Thomas Higgins (27 November 1865 − 26 January 1906) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...

politician, auctioneer and farmer, who as member of the

Irish Parliamentary Party The Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP; commonly called the Irish Party or the Home Rule Party) was formed in 1874 by Isaac Butt, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish national ...

was posthumously declared elected

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

of the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

of the

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was a sovereign state in the British Isles that existed between 1801 and 1922, when it included all of Ireland. It was established by the Acts of Union 1800, which merged the Kingdom of Great B ...

in 1906. Higgins was born in

Moylough Moylough ( ; ) is a small rural village located in County Galway in Ireland. It is located on the N63 national secondary road (Cnoc Tua Mór–Longford), and is served also by the R328 and R364 regional roads. It is 50 km from Galway, 30 ...

, the son of Martin Higgins, a shopkeeper, and Catherine Kelly. He was chairman of Tuam

Board of Guardians Boards of guardians were ''ad hoc'' authorities that administered Poor Law in the United Kingdom from 1835 to 1930. England and Wales Boards of guardians were created by the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, replacing the parish overseers of the poor ...

and a member of

Galway County Council Galway County Council ( ga, Comhairle Chontae na Gaillimhe) is the authority responsible for local government in County Galway, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housin ...

, was selected as the Irish Parliamentary Party candidate by the

United Irish League The United Irish League (UIL) was a nationalist political party in Ireland, launched 23 January 1898 with the motto ''"The Land for the People"''. Its objective to be achieved through agrarian agitation and land reform, compelling larger grazi ...

(UIL) convention on 5 January 1906 to contest the 1906 general election. He had been President of the constituency branch of the UIL since 1900. Taken ill on the night of the election, 25 January 1906, he died as the result of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

in Guy's Hotel,

Tuam Tuam ( ; ga, Tuaim , meaning 'mound' or 'burial-place') is a town in Ireland and the second-largest settlement in County Galway. It is west of the midlands of Ireland, about north of Galway city. Humans have lived in the area since the Bron ...

, at 1.30am the following morning. As was widely expected, Higgins topped the poll at the election count, which was held later on the day of his death, beating the incumbent MP,

John Philip Nolan Lieutenant-Colonel John Philip Nolan (1838 – 30 January 1912) was an Irish nationalist landowner and Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and as member of the Irish Parliamentary P ...

, who had stood as an

Independent Nationalist Independent Nationalist ( ga, Náisiúnach Neamhspleách) is a political title frequently used by Irish Nationalism, Irish nationalists when contesting elections to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons of the United Kingd ...

. Higgins, who received 2,685 votes (Nolan took 1,064), was posthumously declared elected by the county sheriff, the returning officer. The remarkable circumstances surrounding the election led the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'' to comment that "candidates have died before the actual election, but we doubt if ever such a case as the present has occurred before, where a candidate has died after the poll has been taken and before the result has been declared". This circumstance of a candidate winning a seat posthumously occurred again to

Noel Skelton Archibald Noel Skelton (1 July 1880 – 22 November 1935) was a Scottish Unionist politician, journalist and intellectual. Early life The son of Sir John Skelton KCB LLD, Skelton was born on 1 July 1880 at Hermitage of Braid in Edinburgh ...

in 1935, and to Sir Edward Taswell Campbell and

Leslie Pym Leslie Ruthven Pym (24 May 1884 – 17 July 1945) was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. The son of the Right Reverend Walter Ruthven Pym, Bishop of Bombay, Pym was educated at Bedford School and Magdalene College, C ...

in 1945; however, all of them were candidates for ''re-''election. Thomas Higgins is the only MP to be ''newly'' elected posthumously. Higgins, who was married, was 40 when he died.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Higgins, Thomas 1865 births 1906 deaths Irish Parliamentary Party MPs Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Galway constituencies (1801–1922) Politicians from County Galway UK MPs 1906–1910 Politicians elected posthumously

See also

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