Proportional Representation Society of Ireland facts for kids

The Proportional Representation Society of Ireland was an important group in Ireland that worked to change how people voted. They wanted a fairer way for everyone's voice to be heard in elections. This group was active until 1922, when the Irish Free State was formed. They were also connected to the Irish Home Rule movement, which wanted Ireland to have more control over its own government.

What Was the Society?

The Proportional Representation Society of Ireland started in Dublin on April 20, 1911. It was created after a visit from Leonard Courtney, 1st Baron Courtney of Penwith. He believed that a voting system called proportional representation could help solve political problems in Ireland.

A New Way to Vote

Proportional representation is a system where the number of seats a political party gets in government matches the percentage of votes they receive. This means smaller groups or parties can still get a fair number of representatives. The Society first began as a part of a similar group in Great Britain, called the Proportional Representation Society.

Why It Was Important

Many important Irish politicians liked the idea of this Society. One of them was Arthur Griffith. He thought proportional representation would make sure that both the Unionist and Nationalist communities in Ireland were fairly represented once Ireland had Home Rule. Unionists wanted to stay part of the United Kingdom, while Nationalists wanted Ireland to be independent.

The specific voting system the Society supported was called the single transferable vote (STV). This system lets voters rank candidates in order of preference. It also uses a special counting method and has constituencies (voting areas) that elect more than one representative.

Making Changes Happen

The president of the Society was Thomas Spring Rice, 2nd Baron Monteagle of Brandon. He was a moderate Unionist who helped get support for the STV system. As it looked more likely that Ireland would get Home Rule, he convinced other southern Unionists that STV was a good idea.

STV Becomes Official

Arthur Griffith also played a big part. He made sure that Sinn Féin, a major political party, officially supported STV. Because of the hard work of the Proportional Representation Society of Ireland, the STV system was included in the Third Home Rule Bill in 1912. This bill later became the Home Rule Act of 1914, though it faced problems and was not fully put into action right away.

First Elections with STV

The Society kept working, and proportional representation was first used in 1918 for a local election in Sligo Corporation the next year. This was a big step!

STV Across Ireland

Over the next two years, proportional representation was introduced for all elections across Ireland. This included both local and national elections, starting with the 1920 Irish local elections. When the Irish Free State was formed, proportional representation was even written into its Constitution. This meant it was a fundamental part of how the new country would vote.

The Society's Legacy

Because the Society was so successful in getting proportional representation adopted, it eventually closed down in the 1920s. Its main goal had been achieved!

Later, there were two attempts by a political party called Fianna Fáil to change the voting system in 1959 and 1968. However, the British Electoral Reform Society, led by Enid Lakeman, campaigned against these changes. Today, the single transferable vote system is still used in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.