Sligo–Leitrim 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 ...

that has been represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas, from the 2016 general election. The constituency elects 4 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). The constituency previously existed from 1923 to 1937 (then titled Leitrim–Sligo) and from 1948 to 2007.

History and boundaries

1923–1937 and 1948–2007

The constituency was defined in 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 ...

as: :"The administrative counties of Leitrim and

Sligo Sligo ( ; ga, Sligeach , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of approximately 20,000 in 2016, it is the List of urban areas ...

." This was the first time that the Dáil had not used constituencies defined under British law. Leitrim–Sligo replaced the old Leitrim–Roscommon North and Sligo–Mayo East constituencies, which had been created 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 ...

. The constituency was first used at the 1923 general election. Under 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 ...

, the Leitrim–Sligo constituency was abolished, and replaced for the 1937 general election by two separate 3 seat constituencies:

and Leitrim. The territory was reunited as Sligo–Leitrim under the

Electoral (Amendment) Act 1947 The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1947 (No. 31) was a law in Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies. The new constituencies were first used for the 13th Dáil, elected at the 1948 general election on 4 February 1948. This Act repealed the El ...

, in operation from the 1948 general election. The constituency was abolished at the 2007 general election, and replaced by two new constituencies: Roscommon–South Leitrim and Sligo–North Leitrim.

2016 onwards

The constituency was recreated following a recommendation of 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 ...

its 2012 report. The change was implemented 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 ...

. It replaced the constituencies of Roscommon–South Leitrim and Sligo–North Leitrim, and comprises all of

County Sligo County Sligo ( , gle, Contae Shligigh) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the Border Region and is part of the province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the an ...

; all of

County Leitrim County Leitrim ( ; gle, Contae Liatroma) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Connacht and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the village of Leitrim. Leitrim County Council is the local authority for the ...

; nine electoral divisions of southern

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 ...

, and thirty-six electoral divisions of western

County Cavan County Cavan ( ; gle, Contae an Chabháin) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is base ...

. It took effect at the 2016 general election. This change proved controversial, and created an unusual cross-

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

constituency taking in all or parts of four

counties A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

. Some Cavan and Donegal voters felt unrepresented. One man shared a picture online of his

spoiled ballot In voting, a ballot is considered spoilt, spoiled, void, null, informal, invalid or stray if a law declares or an election authority determines that it is invalid and thus not included in the vote count. This may occur accidentally or deliberat ...

in the 2016 election, which read "I LIVE IN CAVAN!" Local newspaper

The Anglo-Celt ''The Anglo-Celt'' () is a weekly local newspaper published every Thursday in Swellan, Cavan, Ireland, founded in 1846. It exclusively contains local news about Cavan and surroundings. The news coverage of the paper is mainly based on the pap ...

reported that several people had similarly spoiled their ballots, using the column of boxes to spell out the same message.Irish election: Spoiled ballots and lost rings among sights at count centres
from

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

At the 2020 general election, the electoral divisions in

were transferred to the

Cavan–Monaghan Cavan Monaghan (known as Cavan-Millbrook-North Monaghan until 2007) is a township in Peterborough County in central-eastern Ontario, Canada, southwest of the city of Peterborough. History The original townships of Cavan and Monaghan were survey ...

constituency, and Sligo–Leitrim instead took in parts of Roscommon–Galway constituency. 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:

TDs

TDs 1923–1937

TDs 1948–2007

TDs since 2016

Elections

2020 general election

2016 general election

2002 general election

1997 general election

1992 general election

1989 general election

1987 general election

November 1982 general election

John Ellis topped the poll on the first count, but unusually he was not elected.

February 1982 general election

1981 general election

1977 general election

1973 general election

1969 general election

1965 general election

1961 general election

1961 by-election

Following the death of Fianna Fáil TD Stephen Flynn on 24 November 1960, a by-election was held on 1 March 1961.

1957 general election

1954 general election

1951 general election

1948 general election

1933 general election

1932 general election

The vote was delayed two weeks in Leitrim–Sligo due to the assassination of Patrick Reynolds TD two days before the election was to take place. His widow

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

took his place on the ballot and was elected.

1929 by-election

Following the death of Fianna Fáil TD Samuel Holt on 18 April 1929, a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

was held on 7 June 1929.

September 1927 general election

June 1927 general election

1925 by-election

Following the resignations of Cumann na nGaedheal TDs Thomas Carter and

Alexander McCabe Alexander McCabe ( ga, Alasdar Mac Cába; 5 June 1886 – 31 May 1972) was an Irish Sinn Féin (later Cumann na nGaedheal) politician. Early life He was born in Keash, County Sligo in 1886. He was educated at Summerhill College, Sligo. He won a ...

on 30 October 1924, a by-election for both seats was held on 11 March 1925.

1923 general election

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sligo-Leitrim (Dail constituency) Dáil constituencies Politics of County Sligo Politics of County Leitrim 1948 establishments in Ireland 2007 disestablishments in Ireland Constituencies established in 1948 Constituencies disestablished in 2007 2016 establishments in Ireland Constituencies established in 2016