Dún Laoghaire (Dáil Éireann constituency)
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The Dún Laoghaire parliamentary constituency is located in the eastern area of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown county, Republic of Ireland, consisting of the area around the town of Dún Laoghaire. The constituency has an electorate of 91,522 and at present is served by five Teachtaí Dála (TDs). The method of election is the Single Transferable Vote.
One of the most high profile TDs in the constituency is the current Minister for Education, Mary Hanafin. Long-time Labour TD Eamon Gilmore was re-elected in the 2002 general election, together with new-comers Fiona O'Malley, the daughter of Desmond O'Malley and Barry Andrews son of former TD David Andrews and Ciaran Cuffe.
The 2007 general election will see all sitting TDs seeking re-election. Mary Hanafin, a hugely popular poll-topper and widely considered to be the one of the most effective Ministers in Government, is considered safe, as is Gilmore. Andrews, Cuffe and O'Malley are all believed to be potentially vulnerable to any surge in support for the Fine Gael-Labour coalition. [citation needed]Fine Gael, which used to hold three seats in Dun Laoghaire but fell from two to none in 2002, will be represented by Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown Cathaoirleach, Councillor Eugene Regan, former Gaelic Athletic Association Dublin County Chair Cllr John Bailey and former TD and former Minister for Defence & the Marine Seán Barrett.
Labour have recently announced that Rathmines councillor Oisin Quinn will run alongside sitting Gilmore. Quinn has received the support of former TD and Minister for Education Niamh Bhreathnach. Trinity College Professor Ivana Bacik had been tipped to run alongside Gilmore, but has recently launched her campaign for a Dublin University seat in Seanad Éireann.
The key dynamics in this constituency will be: inter-coalition transfer patterns ([[FF/PD and FG-Labour); the overall prospects for a Fine Gael led coalition; the respective strengths and intra-party transfer rates of its candidates, as it is widely considered likely that it will retake at least one seat; and, the resources and brand which Quinn brings to the race.
Recent Census figures suggest that the constituency should be represented by only four TDs, in the absence of boundary changes. The Central Statistics Office's preliminary report states that the total population has declined from 116,286 persons in 2002 to 113,936 in 2006, representing a decrease per Dáil member of 470. As the constituency now deviates substantially from the mean (the State population having increased by 8.1% during the period 2002-06 whilst the constituency population declined by 2%), concerns have been raised that a reduction in the number of Deputies, or some redrawing of the constituency, may be required. The Attorney General is currently reviewing the impact of the Census on constituency boundaries throughout the country.
[edit] Irish General Election, 2002
The following candidates were elected to Dáil Éireann following the general election in 2002:
| Candidate | Party | 1st Pref | Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mary Hanafin | Fianna Fáil | 8,818 | 4 |
| Eamon Gilmore | Labour Party | 8,271 | 11 |
| Barry Andrews | Fianna Fáil | 7,425 | 11 |
| Fiona O'Malley | Progressive Democrats | 7,166 | 11 |
| Ciarán Cuffe | Green Party/Comhaontas Glas | 5,002 | - |
[edit] Former TDs
- David Andrews, Fianna Fáil (Retired 2002)
- Seán Barrett, Fine Gael (Retired 2002)
- Monica Barnes, Fine Gael (Retired 2002)
- Seán Brady FF, (Retired 1965)
- Joseph Patrick Brennan, Clann Na Poblachta (Defeated 1951)
- Lionel O. Booth, Fine Gael (Retired 1969)
- Niamh Bhreathnach, Labour Party (Ireland) (Defeated 1997)
- Liam Cosgrave, Fine Gael (Retired 1981)
- Liam T. Cosgrave, Fine Gael (Defeated 1987)
- Barry Desmond, (Retired 1989)
- Henry Percy Dockrell, Fine Gael (Defeated 1977)
- Brian Hillery, Fianna Fáil (Defeated 1992)
- Geraldine Kennedy, Progressive Democrats (Defeated 1989, now Editor of The Irish Times)
- Helen Keogh, Progressive Democrats (Defeated 1997)
- Martin O'Donoghue, Fianna Fáil (Defeated 1982)
[edit] See also
- Politics of the Republic of Ireland
- List of political parties in Ireland
- List of Irish by-elections
- Elections in Ireland
