1938 Irish general election

1938 Irish general election
← 1937 17 June 1938 1943 →
138 seats in Dáil Éireann[a]
70 seats needed for a majority
Turnout76.7% Increase 0.5pp
  First party Second party Third party
 
De Valera, 1939 (cropped).jpg
W. T. Cosgrave, circa 1930 (cropped).jpg
William Norton circa 1927 to 1932.png
Leader Éamon de Valera W. T. Cosgrave William Norton
Party Fianna Fáil Fine Gael Labour
Leader since 26 March 1926 September 1934 19 July 1932
Leader's seat Clare Cork Borough Carlow–Kildare
Last election 69 seats, 45.2% 48 seats, 34.8% 13 seats, 10.3%
Seats won 77 45 9
Seat change Increase8 Decrease3 Decrease4
Popular vote 667,996 428,633 128,945
Percentage 51.9% 33.3% 10.0%
Swing Increase6.7% Decrease1.5% Decrease0.3%
Percentage of seats gained by each of the three major parties, and number of seats gained by smaller parties and independents.
Taoiseach before election

Éamon de Valera
Fianna Fáil

Taoiseach after election

Éamon de Valera
Fianna Fáil

The 1938 Irish general election to the 10th Dáil was held on Friday, 17 June following the dissolution of the 9th Dáil on 27 May 1938 by the Presidential Commission on the request of Taoiseach Éamon de Valera. It was a snap election, less than a year after the previous election, the proximate cause being the government's loss of an opposition motion recommending use of arbitration to resolve Civil Service labour disputes.[3] The general election took place in 34 parliamentary constituencies throughout Ireland for 138 seats in Dáil Éireann. It was the first election held after the coming into force of the Constitution of Ireland on 29 December 1937. Fianna Fáil won the first overall majority in the history of the State.

The 10th Dáil met at Leinster House on 30 June to nominate the Taoiseach for appointment by President Douglas Hyde and to approve the appointment of a new government of Ireland on the nomination of the Taoiseach. Outgoing Taoiseach Éamon de Valera was re-appointed leading a single-party Fianna Fáil government.

  1. ^ Electoral (Chairman of Dail Eireann) Act 1937, s. 3: Re-election of outgoing Ceann Comhairle (No. 25 of 1937, s. 3). Enacted on 1 November 1937. Act of the Oireachtas. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book.
  2. ^ "10th Dáil 1937: Galway East". ElectionsIreland.org. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  3. ^ "To Caesar". The Irish Times. 28 May 1938. p. 8. Retrieved 30 March 2020.; "Private Deputies' Business — Civil Service and Arbitration". Dáil Éireann (9th Dáil) debates. Houses of the Oireachtas. 25 May 1938. Archived from the original on 21 October 2019. Retrieved 30 March 2020.


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