Belfast West (Dáil constituency)
Coordinates: 54°35′42″N 5°57′50″W / 54.595°N 5.964°W
Belfast West, was a former potential Dáil Éireann parliamentary constituency located in Northern Ireland despite being outside the Dáil's jurisdiction. It was a Dáil constituency from 1921 to 1922.
Representation[edit]
The constituency was entitled to return four Teachtaí Dála (known in English as Deputies) in 1921 to serve in the Irish Republic's Second Dáil. None of the four took their seat in the Dáil.
The First Dáil, passed a motion at its last meeting on 10 May 1921, the first three parts of which make explicit the republican view.
- 1. That the Parliamentary elections which are to take place during the present month be regarded as elections to Dáil Éireann.
- 2. That all deputies duly returned at these elections be regarded as members of Dáil Éireann and allowed to take their seats on subscribing to the proposed Oath of Allegiance.
- 3. That the present Dáil dissolve automatically as soon as the new body has been summoned by the President and called to order.
Sinn Féin used the elections in 1921 to elect the Dáil. The Second Dáil first met on 16 August 1921. It last met on 8 June 1922.
From the Third Dáil onwards the Dáil represented only the twenty-six counties which formed the Irish Free State.
Belfast West is also a United Kingdom Parliament constituency. It has been represented by one member from 1922. The constituency sent four MPs to the Northern Ireland House of Commons 1921-1929.
Boundaries and Boundary Changes[edit]
Belfast West was a borough constituency comprising part of the county borough of Belfast. It included Court, Falls, St. Anne's, St. George's, Smithfield and Woodvale wards.
Between 1918-1921 the area was divided into three single-member constituencies, Belfast Falls, Belfast St Anne's and Belfast Woodvale.
Politics of the constituency[edit]
In 1921 the area was predominantly Unionist, with the party winning three seats. The Nationalists won the remaining seat (the only non Unionist one in Belfast). Sinn Féin's combined vote did not amount to a quota of more than one-fifth of the ballots.
Thomas Burn was a member of the Ulster Unionist Labour Association. He sat in the United Kingdom House of Commons as a Labour Unionist.
Joe Devlin, the Nationalist leader, was also elected for Antrim. Although he was more associated with Belfast and preferred to represent this seat, as he did not take either seat in the Northern Ireland House of Commons, he could not formally disclaim one.
William Twaddell was assassinated in 1922. The by-election to fill the vacancy in the Parliament of Northern Ireland did not take place until after the election of the Third Dáil, so it is not relevant for this article.
TDs[edit]
| Election | Member (Party) |
Member (Party) |
Member (Party) |
Member (Party) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TDs (1921) |
Thomas Henry Burn (Ulster Unionist Party) |
Joseph Devlin (Nationalist Party) |
Robert John Lynn (Ulster Unionist Party) |
William Twaddell (Ulster Unionist Party) | ||||
Elections[edit]
In 1921 parliamentary representatives of the constituency were elected using the single transferable vote method of proportional representation.
| 24 May 1921 General Election: Belfast West (4 seats) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | % 1st Pref | Count 1 | Count 2 | Count 3 | Count 4 | ||
| UUP | Thomas Henry Burn | 24.88 | 13,298 | |||||
| UUP | Robert John Lynn | 17.43 | 9,315 | 11,646 | ||||
| UUP | William Twaddell | 19.30 | 10,316 | 10,558 | 11,509 | |||
| Nationalist | Joseph Devlin | 19.87 | 10,621 | 10,628 | 10,629 | 10,632 | ||
| Sinn Féin | D. McCullough | 11.73 | 6,270 | 6,272 | 6,274 | 6,274 | ||
| Sinn Féin | Seán MacEntee | 5.53 | 2,954 | 2,954 | 2,955 | 2,955 | ||
| Belfast Labour | John Hanna | 0.69 | 367 | 380 | 380 | 383 | ||
| Nationalist | Richard Byrne | 0.58 | 311 | 323 | 323 | 323 | ||
| Electorate: 57,914 Valid: 53,452 Quota: 10,691 Turnout: 92.3% | ||||||||
- Seat vacant, before the last sitting of the Second Dáil, due to the killing of Twaddell
References[edit]
- Northern Ireland Parliamentary Election Results 1921-1972, compiled and edited by Sydney Elliott (Political Reference Publications 1973)
External links[edit]
- Dáil Éireann Members' Directory
- https://web.archive.org/web/20060423011521/http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/en.toc.dail.html
- Northern Ireland House of Commons Election Results
See also[edit]
- Belfast West (UK Parliament constituency)
- Belfast (Northern Ireland Parliament constituencies)
- List of Dáil Éireann constituencies in Ireland (historic)
- Dáil Éireann (1919-1922)
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