Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil is the largest party in the Dáil, has the joint largest delegation of MEPs from Ireland, and has the largest number of city and county council seats. It has been in government more than any other party: 1932–1948, 1951–1954, 1957–1973, 1977–1981, 1982, 1987–1994, and 1997–2011, and since 2020. On all occasions up to 1989, it was in a single-party government; on all occasions since then it was the leading party in a coalition government. It is a member of the
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party and is led by
Taoiseach Micheál Martin. It was founded in 1926 by
Éamon de Valera in a split from
Sinn Féin. When Sinn Féin refused to drop its abstentionist stand, de Valera led most of its TDs out of that party with a view toward republicanising the Free State from within. It was founded as a radical anti-Treaty party drawing support from small farmers and urban workers but has since become a party of the establishment. It was first elected to power in 1932 on a constitutional republican platform, promising to remove constitutional links with Britain and reduce poverty by creating employment. It oversaw much of the industrial development of the Republic and has consequently drawn support from all social classes, making it a classic populist party. Fianna Fáil has
TDs,
senators, MEPs and 246 councillors.
Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is the second largest party in the Dáil and the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly. The name Sinn Féin, meaning "ourselves" or "we ourselves", has been used by a number of political organisations in Ireland since 1905, when first used by
Arthur Griffith. Sinn Féin was the party of separatism before Irish independence, and broke through in the
Westminster election of 1918, where it won 73 of the 105 Irish seats. The modern-day Sinn Féin party emerged in 1970 after a split in the party, and was often distinguished as Provisional Sinn Féin. It was closely linked to the
Provisional Irish Republican Army. It is led by
Mary Lou McDonald. Sinn Féin has
TDs, senators,
MEPs and 99 councillors in the Republic of Ireland.
Fine Gael Fine Gael is the third largest party in the Dáil, the second largest party in local government in Ireland and has joint largest delegation of MEPs from Ireland. It was founded in 1933 by a merger of
Cumann na nGaedheal, which had supported the Treaty and formed the government between 1922 and 1932, the National Guard (popularly called the
Blueshirts) and the small
National Centre Party. It is a member of the centre-right
European People's Party and is led by
Tánaiste Simon Harris. Counting the tenure of predecessor Cumann na nGaedheal, Fine Gael has been in government in the periods 1922–1932, 1948–1951, 1954–1957, 1973–1977, 1981–1982, 1982–1987, 1994–1997, and 2011 to date. On each occasion from 1948 until 2016, it was the leading party of a coalition with the Labour Party, and in three of those cases also with other smaller parties. At the 2011 general election, Fine Gael became the largest party in the Oireachtas with 36.1% of the vote. Fine Gael has
TDs, senators,
MEPs and 246 councillors.
Labour Party The
Labour Party is a
social democratic party, founded in 1912 as part of the trade union movement, with which it maintains organisational links. For most of the history of the state, it was the third largest party, though it is currently in fifth position in parliamentary strength. It has been in government in the periods 1948–1951, 1954–1957, 1973–1977, 1981–1982, 1982–1987, 1993–1994, 1994–1997, and 2011–2016. On each occasion, it was in coalition with
Fine Gael, with the exception 1993 to 1994, when it was in coalition with
Fianna Fáil. The Labour Party merged with the smaller
Democratic Left party in 1999. It is a member of the
Party of European Socialists, and is led by
Ivana Bacik. The Labour Party has TDs, senators, MEP and 56 councillors.
Social Democrats The
Social Democrats were founded in July 2015 by three independent TDs
Catherine Murphy,
Róisín Shortall, and
Stephen Donnelly (who left the party for Fianna Fáil in 2017). It is led by
Holly Cairns. The Social Democrats have TDs, senator and 32 councillors.
People Before Profit–Solidarity People Before Profit–Solidarity is an
electoral alliance between the left-wing
People Before Profit (PBP) and
Solidarity parties. While the alliance was formed for electoral purposes in October 2015, the member parties continue to organise separately. People Before Profit–Solidarity have TDs and 12 councillors.
Independent Ireland Independent Ireland was registered in November 2023 and was founded by two TDs,
Michael Collins and
Richard O'Donoghue, both members of the Rural Independents Dáil grouping. It has TDs, MEP and 24 councillors.
Aontú Aontú is an all-Ireland republican party with a
left-wing economic stance and a
conservative social position. It was founded in 2019 by
Peadar Tóibín who left
Sinn Féin because of its support for the
Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018. It has TDs, senator and ten councillors in the Republic of Ireland.
Green Party The
Green Party was established in 1981 and is allied to the
European Green Party. The
Green Party Northern Ireland voted in 2005 to become a region of the Irish Green Party, making it the second party to be organised on an all-Ireland basis. It has Northern Ireland members on the Irish Green Party national executive. In June 2007, the Green Party entered coalition government with
Fianna Fáil and the
Progressive Democrats. In January 2011 they left the coalition, and at the
2011 general election, lost all of their Dáil seats. From 2020 to 2024, it was in a coalition government with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. In the 2024 election, they went from 12 seats to one seat. The Green Party has TD, senator and 23 councillors. It has TD, and four councillors on
Donegal County Council. ==Parties represented only on local authorities==