irish senator *Joseph Brennan (Clann na Poblachta politician) (1889–1968), Irish TD 1948–1951 *Joseph Brennan (Fianna Fáil politician) (1912–1980), Irish gove ...
. It was won by the Fianna Fáil candidate Clement Coughlan, who died in a road accident in early 1983, triggering a by-election in the Donegal South-West constituency.


1977 general election


1933 general election


1932 general election


September 1927 general election


June 1927 general election


1924 by-election

A by-election was held on 20 November 1924 to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation on 1 August 1924 of the Cumann na nGaedheal TD Peter Ward. There were only two candidates, and the winner was the Cumann na nGaedheal candidate Denis McCullough.


1923 general election

The 1923 general election to the 4th Dáil was the first in the Donegal constituency where the number of candidates exceeded the number of seats. Under the
Electoral Act 1923 The Electoral Act 1923 was a law in Ireland which established the electoral law of the Irish Free State and provided for parliamentary constituencies in Dáil Éireann. Franchise Article 14 of the Constitution of the Irish Free State adopted o ...
, Donegal's representation had been increased from six to eight seats, and these were contested by no less than 19 candidates.


1922 general election

As at the 1921 general election, Sinn Féin stood one candidate for every seat, except those for two Dublin constituencies; the treaty had divided the party between 65 pro-treaty candidates, 57 anti-treaty and 1 nominally on both sides. Unlike the elections a year earlier, other parties stood in most constituencies forcing
single transferable vote Single transferable vote (STV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which voters cast a single vote in the form of a ranked-choice ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vote may be transferred according to alternate p ...
elections, with Sinn Féin losing 30 seats. In Donegal, Sinn Féin's six outgoing TDs from the 2nd Dáil were elected unopposed, Socialist Republican,
Jack White John Anthony White (; born July 9, 1975), commonly known as Jack White, is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the duo the White Stripes. White has enjoyed consistent critical and popular success and is widely c ...
having withdrawn his candidacy. Two had opposed the treaty, and four supported it; they are listed here in alphabetical order


1921 general election

At the 1921 general election to the 2nd Dáil, no seats were contested in the 26 counties which became the
Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between ...
. In Donegal, six
Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...
candidates were nominated for the constituency's eight seats. Major Robert L Moore, who had contested East Donegal in 1918, was selected as the Unionist candidate by 22 April 1921 but was described on 15 May 1921 as 'having at the last moment withdrawn'. No ballot was needed, and all six candidates were elected unopposed after the close of nominations on 24 May 1921. The 6 TDs elected are listed here in alphabetical order:


See also

*
Dáil constituencies There are 39 multi-member electoral districts, known as Dáil constituencies, that elect 160 TDs (members of parliament), to Dáil Éireann, Ireland's lower house of the Oireachtas, or parliament, by means of the single transferable vote, ...
*
Elections in the Republic of Ireland In Ireland, direct elections by universal suffrage are used for the President, the ceremonial head of state; for Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas or parliament; for the European Parliament; and for local governmen ...
*
Politics of the Republic of Ireland Ireland is a parliamentary, representative democratic republic and a member state of the European Union. While the head of state is the popularly elected President of Ireland, it is a largely ceremonial position, with real political power bei ...
*
List of Dáil by-elections This is a list of by-elections to Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas, the Irish legislature. By-elections in Republic of Ireland, Ireland occur to fill vacant seats which can be caused by the death, resignation, disqu ...
*
List of political parties in the Republic of Ireland There are a number of political parties in Ireland, and coalition governments are common. The two historically largest parties, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, arose from a split in the original Sinn Féin, Fine Gael from the faction Cumann na nGaed ...


References


External links


Oireachtas Constituency Dashboards

Oireachtas Members Database
{{coord missing, County Donegal Dáil constituencies Politics of County Donegal 1921 establishments in Ireland 1937 disestablishments in Ireland Constituencies established in 1921 Constituencies disestablished in 1937 1977 establishments in Ireland 1981 disestablishments in Ireland Constituencies established in 1977 Constituencies disestablished in 1981 2016 establishments in Ireland Constituencies established in 2016