1923 Irish general election

Irish general election, 1923

27 August 1923
All 153 seats in Dáil Éireann 77 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	61.3%
First party Second party   Leader W. T. Cosgrave Éamon de Valera Party Cumann na nGaedheal Republican Leader since April 1923 1917 Leader's seat Carlow–Kilkenny Clare Last election 58 seats 36 seats Seats won 63 44 Seat change 5 8 Popular vote 410,695 288,794 Percentage 39.0% 27.4%   Third party Fourth party   Leader Denis Gorey Thomas Johnson Party Farmers' Party Labour Leader since 1922 1922 Leader's seat Carlow–Kilkenny Dublin County Last election 7 seats 16 seats Seats won 15 14 Seat change 8 3 Popular vote 127,184 111,939 Percentage 12.1% 10.6%
Percentage of seats gained by each of the three major parties, and number of seats gained by smaller parties and independents.
President of the Executive Council before election W. T. Cosgrave Cumann na nGaedheal Subsequent President of the Executive Council W. T. Cosgrave Cumann na nGaedheal

The Irish general election of 1923 was held on 27 August 1923. The newly elected members of the 4th Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 19 September when the new President of the Executive Council and Executive Council of the Irish Free State were appointed. The election was held just after the end of the Irish Civil War. Many of the Republican TDs, who represented the losing anti-Treaty side, were still imprisoned during and after the election. Cumann na nGaedheal, who represented the winning side in the war, also won the election and formed the government.

Result

Election to the 4th Dáil – 27 August 1923
Party		Leader	Seats	±	% of seats	First pref. votes	% FPv	±%
	Cumann na nGaedheal	W. T. Cosgrave	63	+5	41.2	410,695	39.0	+0.5
	Republican	Éamon de Valera	44	+8	28.7	288,794	27.4	+5.6
	Farmers' Party	Denis Gorey	15	+8	9.8	127,184	12.1	+4.3
	Labour	Thomas Johnson	14	−3	9.2	111,939	10.6	−10.7
	Businessmen's Party	N/A	2	+2	1.3	9,648	0.9	−1.4
	Cork Progressive Association	N/A	2	New	1.3	6,588	0.6	New
	National Democratic	N/A	0	New	0	4,968	0.5	New
	Dublin Trades Council	P. T. Daly	0	New	0	3,847	0.4	New
	Ratepayers' Association	N/A	0	±0	0	2,620	0.2	−0.2
	Town Tenants' Association	N/A	0	New	0	1,803	0.2	New
	Independent	N/A	13	+4	8.5	85,869	8.1	+0.3
Spoilt votes						40,047	—	—
Total			153	+25	100	1,094,002	100	—
Electorate/Turnout						1,786,318	61.3%	—

• Cumann na nGaedheal minority government formed.

Most parties made gains, in part because the total number of seats in the Dáil was increased by 25 from 128 to 153. Cumann na nGaedheal were able to form a minority government while Republicans (Anti-Treaty) abstained from taking their seats in the Dáil.

Lax electoral practices were tightened up beforehand by the new The Prevention of Electoral Abuses Act, 1923.

Voting summary

First preference vote Cumann na nGaedheal   38.97% Republican   27.40% Farmers'   12.07% Labour   10.62% Businessman's   0.92% Cork Progressive Association   0.63% Others   1.26% Independent   8.15%

Seats summary

Assembly seats Cumann na nGaedheal   41.18% Republican   28.76% Farmers'   9.80% Labour   9.15% Businessman's   1.31% Cork Progressive Association   1.31% Independent   8.50%

First time TDs

• Frank Aiken
• Patrick Baxter
• Dan Breen
• Frank Cahill
• John James Cole
• Margaret Collins-O'Driscoll
• Cornelius Connolly
• Edward Doyle
• Peadar Doyle
• Seán Gibbons
• Patrick McFadden
• James Myles
• Michael Skelly
• Paddy Smith

Outgoing TDs

• Joseph Whelehan (Retired)

See also

• Members of the 4th Dáil
• Government of the 4th Dáil
• Irish Treaty Election, 1922

References

Sources

• Department of Local Government and Public Health (July 1924). Memorandum on the conduct of the general election to Dáil Éireann held on the 27th August, 1923 (PDF). Dublin. Retrieved 2 February 2018.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)