Galway East is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil ÃÂireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects four deputies (TeachtaàDála, commonly known as TDs) on the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote (PR-STV).
The constituency was first used at the 1937 general election, under the Electoral (Revision of Constituencies) Act 1935, when the former Galway constituency was split into Galway East and Galway West. It was abolished in 1948 and recreated in 1961. It was abolished again in 1969 and recreated in 1977.
It spans much of the eastern half of County Galway, taking in the towns of Ballinasloe, Tuam, Portumna, Athenry and Loughrea among other areas.
The Constituency Review Report 2023 of the Electoral Commission recommended that at the next general election, Galway East be increased to a four-seat constituency with the transfer of territory from RoscommonâÂÂGalway.
The Electoral (Amendment) Act 2023 defines the constituency as:
Fianna Fáil TD Johnny Callanan died on 15 June 1982. A government motion to issue the writ of election to fill the vacancy was agreed by the Dáil on 30 June. The by-election was held on 20 July 1982, and was won by Fianna Fáil candidate Noel Treacy.
Clann na Talmhan TD Michael Donnellan died on 27 September 1964. A by-election was held to fill the vacancy on 3 December 1964. It was won by his son, John Donnellan, contesting for Fine Gael.
Michael Gallagher notes the motive of the returning officer to conduct a second count was presumably to enable Stankard to keep his deposit.