Members of the 2nd Dáil

There were two elections in Ireland on 24 May 1921, as a result of the Government of Ireland Act 1920 to establish the House of Commons of Northern Ireland and the House of Commons of Southern Ireland. A resolution of Dáil Éireann on 10 May 1921 held that these elections were to be regarded as elections to Dáil Éireann and that all those returned at these elections be regarded as members of Dáil Éireann.[1] According to this theory of Irish republicanism, these elections provided the membership of the Second Dáil. The Second Dáil lasted 388 days.

2nd Dáil Éireann
← 1st Dáil 3rd Dáil →
Overview
Legislative body	Dáil Éireann
Jurisdiction	Irish Republic Southern Ireland
Meeting place	Royal College of Surgeons Mansion House UCD (Earlsfort Terrace)
Term	16 August 1921 – 8 June 1922
Election	1921 general election
Government	Government of the 2nd Dáil
Members	128
Ceann Comhairle	Eoin MacNeill
President of Dáil Éireann	Arthur Griffith from 10 January 1922 until 12 August 1922 — Éamon de Valera until 26 August 1921
President of the Irish Republic	Éamon de Valera from 26 August 1921 until 9 January 1922
Chairman of the Provisional Government	W. T. Cosgrave — Michael Collins from 16 January 1922 until 22 August 1922
Sessions
1st 16 August 1921 – 14 September 1921 2nd 14 December 1921 – 8 June 1922

In the election to the area designated as Northern Ireland, 52 members were elected from 9 geographic constituencies and Queen's University of Belfast. The Ulster Unionist Party won 40 seats, while Sinn Féin and the Nationalist Party (the successor to the Irish Parliamentary Party) won six seats each; 5 of those elected for Sinn Féin were also elected for constituencies in Southern Ireland, while Nationalist Party leader Joseph Devlin was elected to two seats in Northern Ireland. On 7 June Sir James Craig, leader of the UUP, became the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland.

In the election to the area designated as Southern Ireland, 124 Sinn Féin candidates were returned unopposed from 26 geographic constituencies and the National University of Ireland constituency.[2] The University of Dublin constituency returned four Independent Unionist candidates, also unopposed. The four Independent Unionists met as the House of Commons of Southern Ireland on 28 June 1921, for one meeting only.

Those elected for Sinn Féin sat as the Second Dáil, calling themselves Teachtaí Dála (TDs). There were 125 TDs, taking into account that five represented two constituencies. The others elected did not respond to the invitation. Although the contemporaneous roll of Dáil membership included all those elected in both Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland, the database of Oireachtas members includes only those elected for Sinn Féin.[3] For clarity on the representation of constituencies, they are listed here in a single list.

It was during the 2nd Dáil that the Anglo-Irish Treaty was debated, and it was ratified on 7 January 1922.[4]