scholarly journals Representation of the People: Franchise Extension and the “Sinn Féin Election” in Ireland, 1918

2020 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 886-925
Author(s):  
Alan de Bromhead ◽  
Alan Fernihough ◽  
Enda Hargaden

Do large franchise extensions bring about dramatic electoral changes? Electoral reforms in 1918 nearly tripled the number of people eligible to vote in Ireland. Following the reforms—the largest franchise extension in U.K. history—the previously obscure Sinn Féin party secured 73 of Ireland’s 105 seats, an outcome that precipitated a guerrilla war and ultimately independence from the United Kingdom. However, our analysis finds little evidence that the franchise reforms benefited Sinn Féin. New female electors appear less likely to have supported Sinn Féin while new male electors were no more likely to vote for Sinn Féin than the existing electorate. Women also appear less likely to have cast a vote at all. Economic and social factors did matter when it came to voting, however, as did public opinion in relation to armed rebellion. These results remind us that dramatic political changes, such as those that took place in Ireland 1918, do not require dramatic changes in political participation. Sinn Féin’s electoral success was more likely driven by a change of heart on behalf of the Irish electorate, rather than a change in its composition.

2008 ◽  
Vol 36 (141) ◽  
pp. 38-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin McElroy

During the budget speech of 1830, Henry Goulburn, the chancellor of the exchequer, announced: ‘On the people of that country [Ireland] the same stamp duties will be imposed as are imposed here.’ The government planned ‘to assimilate the laws relating to the stamp duties in different parts of the empire to place the management of the whole of that branch of the revenue under the Stamp-Office in England.’ This proposal was one of several announced by Goulburn to counter the economic slump that the United Kingdom was experiencing after a number of poor harvests. Along with specific measures designed to relieve distress, the Wellington government aimed at ensuring there was no loss of revenue in order to prevent further government borrowing.


1960 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 323-328 ◽  

The Trusteeship Council held its tenth special session at UN Headquarters on December 4 and 16, 1959. Following the adoption of its agenda, the Council entered into consideration of the report of the UN Plebiscite Commissioner on the plebiscite in the northern part of the trust territory of the Cameroons under United Kingdom administration. In introducing the first part of the report, Mr. Abdoh, UN Plebiscite Commissioner, reviewed the history of his consultations with the United Kingdom government on arrangements for the organization of the plebiscite. He observed that, as a result of being administered for many years as an integral part of the northern region of Nigeria, the Northern Cameroons had previously had very little reality as a separate administrative entity; in fact, boundaries with the northern region of Nigeria had little significance, and tribal groups extended from that region into the trust territory and even beyond, to the Cameroons under French administration. Communications in the Northern Cameroons were poor, but, despite adverse conditions, the UN plebiscite staff had travelled extensively and had been able to meet both the people and their leaders. Mr. Abdoh added that he wished to stress the peaceful and orderly way in which polling had been conducted throughout the territory, and mentioned the results of the plebiscite, viz.: out of the 113,859 votes cast, 70,546 had been in favor of deciding the future of the Cameroons at a later date (alternative b), while 42,788 had indicated a preference for the Northern Cameroons' becoming a part of the northern region of Nigeria when Nigeria became independent (alternative a); 525 votes had been rejected. Approximately 80 percent of the estimated number of potential electors, and nearly 88 percent of the voters actually registered, had participated in the balloting; thus the greater part of the eligible population had taken part in the consultation, freely expressing their wishes in regard to the alternatives offered in the plebiscite. Mr. Abdoh had, however, felt it his duty to inform the Council of the view, which seemed to be prevalent among those who had voted for the second alternative, that the plebiscite had offered the people an opportunity of registering what was in effect a protest against the system of local adminstration, the introduction of reforms into which was apparently long overdue.


Author(s):  
Virginia F. Smith

North of Boston was published in 1914, just a year after A Boy's Will, while the Frost family was in England’s scenic West Country. The poems, many of which are long, dramatic narratives, are mostly inspired by the people, nature, and society of rural New England, but we do see some influence of his time in the United Kingdom, most notably in the poem “Mending Wall.” The poetic subjects and sources in North of Boston are similar to those in A Boy’s Will, but Frost introduces more precision into his poetry by using proper nouns and technical terms, especially those related to farming and botany. Poems such as “The Death of the Hired Man” and “After Apple-Picking” contain examples of specific agricultural and botanical language.


Author(s):  
W. Elliot Bulmer

This chapter talks about Sir Ivor Jennings, who observed in the context of decolonization in the 1950s that one must first decide who are the people before one can decide how the people are to govern themselves. It proposes a constitutional renewal project that must recognize the United Kingdom as a complex 'Union state' made up of distinct nations. It also describes the United Kingdom as a messy amalgam of two kingdoms, a principality, and a dismembered province that were forged together by civil wars, bribery, and dynastic wrangling. The chapter looks at the geographical, cultural, historical, and demographic complexity of the polity being constituted that will determine much of its constitutional architecture even when fairly standard Westminster Model constitutionalism is applied. It illustrates India and Bangladesh, two countries whose constitutions are thoroughly Westminster influenced but show different design because of the demands of context.


2013 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stijn van Kessel

This article assesses the electoral performance of populist parties in three European countries: the Netherlands, Poland and the United Kingdom. In explaining the electoral performance of the populist parties in the three countries, the article considers the agency of political parties in particular. More specifically, it examines the responsiveness of established parties and the credibility of the populist parties. Whereas the agency of populist parties, or other radical outsiders, has often been overlooked in previous comparative studies, this article argues that the credibility of the populist parties themselves plays a crucial role in understanding their electoral success and failure.


2010 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1380-1388 ◽  
Author(s):  
F Amirabdollahian ◽  
R Ash

AbstractObjectiveTo estimate the phytate intake and molar ratio of phytate to zinc in the diet of the people in the United Kingdom.DesignTables of the phytate content of foods were developed from twenty-eight published and unpublished studies. They were then applied to the nutrient databank of the National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS). The study is a retrospective analysis of data on daily consumption of foods and drinks from the NDNS of children, adolescents, adults and the elderly based on 4–7 d weighed intakes.SubjectsA total of 6786 British participants aged 1·5 years and above, who participated in the NDNS, 1992–2001.SettingEngland, Scotland and Wales.ResultsThe median daily intakes of phytate for children, adolescents, adults and the elderly population were 496, 615, 809 and 629 mg/d, respectively. Although there were differences in phytate intakes between men and women, and for children, adolescents and elderly populations, after adjusting for differences in energy intake, there was no significant variation. The median phytate-to-zinc molar ratios for children, adolescents, adults and the elderly population were 11·8, 10·4, 9·7 and 8·7, respectively. Overall, the main sources of phytate were cereal and cereal products (e.g. breakfast cereals and breads), vegetables, potatoes and savoury snacks (e.g. chips and crisps), hot drinks and miscellaneous foods (e.g. commercial toddler foods and drinks, chocolate and soups), fruits and nuts.ConclusionsThe present study estimated the dietary intake of phytate and the phytate-to-zinc molar ratio of the diet of the UK population, which can be used for estimating the average requirement of zinc. Further research should focus on the completion and validation of the tables of phytate content of UK foods, to assess (and if necessary improve) the accuracy and precision of these findings.


2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 831-850 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul H. P. Hanel ◽  
Uwe Wolfradt ◽  
Gabriel Lins de Holanda Coelho ◽  
Lukas J. Wolf ◽  
Roosevelt Vilar ◽  
...  

People often make inferences about the values of other people in their families, cities, and countries, but there are reasons to expect systematic biases in these inferences. Across four studies ( N = 1,763), we examined people’s perceptions of the values of their families, fellow citizens of the cities in which they live, and compatriots across three nations (Brazil, Germany, the United Kingdom). Our results show that people systematically misperceive comparison groups’ values. People underestimate the importance that their compatriots ascribe to more important values and overestimate the importance of less important values. This occurs in comparison with their own values, the actual values of the people living in the same city and the actual values of their compatriots. The effect sizes were medium to large. Furthermore, the results occurred independently of participants’ culture, time spent in the culture, and the underlying value model used. These results consistently show that people’s speculations about values in their community and society are biased in a self- and family favoring direction. In addition, we found that the structure of values (e.g., as proposed by Schwartz) holds for perceived family, fellow citizens of the cities in which they live, and compatriots’ values. Overall, our findings suggest that the values of other people are more selfless than is often believed.


Author(s):  
Mary Gilmartin ◽  
Patricia Wood ◽  
Cian O'Callaghan

Questions of migration and citizenship are at the heart of global political debate with Brexit and the election of Donald Trump having ripple effects around the world. Providing new insights into the politics of migration and citizenship in the United Kingdom and the United States, this book challenges the increasingly prevalent view of migration and migrants as threats and of formal citizenship as a necessary marker of belonging. Instead the book offers an analysis of migration and citizenship in practice, as a counterpoint to simplistic discourses. It uses cutting-edge academic work on migration and citizenship to address three themes central to current debates: borders and walls, mobility and travel, and belonging. Through this analysis, a clearer picture of the roots of these politics emerges as well as of the consequences for mobility, political participation and belonging in the 21st century.


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