Joseph Cunningham (1877–July 1965) was a
unionist politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
.
Cunningham worked as a shipyard fitter,
[John F. Harbinson, ''The Ulster Unionist Party, 1882-1973'', p.204] and was prominent in the local branch of the
Amalgamated Society of Engineers. In 1912, he voted against the union paying a levy to the
Labour Party, and was the only delegate to a union conference not to join a protest against the imprisonment of
Tom Mann.
In 1921, Cunningham was elected to the first
Senate of Northern Ireland as an
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule movem ...
member, despite having no political experience. He became the longest-serving senator, remaining in post until his death in 1965.
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Joseph
1877 births
1965 deaths
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1921–1925
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1925–1929
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1929–1933
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1933–1937
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1937–1941
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1941–1945
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1945–1949
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1949–1953
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1953–1957
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1957–1961
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1961–1965
Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1965–1969
Trade unionists from Belfast
Ulster Unionist Party members of the Senate of Northern Ireland
Politicians from Belfast