The 1857 British general election in Ireland produced a victory in Ireland for the Whigs under Lord Palmerston. The election was the first to be contested by the Independent Irish Party under their own banner. The Independent Irish Party had been formed following the 1852 election by Liberal candidates who had pledged to form an independent party in parliament should they be elected. A total of 48 Liberal candidates made the pledge.
The election underscored Ireland's integration into UK parliamentary politics, with the success of the Whig party reflecting Catholic support of Palmerston's post-Famine stability measures over Conservatives and landlords.
At the election, the Independent Irish Party had adopted a pledge-bound electoral approach to produce candidates committed to "independent opposition" who supported land reform, fair rents and tenure security. Notable candidates included George Henry Moore, the Tenant League chairman, who won re-election in Mayo but was later unseated by parliamentary petition over alleged undue clerical influence to be replaced by his Tory rival.