Carlow–Kilkenny is a

parliamentary constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

represented in

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( ; , ) is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann.Article 15.1.2° of the Constitution of Ireland reads: "The Oireachtas shall co ...

, 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 and the two houses of the Oireachtas (): a house ...

. The constituency elects five deputies ( Teachtaí Dála, commonly known as TDs) on the system of

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to any electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions (Political party, political parties) amon ...

by means of the

single transferable vote The single transferable vote (STV) or proportional-ranked choice voting (P-RCV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which each voter casts a single vote in the form of a ranked ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vot ...

(PR-STV).

History and boundaries

The constituency was created in 1921 by 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 Bi ...

as a 4-seat constituency for the Southern Ireland House of Commons and a single-seat constituency for the United Kingdom House of Commons at Westminster, combining the former Westminster constituencies of

County Carlow County Carlow ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county located in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region of Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Carlow is the List of Irish counties by area, second smallest and t ...

, Kilkenny North and Kilkenny South which had formed the basis for the

First Dáil First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

. At the 1921 election for the Southern Ireland House of Commons, the four seats were won uncontested by Sinn Féin, who treated it as part of the election to the

Second Dáil The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...

. It was never used as a Westminster constituency; under s. 1(4) of the Irish Free State (Agreement) Act 1922, no writ was to be issued "for a constituency in Ireland other than a constituency in Northern Ireland". Therefore, no vote was held in Carlow–Kilkenny at the

1922 United Kingdom general election The 1922 United Kingdom general election was held on Wednesday 15 November 1922. It was won by the Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister Andrew Bonar Law, which gained an overall majority over the Labour Party, led by J. R. Clynes, and ...

on 15 November 1922, shortly before the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

left the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on 6 December 1922. It was recreated as a constituency in Irish legislation by 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 ...

. Carlow–Kilkenny did not exist between 1937 and 1948, when it was replaced by the constituencies of Carlow–Kildare and

Kilkenny Kilkenny ( , meaning 'church of Cainnech of Aghaboe, Cainnech'). is a city in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinst ...

. The constituency has continued in existence since 1948. The 2023 Report of the

Electoral Commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...

recommended that at the next general election, Carlow–Kilkenny remain as a five-seat constituency, with the transfer of a population of 6,431 to the new constituency of Tipperary North. The

Electoral (Amendment) Act 2023 The Electoral (Amendment) Act 2023 is a law of Ireland to revise Dáil constituencies and European Parliament constituencies. The revised Dáil constituencies will come into effect on the dissolution of the 33rd Dáil. The dissolution must tak ...

defines the constituency as:

TDs

TDs 1921–1937

TDs since 1948

Elections

2024 general election

2020 general election

2016 general election

2015 by-election

2011 general election

2007 general election

2002 general election

Séamus Pattison was

Ceann Comhairle The (; "Head of heCouncil"; plural usually ) is the chairperson (or speaker) of , the lower house of the (parliament) of Ireland. The person who holds the position is elected by members of the from among their number in the first session ...

at the dissolution of the 28th Dáil and therefore deemed to be returned automatically. The constituency was treated as a four-seater for the purposes of calculating the quota.

1997 general election

1992 general election

1989 general election

1987 general election

November 1982 general election

February 1982 general election

1981 general election

1977 general election

1973 general election

1969 general election

1965 general election

1961 general election

1960 by-election

Following the death of Fine Gael TD Joseph Hughes, a by-election was held on 23 June 1960. The Elections Act 1960 enabled the election to be held the same day as the 1960 local elections, using the same administrative apparatus.; ; The Dáil seat was won by the Fianna Fáil candidate Patrick Teehan.

1957 general election

1956 by-election

Following the death of Fianna Fáil TD Thomas Walsh, a by-election was held on 14 November 1956. The seat was won by Fianna Fáil candidate Martin Medlar. The surplus votes of the elected candidate were distributed after being declared elected because there was a possibility another candidate could have reached the threshold of a third of a quota which would have meant their election deposit was returned to them.

1954 general election

1951 general election

1948 general election

The poll was postponed due to the death of outgoing Fine Gael TD Eamonn Coogan during the campaign.

1933 general election

1932 general election

1927 by-election

W. T. Cosgrave was also elected for the Cork Borough constituency and resigned his seat in Carlow–Kilkenny following the election. A by-election was held on 3 November 1927 and the seat was won by the Cumann na nGaedheal candidate Denis Gorey.

September 1927 general election

June 1927 general election

1925 by-election

Following the resignation of Cumann na nGaedheal TD Seán Gibbons, a by-election was held on 11 March 1925. The seat was won by the Cumann na nGaedheal candidate Thomas Bolger.

1923 general election

1922 general election

1921 general election

References

External links

Oireachtas Constituency DashboardsOireachtas Members Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carlow-Kilkenny (Dail constituency) Politics of County Carlow Politics of County Kilkenny Dáil constituencies 1921 establishments in Ireland 1937 disestablishments in Ireland Constituencies established in 1921 Constituencies disestablished in 1937 1948 establishments in Ireland Constituencies established in 1948