June 1927 Irish general election

June 1927 Irish general election

9 June 1927
152 of 153 seats in Dáil Éireann 77 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	68.1% 6.8pp
First party Second party Third party   160px Leader W. T. Cosgrave Éamon de Valera Thomas Johnson Party Cumann na nGaedheal Fianna Fáil Labour Party Leader since April 1923 26 March 1926 1922 Leader's seat Carlow–Kilkenny Clare Dublin County Last election 63 seats, 39.0% N/A 14 seats, 10.6% Seats before 60 N/A 15 Seats won 47 44 22 Seat change 13 44 7 Popular vote 314,703 299,486 143,849 Percentage 27.4% 26.2% 12.6% Swing 11.6% New party 2.0%   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   110px 120px 115px Leader Michael Heffernan William Redmond John J. O'Kelly Party Farmers' Party National League Party Sinn Féin Leader since 1927 1926 1926 Leader's seat Tipperary Waterford N/A Last election 15 seats, 12.1% N/A 44 seats, 27.4% Seats before 15 2 47 Seats won 11 8 5 Seat change 4 6 42 Popular vote 101,955 83,598 41,401 Percentage 8.9% 7.3% 3.6% Swing 3.2% New party 23.8%
400px Percentage of seats gained by each of the five biggest parties, and number of seats gained by smaller parties and independents.
President of the Executive Council before election W. T. Cosgrave Cumann na nGaedheal President of the Executive Council after election W. T. Cosgrave Cumann na nGaedheal

The June 1927 Irish general election was held on Thursday, 9 June 1927. The newly elected members of the 5th Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 23 June, at which W. T. Cosgrave of Cumann na nGaedheal was reappointed as President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State, alongside his reconstituted Executive Council.

Following the election, Fianna Fáil took its seats in the Dáil on 12 August 1927. Fianna Fáil had been formed a year earlier when Éamon de Valera, leader of the abstentionist Anti-Treaty Sinn Féin, failed to convince the party to take their seats if and when the Oath of Allegiance were abolished. Most of Sinn Féin's TDs, as well as the bulk of its support, shifted to Fianna Fáil.

The impact of this shift saw Sinn Féin all but decimated; it was reduced to five seats. This was for many years the end of the party as a major force in the southern part of the island; it would not win more than 10 seats at an election until 2011. This election cemented Fianna Fáil as a major party; it and Cumann na nGaedheal/Fine Gael remained the two major parties in Ireland until 2020. Fianna Fáil's decision to take up its seats removed Cumann na nGaedheal's working majority among TDs attending, making the Dáil short-lived. The 5th Dáil was dissolved by Governor-General Timothy Michael Healy, at the request of W. T. Cosgrave, the President of the Executive Council, on 25 August 1927.

Result

5th Irish general election – 9 June 1927

Party		Leader	Seats	±	% of seats	First Pref votes	% FPv	±%
	Cumann na nGaedheal	W. T. Cosgrave	47	–16	30.7	314,703	27.4	–11.6
	Fianna Fáil	Éamon de Valera	44	New	28.7	299,486	26.2	New
	Labour Party	Thomas Johnson	22	+8	14.4	143,849	12.6	+2.0
	Farmers' Party	Michael Heffernan	11	–4	7.2	101,955	8.9	–3.2
	National League Party	William Redmond	8	New	5.2	83,598	7.3	New
	Sinn Féin	John J. O'Kelly	5	–39	3.3	41,401	3.6	–23.8
	Clann Éireann	William Magennis	0	New	0	5,527	0.5	New
	Blind Men's Party		0	New	0	1,559	0.1	New
	Town Tenants' Association		0	0	0	1,012	0.1	–0.1
style="background-color: Template:Independent politicians in Ireland/meta/color; width: 1px;" |	[[Independent politicians in Ireland|Template:Independent politicians in Ireland/meta/shortname]]	N/A	16	+3	10.4	153,370	13.4	+5.3
Spoilt votes						31,337	—	—
Total			153	0	100	1,177,797	100	—
Electorate/Turnout						1,730,177	68.1%	—

Voting summary

First preference vote
Cumann na nGaedheal			27.44%
Fianna Fáil			26.12%
Labour			12.55%
Farmers'			8.89%
National League Party			7.29%
Sinn Féin			3.61%
Others			0.71%
Independent			13.37%

Seats summary

Assembly seats
Cumann na nGaedheal			30.72%
Fianna Fáil			28.76%
Labour			14.38%
Farmers'			7.19%
National League Party			5.23%
Sinn Féin			3.27%
Independent			10.46%

Government formation

When the 5th Dáil first met on 23 June 1927, there were 50 TDs still abstaining. Cumann na nGaedheal formed the 3rd Executive Council of the Irish Free State with the support of the Farmers' Party and 13 Independents. This government proved unstable once Fianna Fáil took their seats.

First time TDs

• Tadhg Crowley
• Patrick Boland
• Andrew Fogarty
• John Jinks
• Michael Keyes
• Michael Óg McFadden
• Thomas Mullins
• Patrick O'Dowd
• Matthew O'Reilly
• Timothy Quill
• Jasper Wolfe

Outgoing TDs

• Cornelius Connolly (Retired)
• Patrick McFadden (Lost seat)

See also

• Members of the 5th Dáil
• Government of the 5th Dáil