1951 Irish general election

The 1951 Irish general election was held on 30 May 1951. The newly elected members of the 14th Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 13 June when the new Taoiseach and government were appointed.

1951 Irish general election

30 May 1951
146 of 147 seats in Dáil Éireann 74 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	75.3% 1.1pp
Leader Éamon de Valera Richard Mulcahy William Norton Party Fianna Fáil Fine Gael Labour Leader since 26 March 1926 1944 1932 Leader's seat Clare Tipperary Kildare Last election 68 seats, 41.9% 31 seats, 19.8% 19 seats, 11.3%[1] Seats before 66 32 19 Seats won 69 40 16 Seat change 3 8 3 Percentage 46.3% 25.8% 11.4% Swing 4.4% 6.0% 0.1%   Leader Joseph Blowick Seán MacBride Party Clann na Talmhan Clann na Poblachta Leader since 1944 1946 Leader's seat Mayo South Dublin South-West Last election 7 seats, 5.5% 10 seats, 13.3% Seats before 7 10 Seats won 6 2 Seat change 1 8 Percentage 2.9% 4.1% Swing 2.6% 9.2%
Percentage of seats gained by each of the five biggest parties, and number of seats gained by smaller parties and independents.
Taoiseach before election John A. Costello Fine Gael Subsequent Taoiseach Éamon de Valera Fianna Fáil

The general election took place in 40 parliamentary constituencies throughout Ireland for 147 seats in the lower house of parliament, Dáil Éireann.

Campaign

An Taoiseach John A. Costello inspects ranks of An Gárda Síochána in Glenties during the 1951 campaign

The general election of 1951 was caused by a number of crises within the First Inter-Party Government, most notably the Mother and Child Scheme. While the whole affair – which saw the resignation of the Minister for Health, Noel Browne – was not entirely to blame for the collapse of the government, it added to the disagreement between the various political parties. There were other problems facing the country, such as rising prices and balance-of-payments problems. Two farmer TDs withdrew their support for the government because of rising milk prices.

Although the First Inter-Party Government was now coming to an end, it had a number of achievements. It proved that the country could be led by a group other than Fianna Fáil. It also provided a fresh perspective after sixteen years of unbroken rule by that party.

The coalition parties fought the general election on their record on government over the previous three years, while Fianna Fáil argued strongly against coalition governments.

Result

14th Irish general election – 30 May 1951[2][3][4]
Party		Leader	Seats	±	% of seats	First Pref votes	% FPv	±%
	Fianna Fáil	Éamon de Valera	69	+1	46.9	616,212	46.3	+4.4
	Fine Gael	Richard Mulcahy	40	+9	27.2	349,922	25.8	+6.0
	Labour	William Norton	16	–3[1]	10.9	151,828	11.4	+2.7
	Clann na Talmhan	Joseph Blowick	6	–1	4.1	38,872	2.9	–2.7
	Clann na Poblachta	Seán MacBride	2	–8	1.4	54,210	4.1	–9.1
	Irish Workers' League	Michael O'Riordan	0	New	0	295	0.0	–
	Independent	N/A	14	+3	9.5	127,234	9.6	+2.4
Spoilt votes						12,043	—	—
Total			147	0	100	1,350,616	100	—
Electorate/Turnout						1,785,144	75.7%	—

• Fianna Fáil minority government formed.

The election result was inconclusive. Fianna Fáil's support increased by 61,000 votes; however, the party only gained one extra seat. The coalition parties had mixed fortunes. Fine Gael were the big winners increasing to forty seats. The Labour Party patched up its differences with the National Labour Party and fought the election together but in spite of this the party lost seats. Clann na Poblachta was the big loser of the election. Three years earlier the party had been a big political threat but now the party was shattered.

Fianna Fáil had not won enough seats to govern alone. However, the party was able to form a government with the support of Noel Browne, the sacked Minister for Health, and other Independent deputies.

Voting summary

First preference vote Fianna Fáil   46.3% Fine Gael   25.8% Labour   11.4% Clann na Poblachta   4.1% Clann na Talmhan   2.9% Others   0.0% Independent   9.6%

Seats summary

Assembly seats Fianna Fáil   46.9% Fine Gael   27.2% Labour   10.9% Clann na Talmhan   4.1% Clann na Poblachta   1.4% Independent   9.5%

First-time TDs

• Philip Brady
• Joseph Brennan
• Patrick Cawley
• Declan Costello
• Patrick Crowe
• Liam Cunningham
• Percy Dockrell
• Peadar Duignan
• Anthony Esmonde
• John Fanning
• Michael ffrench-O'Carroll
• Seán Flanagan
• Colm Gallagher
• James Hession
• Patrick Hillery
• John Lynch
• Peadar Maher
• John Mannion Snr
• Michael Murphy
• William Murphy
• Denis J. O'Sullivan

Re-elected TDs

• Laurence Walsh

Outgoing TDs

• John Esmonde (retired)
• Mick Fitzpatrick (lost seat)
• John Friel (lost seat)
• Patrick Gorry (lost seat)
• James Kilroy (lost seat)
• Michael Lydon (lost seat)
• Michael Óg McFadden (lost seat)
• Joseph Mongan (deceased)
• Martin O'Sullivan (lost seat)
• Robert Ryan (lost seat)
• Richard Walsh (retired)

See also

• Members of the 14th Dáil
• Government of the 14th Dáil
• Parliamentary Secretaries of the 14th Dáil

References

1. The Labour Party and the National Labour Party had reunited since the previous election. The figures for the Labour Party are compared to the two parties' combined totals in the previous election.
2. "14th Dáil 1951 General Election". ElectionsIreland.org. Retrieved 23 May 2009.
3. "Dáil elections since 1918". ARK Northern Ireland. Retrieved 23 May 2009.
4. Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, pp1009-1017 ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7