Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009

Irish law setting constituencies in use at Dáil elections from 2011 to 2016

Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009

Oireachtas

Long title

* AN ACT TO REVISE DÁIL AND EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT CONSTITUENCIES, TO PROVIDE FOR THE NUMBER OF MEMBERS TO BE ELECTED FOR SUCH CONSTITUENCIES, TO AMEND THE LAW RELATING TO THE CONSTITUENCY COMMISSION, AND FOR THOSE AND OTHER PURPOSES TO AMEND THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ELECTIONS ACT 1997 AND CERTAIN OTHER ENACTMENTS, TO AMEND AND GIVE STATUTORY EFFECT TO THE LOCAL ELECTIONS REGULATIONS 1995 AND TO PROVIDE FOR RELATED MATTERS

Citation| No. 4 of 2009
Signed| 24 February 2009
Commenced| 24 February 2009 & 1 February 2011
Legislative history
Bill citation| No. 38 of 2008
Introduced by| Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (John Gormley)
Introduced| 27 June 2008
Amends
Electoral (Amendment) Act 2005
Amended by
Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013

The Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009 (No. 4) is a law of Ireland which amended electoral law, including revisions to Dáil constituencies and European Parliament constituencies in light of the 2006 census.[1] The new European Parliament constituencies were used at the election in June 2009. The revision to Dáil constituencies took effect on the dissolution of the 30th Dáil on 1 February 2011 and a general election for the 31st Dáil on the revised constituencies took place on 25 February 2011.

## Revision to constituencies

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In April 2007, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government established an independent Constituency Commission under the terms of the Electoral Act 1997.[2] Its report proposed several changes to Dáil constituencies. The commission was chaired by Iarfhlaith O'Neill, judge of the High Court, and delivered its report later in 2007.[3]

The Act implemented the recommendations of this report and repealed the Electoral (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1998, which had defined constituencies since the 2007 general election.[4] The size of the Dáil remained at 166, arranged in 43 constituencies.

The Dáil constituencies in this Act were repealed by the Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013, which created a new schedule of constituencies first used at the 2016 general election for the 32nd Dáil held on 26 February 2016.[5]

## Electoral law amendments

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The Act amended the provisions of the Electoral Act 1997 on the establishment of the Constituency Commission to provide that it would be established on the release of preliminary results of the census.[6] This was in response to finding of the High Court in Murphy v. Minister for Environment (2007).[7] It also amended the European Parliament Elections Act 1997 and the Local Elections Regulations to amend the provisions for the nomination of Independent candidates. This was in response to the finding of the Supreme Court in Cooney v. Minister for the Environment (2006).[8][9]

## Constituencies for the 31st Dáil

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Explanation of columns

* Constituency: The name of the constituency.
* Created: The year of the election when a constituency of the same name was last created.
* Seats: The number of TDs elected from the constituency under the Act.
* Change: Change in the number of seats since the last distribution of seats (which took effect in 2007).

Constituency[10] | Created  | Seats  | Change

|
|
|

Carlow–Kilkenny | 1948  | 5  | none
Cavan–Monaghan | 1977  | 5  | none
Clare | 1921  | 4  | none
Cork East | 1981  | 4  | none
Cork North-Central | 1981  | 4  | none
Cork North-West | 1981  | 3  | none
Cork South-Central | 1981  | 5  | none
Cork South-West | 1961  | 3  | none
Donegal North-East | 1981  | 3  | none
Donegal South-West | 1981  | 3  | none
Dublin Central | 1981  | 4  | none
Dublin Mid-West | 2002  | 4  | none
Dublin North | 1981  | 4  | none
Dublin North-Central | 1948  | 3  | none
Dublin North-East | 1981  | 3  | none
Dublin North-West | 1981  | 3  | none
Dublin South | 1981  | 5  | none
Dublin South-Central | 1948  | 5  | none
Dublin South-East | 1948  | 4  | none
Dublin South-West | 1981  | 4  | none
Dublin West | 1981  | 4  | +1
Dún Laoghaire | 1977  | 4  | −1
Galway East | 1977  | 4  | none
Galway West | 1937  | 5  | none
Kerry North–West Limerick | 2011  | 3  | plus 3
Kerry South | 1937  | 3  | none
Kildare North | 1997  | 4  | none
Kildare South | 1997  | 3  | none
Laois–Offaly | 2007  | 5  | none
Limerick | 2011  | 3  | plus 3
Limerick City | 2011  | 4  | plus 4
Longford–Westmeath | 2007  | 4  | none
Louth | 1923  | 5  | +1
Mayo | 1997  | 5  | none
Meath East | 2007  | 3  | none
Meath West | 2007  | 3  | none
Roscommon–South Leitrim | 2007  | 3  | none
Sligo–North Leitrim | 2007  | 3  | none
Tipperary North | 1948  | 3  | none
Tipperary South | 1948  | 3  | none
Waterford | 1923  | 4  | none
Wexford | 1921  | 5  | none
Wicklow | 1923  | 5  | none

### Summary of changes

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This table summarises changes in representation. It does not address revisions to the boundaries of constituencies.

Constituency  | Created  | Seats  | Change

|
|
|

Dublin West | 1981  | 4  | +1 seat
Dún Laoghaire | 1977  | 4  | −1 seat
Kerry North | 1937  | 3  | abolished
Kerry North–West Limerick | 2011  | 3  | new constituency
Limerick | 2011  | 3  | new constituency
Limerick City | 2011  | 4  | new constituency
Limerick East | 1948  | 5  | abolished
Limerick West | 1948  | 3  | abolished
Louth | 1923  | 5  | +1 seat

There were further boundary changes to 18 constituencies: Cork East, Cork North-Central, Cork North-West, Donegal North-East, Donegal South-West, Dublin North, Dublin North-Central, Dublin North-East, Dublin South, Kerry South, Kildare North, Kildare South, Laois–Offaly, Meath East, Meath West, Roscommon–South Leitrim, Sligo–North Leitrim and Tipperary North.

## European Parliament constituencies

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The constituencies below replaced the constituencies which were in operation at the 2004 European Parliament election, with a reduction in the total number of seats from 13 to 12 in light of the increased size of the European Parliament on the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the European Union in 2007.

They were in turn replaced by the European Parliament Elections (Amendment) Act 2014, with a reduced number of seats to 11 for the 2014 European Parliament election, following the accession of Croatia in 2013.[11]

Constituency[12] | Seats  | Change  | Area

|
|
|

Dublin | 3  | −1  | The counties of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin; and the city of Dublin.
East | 3  | none  | The counties of Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Louth, Meath, Offaly, Wexford and Wicklow.
North-West | 3  | none  | The counties of: Cavan, Clare, Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Longford, Mayo, Monaghan, Roscommon, Sligo and Westmeath; and the city of Galway.
South | 3  | none  | The counties of: County Cork, Kerry, Limerick, North Tipperary, South Tipperary and Waterford; and the cities of Cork, Limerick and Waterford.

## References

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1. ^ "Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009". Irish Statute Book database. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
2. ^ Constituency Commission (Establishment) Order 2007 (S.I. No. 174 of 2007). Statutory Instrument of the Government of Ireland. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 14 December 2021.
3. ^ "Report on Dáil and European Parliament Constituencies 2007" (PDF). Constituency Commission. 23 October 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 November 2007. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
4. ^ Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009, s. 6: Repeal (No. 4 of 2009, s. 6). Act of the Oireachtas. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 8 December 2021.
5. ^ Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013, s. 5: Repeal (No. 7 of 2013, s. 5). Act of the Oireachtas. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 16 December 2021.
6. ^ Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009, s. 9: Substitution of Part II of Electoral Act 1997 (No. 4 of 2009, s. 9). Enacted on 24 February 2009. Act of the Oireachtas. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 16 December 2021.
7. ^ Murphy v. Minister For Environment [2007] IEHC H185, [2008] 3 I.R. 438 (7 June 2007), High Court (Ireland)
8. ^ Cooney v. Minister for the Environment [2006] IESC S61, [2007] 1 I.R. 296 (13 November 2006), Supreme Court (Ireland)
9. ^ "Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2008: Second Stage – Dáil Éireann (30th Dáil)". Houses of the Oireachtas. 24 September 2008. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
10. ^ Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009, Schedule (No. 4 of 2009, Schedule). Enacted on 24 February 2009. Act of the Oireachtas. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 16 December 2021.
11. ^ European Parliament Elections (Amendment) Act 2014, s. 3: Substitution of Third Schedule to Principal Act (No. 2 of 2014, s. 3). Enacted on 5 February 2014. Act of the Oireachtas. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 16 December 2021.
12. ^ Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009, s. 8: Substitution of Third Schedule to European Parliament Elections Act 1997 (No. 4 of 2009, s. 8). Enacted on 24 February 2009. Act of the Oireachtas. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 16 December 2021.

* v
* t
* e

Parliamentary constituency law in Ireland

United Kingdom|

* Act of Union 1800
* Representation of the People (Ireland) Act 1832
* Parliamentary Boundaries (Ireland) Act 1832
* Representation of the People (Ireland) Act 1868
* Sligo and Cashel Disfranchisement Act 1870
* Redistribution of Seats Act 1885
* Redistribution of Seats (Ireland) Act 1918
* Government of Ireland Act 1920

Ireland|

* Electoral Act 1923
* Electoral (Revision of Constituencies) Act 1935
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1947
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1959†
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1961
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1969
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1974
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1980
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1983
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1990
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 1995
* Electoral (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1998
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 2005
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009
* Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013
* Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2017
* Electoral (Amendment) Act 2023

Bodies|

* Constituency Commission
* Electoral Commission

See also|

* Pre-1801 Irish constituencies

†Found repugnant to Constitution
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