The 2nd Seanad was in office in 1938. An election to Seanad Éireann, the Senate of the Oireachtas (Irish parliament), took place in March 1938, following the coming into operation of the Constitution of Ireland in December 1937. The senators served until the close of poll for the 3rd Seanad, in July 1938.
| 2nd Seanad | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||
 | |||||
| Overview | |||||
| Legislative body | Seanad Éireann | ||||
| Jurisdiction | Ireland | ||||
| Meeting place | Leinster House | ||||
| Term | 27 April 1938 – 22 July 1938 | ||||
| Government | 1st Government of Ireland | ||||
| Members | 60 | ||||
| Cathaoirleach | Seán Gibbons (FF) | ||||
| Leas-Chathaoirleach | Pádraic Ó Máille (FF) | ||||
| Leader of the Seanad | William Quirke (FF) | ||||
Designation
editThe Seanad of the Irish Free State was abolished by the Constitution (Amendment No. 24) Act 1936, with its last meeting on 19 May 1936. The Free State Seanad was elected in stages and thus considered to be in permanent session. Although there were five Seanad elections held before its abolition, the First Seanad includes the entire period from 1922 to 1936.
A new Seanad Éireann was established under the 1937 Constitution, with elections following general elections to Dáil Éireann. To indicate continuity with its Free State predecessor, the first Seanad elected after 1937 is numbered as the Second Seanad. The election to the 2nd Seanad was elected under Article 53 of the Constitution, which provided that on the coming into operation of the Constitution, which took place on 29 December 1937, a general election for the Seanad would take place as if there had been a dissolution of the Dáil.[1]
Cathaoirleach
editOn 27 April 1938, Seán Gibbons (FF) was proposed by Helena Concannon (FF) and seconded by Margaret Mary Pearse (FF) for the position of Cathaoirleach. Séamus Ó hEocha (Ind) was proposed by Michael Hayes (FG) and seconded by Michael Tierney (FG) for the position. Gibbons was elected by a vote of 29 to 26.[2]
On 11 May 1938, Pádraic Ó Máille (FF), who had served as Leas-Cheann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann from 1922 to 1927, was proposed by Seán Hayes (FF) and seconded by Peadar Toner Mac Fhionnlaoich (Ind) for the position of Leas-Chathaoirleach. Ó Máille was elected by a vote of 30 to 23.[3]
Composition of the 2nd Seanad
editThere are a total of 60 seats in the Seanad: 43 were elected on five vocational panels, 6 were elected from two university constituencies and 11 were nominated by the Taoiseach.
The following table shows the composition by party when the 2nd Seanad first met on 27 April 1938.
Origin Party
|
Vocational panels | NUI | DU | Nominated | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Admin | Agri | Cult & Educ | Ind & Comm | Labour | |||||||
| Fianna Fáil | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 21 | ||
| Fine Gael | 2 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 17 | ||
| Labour Party | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Independent | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 21 | ||
| Total | 7 | 11 | 5 | 9 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 60 | ||
List of senators
edit- Note: The entries for Senators who were elected or appointed to fill vacancies are shown in italics
Changes
edit| Date | Panel | Loss | Gain | Note | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 May 1938 | Nominated by the Taoiseach | Independent | Douglas Hyde elected as President of Ireland[5] | |||
| 10 May 1938 | Nominated by the Taoiseach | Independent | Patrick Keohane nominated to replace Douglas Hyde[6] | |||
| 17 June 1938 | Administrative Panel | Fine Gael | Richard Mulcahy elected to the 10th Dáil at the 1938 general election[4] | |||
References
edit- ^ Constitution of Ireland, Article 53.
- ^ "Election of Cathaoirleach – Seanad Éireann (7th Dáil) – Vol. 21 No. 1". 27 April 1938. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ "Election of Leas-Chathaoirleach – Seanad Éireann (7th Dáil) – Vol. 21 No. 2". 11 May 1938. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ a b "Announcement of Casual Vacancy in Seanad – Seanad Éireann (2nd Seanad) – Vol. 21 No. 5". Oireachtas Debates. 6 July 1938. Archived from the original on 5 October 2022. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- ^ a b "Uachtarán na hEireann do Thogha – Seanad Éireann (2nd Seanad) – Vol. 21 No. 2". Oireachtas Debates. 11 May 1938. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- ^ a b "Seanadóir d'Ainmniú – Seanad Éireann (2nd Seanad) – Vol. 21 No. 2". Oireachtas Debates. 11 May 1938. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
External links
edit- "2nd Seanad". Oireachtas Members Database. Retrieved 23 November 2009.
- "2nd Seanad". Oireachtas Debates. Retrieved 18 December 2023.