Thomas Pringle (Irish politician)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Pringle is an Irish
left wing
independent
politician. He was elected as a Teachta Dála
(TD) for the Donegal South West
constituency at the 2011 general election, unseating the incumbent Tánaiste
Mary Coughlan. He was previously a member of Donegal County Council
having been elected as an independent councillor in 1999
and then as a Sinn Féin
candidate in 2004. He left Sinn Féin in 2007 and retained his seat as an independent in 2009
.
He was born into a Republican
family with his father Peter a supporter of the Irish Republican Socialist Party
. He is a patron of the People's Movement
which campaigned against the Lisbon Treaty.
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,...
left wing
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
politician. He was elected as a 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...
(TD) for the Donegal South West
Donegal South West (Dáil Éireann constituency)
Donegal South–West is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 3 deputies...
constituency at the 2011 general election, unseating the incumbent Tánaiste
Tánaiste
The Tánaiste is the deputy prime minister of Ireland. The current Tánaiste is Eamon Gilmore, TD who was appointed on 9 March 2011.- Origins and etymology :...
Mary Coughlan. He was previously a member of Donegal County Council
Donegal County Council
Donegal County Council is the local authority which is responsible for County Donegal in Ireland. The Council is responsible for Housing and Community, Roads and Transportation, Urban planning and Development, Amenity and Culture, and Environment. The head of the council has the title of Mayor...
having been elected as an independent councillor in 1999
Irish local elections, 1999
The 1999 Irish local elections were held in all the counties, cities and towns of Ireland on 10 June 1999, on the same day as the European elections.- Results :18 Workers' Party councillors had left the party in 1992 upon the creation of Democratic Left...
and then as a 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...
candidate in 2004. He left Sinn Féin in 2007 and retained his seat as an independent in 2009
Irish local elections, 2009
The 2009 Irish local elections were held in all the counties, cities and towns of Ireland on Friday, 5 June 2009, on the same day as the European Parliament election and two by-elections .-Overview:...
.
He was born into a 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...
family with his father Peter a supporter of the Irish Republican Socialist Party
Irish Republican Socialist Party
The Irish Republican Socialist Party or IRSP is a republican socialist party active in Ireland. It claims the legacy of socialist revolutionary James Connolly, who founded the Irish Socialist Republican Party in 1896 and was executed after the Easter Rising of 1916.- History :The Irish Republican...
. He is a patron of the People's Movement
People's Movement (Ireland)
People's Movement is an Irish pressure group which campaigns on a number of issues such as protecting Irish neutrality and against greater European Union integration...
which campaigned against the Lisbon Treaty.