Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil
Leader	Micheál Martin, TD
Founder	Éamon de Valera
Deputy leader	Éamon Ó Cuív, TD
Founded	23 March 1926 (1926-03-23)
Headquarters	65–66 Lower Mount Street, Dublin 2, Ireland
Youth wing	Ógra Fianna Fáil
Ideology	Irish republicanism Populism
Political position	Centre to centre-right
European affiliation	European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party
European Parliament Group	Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
Official colours	Green, orange
Dáil Éireann	19 / 166
Seanad Éireann	14 / 60
European Parliament	3 / 12
Local government	405 / 1,627
Website
www.fiannafail.ie
Politics of the Republic of Ireland Political parties Elections Politics of Northern Ireland Political parties Elections

Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (Irish: Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), more commonly known as Fianna Fáil (Irish pronunciation: [ˌfʲiənə ˈfɔːlʲ]) is a centrist to centre-right political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál ("Fál" being a legendary name for Ireland). Historically Fianna Fáil has been seen as to the left of Fine Gael and to the right of the Labour Party and is generally seen as a classic "catch all" populist party- representing a broad range of people from all social classes with the belief in the coincidence of economic growth and social progress. Fianna Fáil has led governments including parties of the left (Labour Party and Green Party) and of the right (Progressive Democrats) and is often seen as a pragmatic party of the establishment.

Since the formation of the first Fianna Fáil government on 9 March 1932, the party has been in power for 61 of the last 79 years. Its longest continuous period in office was 15 years and 11 months (March 1932–February 1948). Its single longest period out of office, in that time, has been 4 years and 4 months (March 1973–July 1977). Seven of the party's eight leaders have served as Taoiseach. It was the largest party in Dáil Éireann at every general election from the 1932 general election until the 2011 general election, when it suffered the worst defeat of a sitting government in the history of the Irish state, a loss described as "historic" in its proportions, where it saw its electoral support base diminished by 75%, as a reaction to the intervention, in the running of the Irish economy, of the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank in November 2010. After the February 2011 election, it moved from being the largest party to the third-largest party in the 31st Dáil.

Fianna Fáil joined the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party on 16 April 2009, and has sat in its associated Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe group in the European Parliament since the 2009 European elections.

History

Alternative logo

Main article: History of Fianna Fáil

Organisation and structure

Fianna Fáil's success was credited by The Irish Times to its local structure. The basic unit was the cumann (branch) which were then grouped into comhairle ceantair (district branch) and a comhairle dáil ceantair (constituency branch) in every constituency. At the party's height it boasted 3,000 cumainn, an average of 75 per constituency. The party claimed 55,000 members in 2004, a figure which Eoin O'Malley, a political scientist, considers exaggerated compared to membership figures for other parties.

However since the early 1990s the cumann structure was weakened. As every cumann was entitled to three votes to selection conventions irrespective of size, a large number of cumainn became in effect "paper cumainn" only used to ensure an aspiring or sitting candidate got enough votes. Another problem arose with the emergence of parallel organisations grouped around candidates or elected officials. Supporters and election workers for a particular candidate were loyal to a candidate and not to the party. If the candidate was to leave the party, through either resignation, retirement or defeat at election, the candidate's supporters would often depart. Although this phenomenon was nothing new, (the most famous example being Neil Blaney's "Donegal Mafia") it increased significantly from the early 90's particularly in the Dublin Region with former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern's "Drumcondra mafia" and the separate groups supporting Tom Kitt and Séamus Brennan in Dublin South largely separate from the official party structure.

Since the 2007 election, the party's structure has significantly weakened. This was in part exacerbated by significant infighting between candidates in the run up to the 2011 general election. The Irish Times estimated that half of its 3,000 cumainn are effectively moribund. This fraction rises in Dublin with the exception of Dublin West, the former seat of both Brian Lenihan's.

Leader and president

Main article: Leader of Fianna Fáil

Although the posts of leader and party president of Fianna Fáil are separate, with the former elected by the Parliamentary Party and the latter elected by the Ardfheis (thus allowing for the posts to be held by different people, in theory), in practice they have always been held by the one person. However, as the Ardfheis may have already been held in any given year by the time a new leader is elected, the selection of the new party president might not take place until the next year.

The following are the terms of office for the leader:

• Éamon de Valera (1926–1959)
• Seán Lemass (1959–1966)
• Jack Lynch (1966–1979)
• Charles Haughey (1979–1992)
• Albert Reynolds (1992–1994)
• Bertie Ahern (1994–2008)
• Brian Cowen (2008–2011)
• Micheál Martin (2011–present)

The chart below shows a timeline of Fianna Fáil leaders and the Presidents of the Executive Council and Taoiseach. The left bar shows all the leaders of Fianna Fáil, and the right bar shows the corresponding make-up of the Irish government at that time. The colours correspond to which party led the government. The last names of the respective heads of government are shown, and the Roman numeral stands for the cabinets.

General election results

Election	Dáil	Share of votes	Seats	Outcome of election	Total seats
1927.1 !1927 (Jun)	05 !5th	26.2%	44	Cumann na nGaedhael government	153
1927.2 !1927 (Sep)	06 !6th	35.2%	57	Cumann na nGaedhael government	153
1932	07 !7th	44.5%	72	Fianna Fáil government	153
1933	08 !8th	49.7%	76	Fianna Fáil government	153
1937	09 !9th	45.2%	68	Fianna Fáil government	138
1938	10th	51.9%	76	Fianna Fáil government	138
1943	11th	41.8%	66	Fianna Fáil government	138
1944	12th	48.9%	75	Fianna Fáil government	138
1948	13th	41.9%	67	Inter-party (1st) government	147
1951	14th	46.3%	68	Fianna Fáil government	147
1954	15th	43.4%	65	Inter-party (2nd) government	147
1957	16th	48.3%	78	Fianna Fáil government	147
1961	17th	43.8%	70	Fianna Fáil government	144
1965	18th	47.7%	72	Fianna Fáil government	144
1969	19th	44.6%	74	Fianna Fáil government	144
1973	20th	46.2%	68	Fine Gael–Labour Party government	144
1977	21st	50.6%	84	Fianna Fáil government	148
1981	22nd	45.3%	77	Fine Gael–Labour Party government	166
1982.1 !1982 (Feb)	23rd	47.3%	81	Fianna Fáil government	166
1982.2 !1982 (Nov)	24th	45.2%	75	Fine Gael–Labour Party government	166
1987	25th	44.2%	81	Fianna Fáil government	166
1989	26th	44.2%	77	Fianna Fáil–Progressive Democrats government	166
1992	27th	39.1%	68	Fianna Fáil–Labour Party	166
1997	28th	39.3%	77	Fianna Fáil–Progressive Democrats government	166
2002	29th	41.5%	81	Fianna Fáil–Progressive Democrats government	166
2007	30th	41.6%	77	Fianna Fáil–Green Party–Progressive Democrats government	166
2011	31st	17.4%	20	Fine Gael–Labour Party government	166

^A In December 1994, Fine Gael, the Labour Party and Democratic Left entered into government without a general election being called.

Front bench

Main article: Fianna Fáil Front Bench

Ógra Fianna Fáil

Main article: Ógra Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil have an active youth wing called Ógra Fianna Fáil. They were formed in 1974 and play an active role in party matters, recruiting members and working on election campaigns. The current elected head of Ógra is Joe O'Neill who serves as Leas-Cathaoirleach Ógra. Thomas Byrne TD is the nominated head or Cathaoirleach of Ógra Fianna Fáil, having been appointed by President of Fianna Fáil, Brian Cowen, in 2009.

On the 28 February 2010, Ógra Fianna Fáil published a policy document on Marriage Equality for Same-Sex couples, which went beyond the scope of the Party's Programme for Government which proposed a Civil Partnership scheme only and included proposals in relation to other gay rights issues.

Ógra also plays an important role in the party organisation where it currently has six representatives on the Ard Chomhairle (National Executive).

Entry into Northern Ireland politics

On 17 September 2007 Fianna Fáil announced that the party would, for the first time, organise in Northern Ireland.

The then Foreign Minister Dermot Ahern was asked to chair a committee on the matter: "In the period ahead Dermot Ahern will lead efforts to develop that strategy for carrying through this policy, examining timescales and structures. We will act gradually and strategically. We are under no illusions. It will not be easy. It will challenge us all. But I am confident we will succeed."

The party embarked on its first ever recruitment drive north of the border in September 2007 in northern universities, and established two 'Political Societies', the William Drennan Cumann in Queens University, Belfast, and the Watty Graham Cumann in UU Magee, Derry.

Bertie Ahern announced on 7 December 2007 that Fianna Fáil had been registered in Northern Ireland by the UK Electoral Commission. The Party's Ard Fheis in 2009 unanimously passed a motion to organise in Northern Ireland by establishing fora in each of its six counties, this has been achieved in all counties, this Ard Fheis also elected a member from Armagh, Mark Hughes to the Party's Ard Chomhairle.

There has been speculation about an eventual merger with the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), formerly the main Irish nationalist party in the Northern Ireland, but now smaller than Sinn Féin. This has been met with a negative reaction with former Deputy Leader of the SDLP, Seamus Mallon, stating he would be opposed to any such merger. The former leader of the SDLP, Margaret Ritchie, also stated publicly that she would oppose any merger. At the 2010 Irish Labour Party conference she criticized Fianna Fáil's record in government and also the National Asset Management Agency On 23 February 2008, it was announced that a former UUP councillor, Colonel Harvey Bicker, had joined FF.

Fianna Fáil has registered with the UK Electoral Commission and is now a recognised party in Northern Ireland. It has not contested any elections in the North nor is there any indication that it would. MLA Gerry McHugh, who had defected from Sinn Féin in 2007 and had joined Fianna Fáil as in individual member, did not contest the 2011 Assembly elections.

In European institutions

In the European Parliament from 1999 to 2009, Fianna Fáil was a leading member of Union for Europe of the Nations, a small national conservative grouping. European political commentators had often noted substantive ideological differences between the party and its colleagues, whose strongly conservative stances had at times prompted domestic criticism of Fianna Fáil. It had previously been a member of the Union for Europe, European Democratic Alliance, and European Progressive Democrats groups.

Party headquarters, over the objections of some MEPs, had made several attempts to sever the party's links to the European right, including an aborted 2004 agreement to join the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party (ELDR), with whom it already sat in the Council of Europe under the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) banner. On 27 February 2009, Taoiseach Brian Cowen announced that Fianna Fáil proposed to join ELDR and intended to sit with them in the ALDE Group in the European Parliament after the 2009 European elections. The change was made official on 17 April 2009, when FF joined the ELDR.

In October 2009, it was reported that Fianna Fáil had irritated its new Liberal colleagues by failing to vote for the motion on press freedom in Italy (resulting in its defeat by a majority of one in the Parliament) and by trying to scupper their party colleagues' initiative for gay rights. In January 2010, a report by academic experts writing for the votewatch.eu site found that FF "do not seem to toe the political line" of the ALDE group "when it comes to budget and civil liberties" issues.. Fianna Fáil's current economic policy is arguably ideologically closer to that of the Third Way than the European Liberal mainsteam.^{[citation needed]}

Legal proceedings

In 2010 Fianna Fáil in the capacity of the government, lodged an appeal with the High Court regarding the constitutionality of the timelines of by elections. This appeal is still outstanding in the courts.

See also

• Category:Fianna Fáil politicians

Further reading

• Joe Ambrose (2006) Dan Breen and the IRA, Douglas Village, Cork : Mercier Press, 223 p., ISBN 1-85635-506-3
• Bruce Arnold (2001) Jack Lynch: Hero in Crisis, Dublin : Merlin, 250p. ISBN 1-903582-06-7
• Tim Pat Coogan (1993) De Valera : long fellow, long shadow, London : Hutchinson, 772 p., ISBN 0-09-175030-X
• Joe Joyce and Peter Murtagh (1983) The Boss: Charles J. Haughey in government, Swords, Dublin : Poolbeg Press, 400 p., ISBN 0-905169-69-7
• F.S.L. Lyons (1985) Ireland Since the Famine, 2nd rev. ed., London : FontanaPress, 800 p., ISBN 0-00-686005-2
• Dorothy McCardle (1968) The Irish Republic. A documented chronicle of the Anglo-Irish conflict and the partitioning of Ireland, with a detailed account of the period 1916–1923, etc., 989 p., ISBN 0-552-07862-X
• T. Ryle Dwyer (2001) Nice fellow : a biography of Jack Lynch, Cork : Mercier Press, 416 p., ISBN 1-85635-368-0
• T. Ryle Dwyer (1999) Short fellow : a biography of Charles J. Haughey, Dublin : Marino, 477 p., ISBN 1-86023-100-4
• T. Ryle Dwyer, (1997) Fallen Idol : Haughey's controversial career, Cork : Mercier Press, 191 p., ISBN 1-85635-202-1
• Raymond Smith (1986) Haughey and O'Malley : The quest for power, Dublin : Aherlow, 295 p., ISBN 1-87013-800-7
• Tim Ryan (1994) Albert Reynolds : the Longford leader : the unauthorised biography, Dublin : Blackwater Press, 226 p., ISBN 0-86121-549-4
• Dick Walsh (1986) The Party: Inside Fianna Fáil, Dublin : Gill & Macmillan, 161 p., ISBN 0-7171-1446-5

External links

• Official site