Abstentionism
Encyclopedia
Abstentionism is standing for election
to a deliberative assembly
while refusing to take up any seats won or otherwise participate in the assembly's business. Abstentionism differs from an election boycott
in that abstentionists participate in the election itself. Abstentionism has been used by Irish republican
political movements in the United Kingdom
and Ireland
since the early 19th century.
in the House of Commons
of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
. Repeal of the Act of Union was a goal of many Irish republicans
.
In 1845, a motion was carried at the Repeal Association
's committee for all Irish MPs to withdraw from Westminster. It was proposed by Thomas Osborne Davis
of the Young Ireland
movement. However, the committee felt MPs already sitting could not withdraw without breaking the oath of office
they had taken upon election. The Irish Confederation
, which withrew from the Repeal Association in 1847, resolved in favour of immediate abstention. However, William Smith O'Brien
, its founder, continued to speak at Westminster. In 1848 Charles Gavan Duffy
proposed that Irish MPs expelled from Westminster should sit in a separate Irish parliament.
Other early abstentionist advocates included George Sigerson
in 1862, and John Dillon
in 1878, who envisaged abstentionist Irish MPs meeting in a separate Irish parliament.
From the 1860s, Irish Republican Brotherhood
leaders Charles Kickham
and John O'Leary favoured abstentionism. In 1869, G.H. Moore
suggested nominating imprisoned republicans
for election, knowing they were precluded as convicted felon
s from taking seats. On this basis, Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa
(in 1870) and John Mitchel
(twice in 1875) were returned at by-elections in Tipperary
; O'Donovan Rossa was in prison at his election, while Mitchel was in exile.
Kickham envisaged a "great national conference" calling on Irish MPs to withdraw from Westminster. A motion proposed by Charles Doran to that effect was passed at the convention of the Home Rule League
(HRL).
"Honest" John Martin
, "independent nationalist" MP for Meath
1871-75, spoke in Westminster only to raise nationalist protests, and refused to vote. In the 1874 election
, 59 HRL MPs were returned, including John O'Connor Power
in Mayo
, who was a member of the IRB Supreme Council. He was to fall out with the IRB over allegations of misappropriating election funds, and became progressively less radical. By 1876, it was clear that the HRL would never be able to organise a national convention, and MPs elected with its endorsement would remain at Westminster. An alternative to abstentionism was obstructionism
by making filibuster
s. This was practised by the HRL and its successor, the Irish Parliamentary Party
under Charles Stuart Parnell from the late 1870s.
's "Sinn Féin
Policy", formulated 1905–07, called for Irish MPs to abstain from Westminster and sit in a parallel parliament in Dublin. The first Sinn Féin abstentionist candidate was Charles Nolan in 1908. Having sat as MP for North Leitrim
for the Irish Parliamentary Party
, he resigned after joining Sinn Féin, and lost the ensuing by-election. The first abstentionist MP elected was Count George Noble Plunkett
after the North Roscommon
by-election of 3 February 1917.
In 1919, Sinn Féin
Members of Parliament
(MPs) elected in 1918 to the Parliament of the United Kingdom
refused to sit in that body and instead constituted themselves as the first Dáil
, which was claimed to be the legitimate parliament
of the Irish Republic
. One strand within Republicanism
, in remaining loyal to this pre-Partition
Irish Republic, denies the legitimacy
of both the Republic of Ireland
and Northern Ireland
. Other parties reached accommodation with the southern state but not Northern Ireland. Some groups have boycotted elections within either jurisdiction; others have been abstentionist; others abstained from some bodies but not others. Abstentionism has often been a divisive issue within Republicanism.
Anti-Treaty Sinn Féin abstained from the first (1923-27) Dáil of
the Irish Free State
, being opposed to the Oath of Allegiance
that had to be taken by sitting members. Fianna Fáil
split from Sinn Féin in 1927 and abandoned abstentionism in the Free State, but for a time contested elections to the Parliament of Northern Ireland
at Stormont
and abstained from sitting there.
In 1955, Sinn Féin contested local elections in the Republic of Ireland
and took its seats.
In 1970, at its Ard Fheis
(annual conference), Sinn Féin split again on the issue of whether or not to reverse its long-standing policy of refusing to taking seats in Dáil Éireann
. The split created "Official Sinn Féin" (later Sinn Féin the Workers Party - SFWP) and the abstentionist "Provisional Sinn Féin
" (PSF). Sinn Féin the Workers Party won a seat in the Dáil in 1981
. It later dropped Sinn Féin from its name to become "The Workers' Party
", so that PSF became simply "Sinn Féin".
Sinn Féin adopted the "armalite and ballot box strategy
" in 1981, and first contested modern elections in Northern Ireland with the 1982 Assembly elections, from which they abstained. They also abstained from the Northern Ireland Forum
but adopted non-abstentionist policies for elections to local authorities
(next held in 1985) and to the European Parliament
.
In 1986 Sinn Féin split, as in 1970, over whether to take seats in Dáil Éireann. The larger group led by Gerry Adams
abandoned abstentionism, while Republican Sinn Féin
(RSF), led by Ruairí Ó Brádaigh
retained it. Sinn Féin's first sitting Teachta Dála
was Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin
in Cavan–Monaghan
in 1997
.
RSF has retained the policy of abstentionism from both Dáil Éireann and the Northern Ireland Assembly
. RSF has not in fact contested elections for Dáil Éireann or Westminster. It is not a registered party in Northern Ireland, but members have contested the Assembly elections as independents.
was seen as representing the interests of nationalists in Northern Ireland and had a policy of not recognising the Northern Irish government. Bishop MacRory, a Northern Irish prelate, indicated to the Provisional Government that Joe Devlin
and his party members wanted to enter the new Northern parliament, and was worried that the policy of non-recognition would result in Northern Irish nationalists having to "fight alone", but his advice was ignored.
The Nationalist Party
did not take their seats during the first Stormont parliament (1921-25
). Despite forming the second-largest parliamentary party, they did not accept the role of Opposition
for a further forty years. They did so on 2 February 1965 but withdrew from opposition again in October 1968, two weeks after police batonned demonstrators at a civil rights march in Derry
on 5 October 1968.
The Social Democratic and Labour Party
(SDLP) became the Opposition on its formation on 21 August 1970 but that party withdrew from Stormont in July 1971. The SDLP participated in the assembly set up for the Sunningdale Agreement
, and in the Constitutional Convention
. However, they abstained from the 1982 Assembly
, and their participation in the Northern Ireland Forum
was intermittent.
Since the establishment of the Northern Ireland Assembly
under the Good Friday Agreement, both the SDLP and Sinn Féin have taken their seats in that body. SDLP MPs have consistently taken their seats in the Westminster
parliament, in contrast to Sinn Féin MPs who refuse to take their seats there, as they refuse to recognise that body's right to legislate for any part of Ireland.
Fianna Fáil registered as a political party within Northern Ireland in 2007. It has not made clear whether it will contest elections to Westminster.
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
to a deliberative assembly
Deliberative assembly
A deliberative assembly is an organization comprising members who use parliamentary procedure to make decisions. In a speech to the electorate at Bristol in 1774, Edmund Burke described the English Parliament as a "deliberative assembly," and the expression became the basic term for a body of...
while refusing to take up any seats won or otherwise participate in the assembly's business. Abstentionism differs from an election boycott
Election boycott
An election boycott is the boycotting of an election by a group of voters, each of whom abstains from voting.Boycotting may be used as a form of political protest where voters feel that electoral fraud is likely, or that the electoral system is biased against its candidates, or that the polity...
in that abstentionists participate in the election itself. Abstentionism has been used by Irish republican
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
political movements in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
since the early 19th century.
In Ireland
After the Act of Union 1800, Ireland was represented at WestminsterPalace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
. Repeal of the Act of Union was a goal of many Irish republicans
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
.
In 1845, a motion was carried at the Repeal Association
Repeal Association
The Repeal Association was an Irish mass membership political movement set up by Daniel O'Connell to campaign for a repeal of the Act of Union of 1800 between Great Britain and Ireland....
's committee for all Irish MPs to withdraw from Westminster. It was proposed by Thomas Osborne Davis
Thomas Osborne Davis (Irish politician)
Thomas Osborne Davis was a revolutionary Irish writer who was the chief organizer and poet of the Young Ireland movement.-Early life:...
of the Young Ireland
Young Ireland
Young Ireland was a political, cultural and social movement of the mid-19th century. It led changes in Irish nationalism, including an abortive rebellion known as the Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848. Many of the latter's leaders were tried for sedition and sentenced to penal transportation to...
movement. However, the committee felt MPs already sitting could not withdraw without breaking the oath of office
Oath of office
An oath of office is an oath or affirmation a person takes before undertaking the duties of an office, usually a position in government or within a religious body, although such oaths are sometimes required of officers of other organizations...
they had taken upon election. The Irish Confederation
Irish Confederation
The Irish Confederation was an Irish nationalist independence movement, established on 13 January 1847 by members of the Young Ireland movement who had seceded from Daniel O'Connell's Repeal Association. Historian T. W...
, which withrew from the Repeal Association in 1847, resolved in favour of immediate abstention. However, William Smith O'Brien
William Smith O'Brien
William Smith O'Brien was an Irish Nationalist and Member of Parliament and leader of the Young Ireland movement. He was convicted of sedition for his part in the Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848, but his sentence of death was commuted to deportation to Van Diemen's Land. In 1854, he was...
, its founder, continued to speak at Westminster. In 1848 Charles Gavan Duffy
Charles Gavan Duffy
Additional Reading*, Allen & Unwin, 1973.*John Mitchel, A Cause Too Many, Aidan Hegarty, Camlane Press.*Thomas Davis, The Thinker and Teacher, Arthur Griffith, M.H. Gill & Son 1922....
proposed that Irish MPs expelled from Westminster should sit in a separate Irish parliament.
Other early abstentionist advocates included George Sigerson
George Sigerson
George Sigerson was an Irish physician, scientist, writer, politician and poet. He was a leading light in the Irish Literary Revival of the late 19th century in Ireland.-Doctor and Scientist:...
in 1862, and John Dillon
John Dillon
John Dillon was an Irish land reform agitator from Dublin, an Irish Home Rule activist, a nationalist politician, a Member of Parliament for over 35 years, and the last leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party....
in 1878, who envisaged abstentionist Irish MPs meeting in a separate Irish parliament.
From the 1860s, Irish Republican Brotherhood
Irish Republican Brotherhood
The Irish Republican Brotherhood was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland during the second half of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century...
leaders Charles Kickham
Charles Kickham
Charles Joseph Kickham was an Irish revolutionary, novelist, poet, journalist and one of the most prominent members of the Irish Republican Brotherhood.-Early life:...
and John O'Leary favoured abstentionism. In 1869, G.H. Moore
George Henry Moore
George Henry Moore was an Irish politician who served as Member of Parliament for Mayo in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. He was one of the founders of the Catholic Defence Association and a leader of the Independent Irish Party. He was also father of the writer George A. Moore and the...
suggested nominating imprisoned republicans
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
for election, knowing they were precluded as convicted felon
Felony
A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
s from taking seats. On this basis, Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa
Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa
Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa , was an Irish Fenian leader and prominent member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood. His life as an Irish Fenian is well documented but he is perhaps known best in death for the graveside oration given at his funeral by Pádraig Pearse.-Life in Ireland:He was born at...
(in 1870) and John Mitchel
John Mitchel
John Mitchel was an Irish nationalist activist, solicitor and political journalist. Born in Camnish, near Dungiven, County Londonderry, Ireland he became a leading member of both Young Ireland and the Irish Confederation...
(twice in 1875) were returned at by-elections in Tipperary
Tipperary (UK Parliament constituency)
Tipperary, also known as Tipperary County, was a parliamentary constituency in Ireland, which from 1801 to 1885 returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.-Boundaries:...
; O'Donovan Rossa was in prison at his election, while Mitchel was in exile.
Kickham envisaged a "great national conference" calling on Irish MPs to withdraw from Westminster. A motion proposed by Charles Doran to that effect was passed at the convention of the Home Rule League
Home Rule League
The Home Rule League, sometimes called the Home Rule Party, was a political party which campaigned for home rule for the country of Ireland from 1873 to 1882, when it was replaced by the Irish Parliamentary Party.-Origins:...
(HRL).
"Honest" John Martin
John Martin (Ireland)
John Martin was an Irish nationalist activist who progressed from early militant support for Young Ireland and Repeal, to non-violent alternatives such as support for tenant farmers' rights and eventually as the first Home Rule MP, for Meath 1871-1875...
, "independent nationalist" MP for Meath
Meath (UK Parliament constituency)
Meath was a parliamentary constituency in Ireland, which from 1801 to 1885 returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.-Members of Parliament:-References:...
1871-75, spoke in Westminster only to raise nationalist protests, and refused to vote. In the 1874 election
United Kingdom general election, 1874
-Seats summary:-References:* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* British Electoral Facts 1832-1999, compiled and edited by Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher *...
, 59 HRL MPs were returned, including John O'Connor Power
John O'Connor Power
John O'Connor Power was an Irish Fenian and a Home Rule League and Irish Parliamentary Party politician and as MP in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland represented Mayo from June 1874 to 1885...
in Mayo
Mayo (UK Parliament constituency)
Mayo was a parliamentary constituency in Ireland, which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1885.-History :...
, who was a member of the IRB Supreme Council. He was to fall out with the IRB over allegations of misappropriating election funds, and became progressively less radical. By 1876, it was clear that the HRL would never be able to organise a national convention, and MPs elected with its endorsement would remain at Westminster. An alternative to abstentionism was obstructionism
Obstructionism
Obstructionism is the practice of deliberately delaying or preventing a process or change, especially in politics.-As workplace aggression:An obstructionist causes problems. Neuman and Baron identify obstructionism as one of the three dimensions that encompass the range of workplace aggression...
by making filibuster
Filibuster
A filibuster is a type of parliamentary procedure. Specifically, it is the right of an individual to extend debate, allowing a lone member to delay or entirely prevent a vote on a given proposal...
s. This was practised by the HRL and its successor, the Irish Parliamentary Party
Irish Parliamentary Party
The Irish Parliamentary Party was formed in 1882 by Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish nationalist Members of Parliament elected to the House of Commons at...
under Charles Stuart Parnell from the late 1870s.
Sinn Féin
Arthur GriffithArthur Griffith
Arthur Griffith was the founder and third leader of Sinn Féin. He served as President of Dáil Éireann from January to August 1922, and was head of the Irish delegation at the negotiations in London that produced the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921.-Early life:...
's "Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
Policy", formulated 1905–07, called for Irish MPs to abstain from Westminster and sit in a parallel parliament in Dublin. The first Sinn Féin abstentionist candidate was Charles Nolan in 1908. Having sat as MP for North Leitrim
North Leitrim (UK Parliament constituency)
North Leitrim was a parliamentary constituency in Ireland. From 1885 to 1918 it returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland....
for the Irish Parliamentary Party
Irish Parliamentary Party
The Irish Parliamentary Party was formed in 1882 by Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish nationalist Members of Parliament elected to the House of Commons at...
, he resigned after joining Sinn Féin, and lost the ensuing by-election. The first abstentionist MP elected was Count George Noble Plunkett
George Noble Plunkett
George Noble Plunkett or Count Plunkett was a biographer and Irish nationalist, and father of Joseph Mary Plunkett, one of the leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916....
after the North Roscommon
North Roscommon (UK Parliament constituency)
North Roscommon was a UK Parliament constituency in Ireland, returning one Member of Parliament 1885–1922.Prior to the United Kingdom general election, 1885 the area was part of the Roscommon constituency...
by-election of 3 February 1917.
In 1919, Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
Members of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MPs) elected in 1918 to the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
refused to sit in that body and instead constituted themselves as the first Dáil
First Dáil
The First Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 1919–1921. In 1919 candidates who had been elected in the Westminster elections of 1918 refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom and instead assembled as a unicameral, revolutionary parliament called "Dáil Éireann"...
, which was claimed to be the legitimate parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
of the Irish Republic
Irish Republic
The Irish Republic was a revolutionary state that declared its independence from Great Britain in January 1919. It established a legislature , a government , a court system and a police force...
. One strand within Republicanism
Irish republican legitimatism
A concept within Irish republicanism, Irish republican legitimatism denies the legitimacy of the political entities of Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and posits that the pre-partition Irish Republic continues to exist...
, in remaining loyal to this pre-Partition
Partition of Ireland
The partition of Ireland was the division of the island of Ireland into two distinct territories, now Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland . Partition occurred when the British Parliament passed the Government of Ireland Act 1920...
Irish Republic, denies the legitimacy
Legitimacy (political science)
In political science, legitimacy is the popular acceptance of a governing law or régime as an authority. Whereas “authority” denotes a specific position in an established government, the term “legitimacy” denotes a system of government — wherein “government” denotes “sphere of influence”...
of both the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
and Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. Other parties reached accommodation with the southern state but not Northern Ireland. Some groups have boycotted elections within either jurisdiction; others have been abstentionist; others abstained from some bodies but not others. Abstentionism has often been a divisive issue within Republicanism.
Anti-Treaty Sinn Féin abstained from the first (1923-27) Dáil of
Members of the 4th Dáil
This is a list of the members who were elected to the 4th Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas of the Irish Free State. These TDs were elected at the 1923 general election on 27 August 1923 and met on 19 September 1923...
the Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
, being opposed to the Oath of Allegiance
Oath of Allegiance (Ireland)
The Irish Oath of Allegiance was a controversial provision in the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921, which Irish TDs and Senators were required to take, in order to take their seats in Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann .-Text of the Oath:The Oath was included in Article 17 of the Irish Free State's 1922...
that had to be taken by sitting members. Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...
split from Sinn Féin in 1927 and abandoned abstentionism in the Free State, but for a time contested elections to the Parliament of Northern Ireland
Parliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
at Stormont
Parliament Buildings (Northern Ireland)
The Parliament Buildings, known as Stormont because of its location in the Stormont area of Belfast is the seat of the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Northern Ireland Executive...
and abstained from sitting there.
In 1955, Sinn Féin contested local elections in the Republic of Ireland
Local government in the Republic of Ireland
Local government functions in the Republic of Ireland are mostly exercised by thirty-four local authorities, termed county or city councils, which cover the entire territory of the state. The area under the jurisdiction of each of these authorities corresponds to the area of each of the 34 LAU I...
and took its seats.
In 1970, at its Ard Fheis
Ard Fheis
Ardfheis or Ard Fheis is the name used by many Irish political parties for their annual party conference. The term was first used by Conradh na Gaeilge, the Irish language cultural organisation, for its annual convention....
(annual conference), Sinn Féin split again on the issue of whether or not to reverse its long-standing policy of refusing to taking seats in Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...
. The split created "Official Sinn Féin" (later Sinn Féin the Workers Party - SFWP) and the abstentionist "Provisional Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
" (PSF). Sinn Féin the Workers Party won a seat in the Dáil in 1981
Irish general election, 1981
The Irish general election of 1981 was held on 11 June 1981, three weeks after the dissolution of the Dáil on 21 May. The newly elected 166 members of the 22nd Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 30 June when a new Taoiseach and government were appointed....
. It later dropped Sinn Féin from its name to become "The Workers' Party
Workers' Party of Ireland
The Workers' Party is a left-wing republican political party in Ireland. Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970 after a split within the party, adopting its current name in 1982....
", so that PSF became simply "Sinn Féin".
Sinn Féin adopted the "armalite and ballot box strategy
Armalite and ballot box strategy
The Armalite and ballot box strategy was a strategy pursued by the Irish republican movement in the 1980s and early 1990s in which elections in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland were contested by Sinn Féin, while the IRA continued to pursue an armed struggle against the British Army, the...
" in 1981, and first contested modern elections in Northern Ireland with the 1982 Assembly elections, from which they abstained. They also abstained from the Northern Ireland Forum
Northern Ireland Forum
The Northern Ireland Forum was a body set up in 1996 as part of a process of negotiations that eventually led to the Belfast Agreement in 1998....
but adopted non-abstentionist policies for elections to local authorities
Local government in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is divided into 26 districts for local government purposes. In Northern Ireland local councils do not carry out the same range of functions as those in the rest of the United Kingdom, for example they have no responsibility for education, for road building or for housing...
(next held in 1985) and to the European Parliament
Northern Ireland (European Parliament constituency)
Northern Ireland is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects three MEPs using the Single Transferable Vote, the only United Kingdom constituency to do so.- Members of the European Parliament :- 2009 :...
.
In 1986 Sinn Féin split, as in 1970, over whether to take seats in Dáil Éireann. The larger group led by Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams is an Irish republican politician and Teachta Dála for the constituency of Louth. From 1983 to 1992 and from 1997 to 2011, he was an abstentionist Westminster Member of Parliament for Belfast West. He is the president of Sinn Féin, the second largest political party in Northern...
abandoned abstentionism, while Republican Sinn Féin
Republican Sinn Féin
Republican Sinn Féin or RSF is an unregisteredAlthough an active movement, RSF is not registered as a political party in either Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland. minor political party operating in Ireland. It emerged in 1986 as a result of a split in Sinn Féin...
(RSF), led by Ruairí Ó Brádaigh
Ruairí Ó Brádaigh
Ruairí Ó Brádaigh is an Irish republican. He is a former chief of staff of the Irish Republican Army , former president of Sinn Féin and former president of Republican Sinn Féin.-Early life:...
retained it. Sinn Féin's first sitting Teachta Dála
Teachta Dála
A Teachta Dála , usually abbreviated as TD in English, is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas . It is the equivalent of terms such as "Member of Parliament" or "deputy" used in other states. The official translation of the term is "Deputy to the Dáil", though a more literal...
was Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin
Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin
Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin is a Sinn Féin politician from Ireland. He has been a Teachta Dála for the Cavan–Monaghan constituency since 1997 and was the parliamentary leader of Sinn Féin in Dáil Éireann from 1997–2011.-Biography:Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin was born in Monaghan in 1953. He was educated at St....
in Cavan–Monaghan
Cavan–Monaghan (Dáil Éireann constituency)
Cavan–Monaghan is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 5 deputies...
in 1997
Irish general election, 1997
The Irish general election of 1997 was held on Friday, 6 June 1997. The 166 newly elected members of the 28th Dáil assembled on 26 June 1997 when a new Taoiseach and government were appointed....
.
RSF has retained the policy of abstentionism from both Dáil Éireann and the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
. RSF has not in fact contested elections for Dáil Éireann or Westminster. It is not a registered party in Northern Ireland, but members have contested the Assembly elections as independents.
In Northern Ireland
After Partition, most non-abstentionist parties in the southern state did not organise at all in Northern Ireland. In early 1922 the then Provisional Government of Southern IrelandProvisional Government of Southern Ireland
The provisional Government of Southern Ireland was the provisional government for the administration of Southern Ireland between 16 January 1922 and 6 December 1922. The government was effectively a transitional administration for the period between the ratifying of the Anglo-Irish Treaty and the...
was seen as representing the interests of nationalists in Northern Ireland and had a policy of not recognising the Northern Irish government. Bishop MacRory, a Northern Irish prelate, indicated to the Provisional Government that Joe Devlin
Joseph Devlin
Joseph Devlin, also known as Joe Devlin, was an Irish journalist and influential nationalist politician...
and his party members wanted to enter the new Northern parliament, and was worried that the policy of non-recognition would result in Northern Irish nationalists having to "fight alone", but his advice was ignored.
The Nationalist Party
Nationalist Party (Northern Ireland)
The Nationalist Party† - was the continuation of the Irish Parliamentary Party, and was formed after partition, by the Northern Ireland-based members of the IPP....
did not take their seats during the first Stormont parliament (1921-25
MPs elected in the Northern Ireland general election, 1921
This is a list of Members of Parliament elected in the Northern Ireland general election, 1921.All members of the Northern Ireland House of Commons elected at the Northern Ireland general election, 1921 are listed. Only Unionist members took their seats....
). Despite forming the second-largest parliamentary party, they did not accept the role of Opposition
Opposition (parliamentary)
Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. Note that this article uses the term government as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning the administration or the cabinet rather than the state...
for a further forty years. They did so on 2 February 1965 but withdrew from opposition again in October 1968, two weeks after police batonned demonstrators at a civil rights march in Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
on 5 October 1968.
The Social Democratic and Labour Party
Social Democratic and Labour Party
The Social Democratic and Labour Party is a social-democratic, Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. Its basic party platform advocates Irish reunification, and the further devolution of powers while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom...
(SDLP) became the Opposition on its formation on 21 August 1970 but that party withdrew from Stormont in July 1971. The SDLP participated in the assembly set up for the Sunningdale Agreement
Sunningdale Agreement
The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to establish a power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive and a cross-border Council of Ireland. The Agreement was signed at the Civil Service College in Sunningdale Park located in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on 9 December 1973.Unionist opposition, violence and...
, and in the Constitutional Convention
Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention
The Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention was an elected body set up in 1975 by the UK Labour government of Harold Wilson as an attempt to deal with constitutional issues surrounding the status of Northern Ireland....
. However, they abstained from the 1982 Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly, 1982
The Northern Ireland Assembly established in 1982 represented an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to restore the devolution to Northern Ireland which had been suspended 10 years previously. The Assembly was abolished in 1986.-Origins:...
, and their participation in the Northern Ireland Forum
Northern Ireland Forum
The Northern Ireland Forum was a body set up in 1996 as part of a process of negotiations that eventually led to the Belfast Agreement in 1998....
was intermittent.
Since the establishment of the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
under the Good Friday Agreement, both the SDLP and Sinn Féin have taken their seats in that body. SDLP MPs have consistently taken their seats in the Westminster
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
parliament, in contrast to Sinn Féin MPs who refuse to take their seats there, as they refuse to recognise that body's right to legislate for any part of Ireland.
Fianna Fáil registered as a political party within Northern Ireland in 2007. It has not made clear whether it will contest elections to Westminster.
See also
- Irish republican legitimatismIrish republican legitimatismA concept within Irish republicanism, Irish republican legitimatism denies the legitimacy of the political entities of Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and posits that the pre-partition Irish Republic continues to exist...
- ObstructionismObstructionismObstructionism is the practice of deliberately delaying or preventing a process or change, especially in politics.-As workplace aggression:An obstructionist causes problems. Neuman and Baron identify obstructionism as one of the three dimensions that encompass the range of workplace aggression...
- Oath of Allegiance (UK)Oath of Allegiance (UK)The Oath of Allegiance is a promise to be loyal to the British monarch, and their heirs and successors, sworn by certain public servants in the United Kingdom, and also by newly naturalised subjects in citizenship ceremonies.The Oaths Act 1888 The Oath of Allegiance (Judicial or Official Oath) is...
- Oath of Allegiance (Ireland)Oath of Allegiance (Ireland)The Irish Oath of Allegiance was a controversial provision in the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921, which Irish TDs and Senators were required to take, in order to take their seats in Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann .-Text of the Oath:The Oath was included in Article 17 of the Irish Free State's 1922...
- Disappearing quorum