The 23rd Seanad was in office from 2007 to 2011. An election to

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

, the

senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

of the

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 ...

(Irish parliament) took place in July 2007, following the 2007 general election to the

30th Dáil The 30th Dáil was elected at the 2007 Irish general election, 2007 general election on 24 May 2007 and met on 14 June 2007. The members of Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Republic of Ireland, Ire ...

on 24 May. There are 60 seats in the Seanad: 43 were elected on five

vocational panel A vocational panel () is any of five lists of candidates from which are elected a total of 43 of the 60 senators in Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (parliament) of Ireland. Each panel corresponds to a grouping of "interests and ...

s by serving politicians; 6 were elected in two

university constituencies A university constituency is a constituency, used in elections to a legislature, that represents the members of one or more universities rather than residents of a geographical area. These may or may not involve plural voting, in which voters ar ...

; and 11 were

nominated by the Taoiseach A candidate, or nominee, is a prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position. For example, one can be a candidate for membership in a group or election to an office, in which case a ...

. Under the

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland (, ) is the constitution, fundamental law of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executi ...

, a general election for the Seanad was required within 90 days of the dissolution of the

29th Dáil The 29th Dáil was elected at the 2002 Irish general election, 2002 general election on 17 May 2002 and met on 6 June 2002. The members of Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Republic of Ireland, Irel ...

on 30 April 2007. Polls closed on 24 July 2007, and the Taoiseach's nominees were announced by

Bertie Ahern Bartholomew Patrick "Bertie" Ahern (born 12 September 1951) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, and as Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2008. A Teachta Dála (TD) from 1977 to 2011, he served ...

on 3 August 2007. The 23rd Seanad first met at

Leinster House Leinster House () is the seat of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Originally, it was the ducal palace of the Duke of Leinster, Dukes of Leinster. Since 1922, it has been a complex of buildings which houses Oirea ...

on 13 September 2007. The term of the 23rd Seanad was from 13 September 2007 to 20 April 2011, remaining in session until the close of poll for the

24th Seanad The 24th Seanad was in office from 2011 to 2016. An election to Seanad Éireann, the senate of the Oireachtas (Irish parliament), followed the 2011 general election to the 31st Dáil on 25 February. There are 60 seats in the Seanad: 43 were el ...

Cathaoirleach

On 13 September 2007, Pat Moylan ( FF) was proposed as

Cathaoirleach Cathaoirleach (; Irish language, Irish for Chair (officer), chairperson; plural: ) is the title of the chair (or speaker (politics), presiding officer) of Seanad Éireann, the sixty-member upper house of the Oireachtas, the legislature of Repub ...

Donie Cassidy Daniel "Donie" Cassidy (born 15 September 1945) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Leader of the Seanad from 2007 to 2011. He served as a Senator for the Labour Panel from 1982 to 2002 and 2007 to 2011 and a Teachta Dála ...

(FF) and seconded by Dan Boyle ( GP). He was elected without a division. On 26 September 2007, Paddy Burke ( FG) was proposed as Leas-Chathaoirleach by Frances Fitzgerald ( FG) and seconded by

Maurice Cummins Maurice Cummins (born 25 February 1953) is a former Irish Fine Gael politician who served as Leader of the Seanad and Leader of Fine Gael in the Seanad from 2011 to 2016. He was a Senator for Labour Panel from 2002 to 2016. He was first electe ...

(FG).

Composition of the 23rd Seanad

There are a total of 60 seats in the Seanad. There are 43 Senators elected by the

s, 6 elected by the Universities and 11 are

. The following table shows the composition by party when the 23rd Seanad first met on 13 September 2007.

Effect of changes

;Notes # ^ The 2007 column refers to the state of parties when 23rd Seanad first met in 2007. # ^ The November 2010 column refers to the state of parties on the dissolution of the

. # ^ The March 2011 column refers to the state of parties after the 2011 Dáil election.

Graphical representation

This is a graphical comparison of party strengths in the 23rd Seanad in January 2011. *Note: This was not the official seating plan.

List of senators

Changes

Fourteen senators were elected to the 31st Dáil at the general election on 25 February 2011.

References

External links

*
Houses of the Oireachtas: Debates: 23rd Seanad
{{Lists of members of Seanad Éireann 23