Records of members of the Oireachtas
This is a list of records relating to the Oireachtas, the national parliament of Ireland, which consists of the President of Ireland, and two Houses, Dáil Éireann, a house of representatives whose members are known as Teachtaí Dála or TDs, and Seanad Éireann, a senate whose members are known as senators.
The First Dáil consisted of the Sinn Féin MPs who were elected in the United Kingdom general election of 14 December 1918. They refused to attend the British House of Commons and instead assembled for the first time on 21 January 1919 in the Mansion House in Dublin as the revolutionary unicameral Dáil Éireann.
1,292 TDs have served in the Dáil between 1919 and 2018. The title Father of the Dáil is usually and unofficially conferred on the longest-serving member.
Longest-serving former TDs
This is a list of former TDs who have served at least 30 years in the Dáil. Unless otherwise specified, start and end dates given are those of the relevant general election. Unless stated, the TD listed did not stand in the end-date election.Shortest-serving former TDs
This is a list of former TDs who served for less than 1 year in the Dáil. Unless otherwise specified, start and end dates given are those of the relevant general election.The following were eligible for membership of the Dáil, but as Unionists, they did not recognise it. Those elected to Westminster in 1918 were eligible for the First Dáil.
Current office-holders, longest service in the Oireachtas
This is a list of current members of the Oireachtas who have served for at least 20 years, with continuous or broken service. Unless otherwise specified, start dates given are those of the relevant election.Longest-serving Senators
This is a list of current and former Senators who have served for at least 20 years in the Seanad, including both the Free State Seanad and the Seanad established under the 1937 Constitution. There was a 22-month gap between the abolition of the Free State Seanad in 1936 and the inauguration in 1938 of the 2nd Seanad, the first incarnation of the new body.- denotes serving senator
Oldest living former office-holders
| Name | Office held | Date of birth | Age | Year Retired |
| Patrick Byrne | TD | 2 April 1925 | 1969 | |
| Tom Fitzpatrick | TD | 29 July 1926 | 1982 | |
| Tom O'Donnell | TD | 30 August 1926 | 1987 | |
| John A. Murphy | Senator | 17 January 1927 | 1993 | |
| Jimmy Leonard | TD | 5 June 1927 | 1997 | |
| Patrick Norton | TD / Senator | 1928 | + | 1973 |
| Tras Honan | Senator | 4 January 1930 | 1993 | |
| Kieran Crotty | TD | 30 August 1930 | 1989 | |
| Patrick Cooney | TD / Senator / MEP | 2 March 1931 | 1994 | |
| Gerard Lynch | TD / Senator | 15 June 1931 | 1981 | |
| Thomas Meaney | TD | 11 August 1931 | 1982 | |
| Mervyn Taylor | TD | 28 December 1931 | 1997 | |
| Brigid Hogan-O'Higgins | TD | 10 March 1932 | 1977 | |
| Eileen Lemass | TD / MEP | 7 July 1932 | 1989 | |
| Roger Garland | TD | February 1933 | + | 1992 |
| P. J. Sheehan | TD | 1 March 1933 | 2011 | |
| Liam Hyland | TD / Senator / MEP | 24 April 1933 | 2004 | |
| Jim Corr | TD | 25 January 1934 | 1982 | |
| Rory O'Hanlon | TD | 7 February 1934 | 2011 | |
| Michael D'Arcy | TD / Senator | 7 March 1934 | 2002 | |
| Ben Briscoe | TD | 11 March 1934 | 2002 | |
| Carrie Acheson | TD | 11 September 1934 | 1982 | |
| Toddy O'Sullivan | TD | 1 December 1934 | 1997 | |
| Liam Kavanagh | TD / MEP | 9 February 1935 | 1997 | |
| Bríd Rodgers | Senator | 20 February 1935 | 2002 | |
| Brian Mullooly | Senator | 21 February 1935 | 2002 | |
| David Andrews | TD | 15 March 1935 | 2002 | |
| Barry Desmond | TD | 15 May 1935 | 1994 | |
| Charles McDonald | TD / Senator / MEP | 11 June 1935 | 1993 |
Oldest ever office-holders
Office holders aged 75 or older:| Name | Office | Age | Year Retired |
| Éamon de Valera | President | Retired aged 90 | 1973 |
| Gerald Boland | Senator | Retired aged 84 | 1969 |
| Seán MacEntee | TD | Retired aged 80 | 1969 |
| Maurice Hayes | Senator | Retired aged 80 | 2007 |
| Charles Fagan | TD | Retired aged 80 | 1961 |
| Jackie Healy-Rae | TD | Retired aged 79 | 2011 |
| Feargal Quinn | Senator | Retired aged 79 | 2016 |
| Michael D. Higgins | President | In office aged | — |
| James Ryan | Senator | Retired aged 77 | 1969 |
| Seán T. O'Kelly | President | Retired aged 77 | 1959 |
| P. J. Sheehan | TD | Retired aged 77 | 2011 |
| Rory O'Hanlon | TD | Retired aged 77 | 2011 |
| Paddy Smith | TD | Retired aged 76 | 1977 |
| Ann Ormonde | Senator | Lost seat aged 76 | 2011 |
| Labhrás Ó Murchú | Senator | Retired aged 76 | 2016 |
| Michael Noonan | TD | Retired aged 76 | 2020 |
| Paul Coghlan | Senator | Retired aged 75 | 2020 |
| David Norris | Senator | In office aged | — |
| Seán Barrett | TD | Retired aged 75 | 2020 |
| Bernard Durkan | TD | In office aged | — |
Youngest ever office-holders
Longest surviving cabinet members
Longest surviving Dáil members
Longest lived former office-holders
Aged 90 or more at time of death:| Name | Date of birth | Date of death | Age |
| Eddie Filgate | 16 September 1915 | 19 January 2017 | 101y 4m |
| Tom Maguire | 28 March 1892 | 5 July 1993 | 101y 4m |
| T. K. Whitaker | 8 December 1916 | 9 January 2017 | 100y 1m |
| Edward MacLysaght | 6 November 1887 | 4 March 1986 | 98y 3m |
| Seán Ó Ceallaigh | 17 April 1896 | 15 June 1994 | 98y 1m |
| Domhnall Ua Buachalla | 5 February 1866 | 30 October 1963 | 97y 8m |
| Liam Cosgrave | 13 April 1920 | 4 October 2017 | 97y 6m |
| Matthew Stafford | 1852 | 12 June 1950 | 97y 5m+ |
| Philip Brady | 10 June 1898 | 6 January 1995 | 96y 7m |
| George Noble Plunkett | 3 December 1851 | 12 March 1948 | 96y 3m |
| Séamus Dolan | 10 December 1914 | 10 August 2010 | 95y 8m |
| Patrick Byrne | 2 April 1925 | ||
| Thomas Finlay | 17 September 1922 | 3 December 2017 | 95y 2m |
| Thomas Westropp Bennett | 30 January 1867 | 1 February 1962 | 95y |
| Kathleen Clarke | 11 April 1878 | 29 September 1972 | 94y 6m |
| Seán Treacy | 23 September 1923 | 23 March 2018 | 94y 6m |
| Robert Barton | 4 March 1881 | 10 August 1975 | 94y 5m |
| Joseph Farrell | 1 July 1905 | 24 November 1999 | 94y 5m |
| Seán MacEntee | 22 August 1889 | 10 January 1984 | 94y 5m |
| Pádraig Faulkner | 12 March 1918 | 1 June 2012 | 94y 2m |
| Jack Harte | 10 December 1920 | 9 March 2015 | 94y 2m |
| Tony Herbert | 1920 | 6 March 2014 | 94y+ |
| Tom Fitzpatrick | 29 July 1926 | ||
| Hugh Conaghan | 6 May 1926 | 25 March 2020 | 93y 10m |
| Tom O'Donnell | 30 August 1926 | ||
| Richard Barry | 4 September 1919 | 28 April 2013 | 93y 7m |
| John A. Murphy | 17 January 1927 | ||
| Patrick Finucane | 5 December 1890 | 10 April 1984 | 93y 4m |
| Thomas Tynan | 1859 | 24 September 1953 | 93y 3m+ |
| Peadar O'Donnell | 22 February 1893 | 13 May 1986 | 93y 3m |
| Denis Cullen | 23 September 1878 | 26 November 1971 | 93y 2m |
| Donal Creed | 7 September 1924 | 23 November 2017 | 93y 2m |
| Jimmy Leonard | 5 June 1927 | ||
| Sam McAughtry | 24 March 1921 | 28 March 2014 | 93y |
| William McMullen | 1888 | 1982 | 93y+ |
| Kit Ahern | 13 January 1915 | 27 December 2007 | 92y 11m |
| Éamon de Valera | 14 October 1882 | 29 August 1975 | 92y 10m |
| William Sheldon | 18 January 1907 | 1 November 1999 | 92y 9m |
| Charles Fagan | 1 October 1881 | 8 May 1974 | 92y 7m |
| Ted Russell | 1 April 1912 | 28 November 2004 | 92y 7m |
| Joseph Dowling | 2 February 1922 | 31 May 2014 | 92y 3m |
| Patrick Shanahan | 10 March 1908 | 1 February 2000 | 91y 11m |
| Andy O'Brien | 21 January 1915 | 4 December 2006 | 91y 10m |
| Eileen Costello | 27 June 1870 | 4 March 1962 | 91y 8m |
| John N. Ross | 17 May 1920 | 24 December 2011 | 91y 7m |
| Robert Malachy Burke | 1 March 1907 | 20 September 1998 | 91 6m |
| Patrick Norton | 1928 | ||
| Peter Sands | 1 May 1924 | 17 October 2015 | 91y 5m |
| Séamus de Brún | 1 October 1911 | 5 March 2003 | 91y 5m |
| Hugh Gibbons | 6 July 1916 | 13 November 2007 | 91y 4m |
| Jackie Fahey | 23 January 1928 | 18 March 2019 | 91y 1m |
| Conor Cruise O'Brien | 3 November 1917 | 18 December 2008 | 91y 1m |
| Patrick O'Reilly | 1911 | 2003 | 91+ |
| Edward McGuire | 1901 | 27 October 1992 | 90y 9m+ |
| Bryan Cusack | 2 August 1882 | 24 May 1973 | 90y 9m |
| Thomas Johnson | 17 May 1872 | 17 January 1963 | 90y 8m |
| Patrick McGilligan | 12 April 1889 | 15 November 1979 | 90y 7m |
| Tras Honan | 4 January 1930 | ||
| Maurice Hayes | 8 July 1927 | 23 December 2017 | 90y 5m |
| Dominick Murphy | 1918 | 1 June 2009 | 90y 5m+ |
| William J. Murphy | 17 May 1928 | 18 September 2018 | 90y 4m |
| Margaret Mary Pearse | 24 August 1878 | 7 November 1968 | 90y 2m |
| Richie Ryan | 27 February 1929 | 17 March 2019 | 90y |
| John Griffith | 5 October 1848 | 21 October 1938 | 90y |
| Patrick Lalor | 21 July 1926 | 29 July 2016 | 90y |
Shortest lived office-holders
Aged 40 or younger at time of death:| Name | Date of birth | Date of death | Age | Cause of death |
| Kieran Doherty | 16 October 1955 | 2 August 1981 | 25y | Hunger strike |
| Liam Mellows | 25 May 1895 | 8 December 1922 | 27y 6m | Execution during the Irish Civil War |
| Michael Collins | 16 October 1890 | 22 August 1922 | 31y 10m | Shot during the Irish Civil War |
| Don Davern | 4 March 1935 | 2 November 1968 | 33y 7m | Sudden illness |
| Michael Derham | 1889 | 20 November 1923 | 34y 10m- | Sudden illness |
| Kevin O'Higgins | 7 June 1892 | 10 July 1927 | 35y 1m | Assassinated by former Civil War opponents |
| Séamus Dwyer | 15 November 1886 | 20 December 1922 | 36y 1m | Assassinated during the Irish Civil War |
| Billy Fox | 3 January 1939 | 12 March 1974 | 35y 2m | Assassinated during the Troubles |
| Harry Boland | 27 April 1887 | 31 July 1922 | 35y 3m | Shot during the Irish Civil War |
| Frank Carney | 25 April 1896 | 19 October 1932 | 36y 5m | Ill-health |
| Pierce McCan | 2 August 1882 | 6 March 1919 | 36y 7m | Influenza epidemic |
| Séamus Ryan | 6 December 1895 | 30 June 1933 | 37y 6m | Sudden illness |
| Thomas A. Finlay | 11 October 1893 | 22 November 1932 | 39y 1m | Typhoid fever |
| A. P. Byrne | 1913 | 26 July 1952 | 39y 6m- | |
| Sir Osmond Esmonde | 4 April 1896 | 22 July 1936 | 40y 3m | Sudden illness |
| Clement Coughlan | 14 August 1942 | 1 February 1983 | 40y 5m | Traffic accident |
Longest-serving cabinet ministers (in same office)
Shortest-serving cabinet ministers
This list excludes Acting Ministers as well as Jim McDaid, who was proposed as Minister for Defence on 13 November 1991, but had his nomination withdrawn later the same day.| Name | Office | Years |
| Bertie Ahern | Minister for Industry and Commerce | 8 days |
| Brian Cowen | Minister for Energy | 11 days |
| Frank Aiken | Minister for Agriculture and the Marine | 11 days |
| Barry Cowen | Minister for Agriculture and the Marine | 17 days |
| Kevin O'Higgins | Minister for Foreign Affairs | 17 days |
| Arthur Griffith | Minister for Foreign Affairs | 17 days |
| Thomas Derrig | Minister for Posts and Telegraphs | 19 days |
| Seán T. O'Kelly | Minister for Education | 19 days |
| Paddy Power | Minister for Trade, Commerce and Tourism | 20 days |
| Erskine Childers | Director of Propaganda | 20 days |
| John Wilson | Minister for Communications | 27 days |
| Bertie Ahern | Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht | 27 days |
| Charlie McCreevy | Minister for Enterprise and Employment | 27 days |
| Máire Geoghegan-Quinn | Minister for Equality and Law Reform | 27 days |
| Michael Smith | Minister for Education | 27 days |
| Michael Woods | Minister for Health | 27 days |
People appointed to cabinet at the start of their first term as TD
Senators appointed to cabinet
Oldest person currently in office
Politicians born before 1950:| Name | Office | Date of birth | Age as of |
| Michael D. Higgins | President | 18 April 1941 | |
| David Norris | Senator | 1 July 1944 | |
| Bernard Durkan | TD | 26 March 1945 | |
| Fergus O'Dowd | TD | 1 September 1948 |
Youngest person currently in office
Politicians born since 1980:| Name | Office | Date of birth | Age as of |
| James O'Connor | TD | 20 June 1997 | |
| Claire Kerrane | TD | 24 April 1992 | |
| Fintan Warfield | Senator | 16 March 1992 | |
| Jack Chambers | TD | 21 November 1990 | |
| Mairéad Farrell | TD | 6 January 1990 | |
| Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire | TD | 14 June 1989 | |
| Annie Hoey | Senator | 3 October 1988 | 31 years, 10 months |
| Simon Harris | TD | 17 December 1986 | |
| Helen McEntee | TD | 8 June 1986 | |
| Niall Ó Donnghaile | Senator | 28 May 1985 | |
| Lynn Ruane | Senator | 20 October 1984 | |
| Maura Hopkins | Senator | 3 May 1984 | |
| Duncan Smith | TD | 17 May 1983 | 37 years, 2 months |
| Paul Murphy | TD | 13 April 1983 | |
| Peter Burke | TD | 22 October 1982 | |
| Eoghan Murphy | TD | 12 April 1982 | |
| Brendan Griffin | TD | 14 March 1982 | |
| Robert Troy | TD | 24 January 1982 | |
| Kathleen Funchion | TD | 22 April 1981 |
Members of the current Government by age
| Name | Date of birth | Age as of |
| Micheál Martin | 1 August 1960 | |
| Heather Humphreys | 14 May 1963 | |
| Eamon Ryan | 28 July 1963 | |
| Barry Cowen | 28 August 1967 | |
| Norma Foley | 1970 | |
| Simon Coveney | 16 June 1972 | |
| Catherine Martin | 7 December 1972 | |
| Darragh O'Brien | 8 July 1974 | |
| Paschal Donohoe | 19 September 1974 | |
| Stephen Donnelly | 14 December 1975 | |
| Michael McGrath | 23 August 1976 | |
| Leo Varadkar | 18 January 1979 | |
| Roderic O'Gorman | 12 December 1982 | |
| Helen McEntee | 8 June 1986 | |
| Simon Harris | 17 October 1986 |
Longest service (cumulative)
Married couples/Domestic partners in the same Oireachtas
Members of both the British Parliament and of the Oireachtas
This list excludes abstentionist MPs, such as the members of the 1st Dáil and modern Sinn Féin MPs.| Name | British Parliament | Oireachtas |
| Dermot Bourke, 7th Earl of Mayo | Peer 1890–1927 | Senator 1922–1927 |
| P. J. Brady | MP 1910–1918 | Senator 1927–1928 |
| Alfie Byrne | MP 1915–1918 | TD 1922–1928, 1932–1956, Senator 1928–1931 |
| James Campbell, later Lord Glenavy | MP 1898–1900, 1903–1917, Peer 1921–1931 | Senator 1922–1928 |
| Bryan Cooper | MP 1910 | TD 1923–1930 |
| James Cosgrave | MP 1914–1918 | TD 1923–1927 |
| William Duffy | MP 1900–1918 | TD 1927 |
| Sir John Esmonde | MP 1915–1918 | TD 1937–1944 |
| Sir Thomas Esmonde | MP 1885–1918 | Senator 1922–1934 |
| Bernard Forbes, 8th Earl of Granard | Peer 1889–1948 | Senator 1922–1934 |
| Laurence Ginnell | MP 1906–1918 | TD 1918–1923 |
| Benjamin Guinness, 3rd Earl of Iveagh | Peer 1967–1992 | Senator 1973–1977 |
| Edward Haughey, later Lord Ballyedmond | Peer 2004–2014 | Senator 1994–2002 |
| Ralph Howard, 7th Earl of Wicklow | Peer 1905–1946 | Senator 1922–1928 |
| Hugh Law | MP 1902–1918 | TD 1927–1932 |
| Seamus Mallon | MP 1986–2005 | Senator 1982 |
| James O'Mara | MP 1900–1907 | TD 1918–1921, 1924–1927 |
| Stephen O'Mara | MP 1886 | Senator 1925–1926 |
| Earl of Kerry, later Marquess of Lansdowne | MP 1908–1918, Peer 1927–1936 | Senator 1922–1929 |
| Horace Plunkett | MP 1892–1900 | Senator 1922–1925 |
| William Redmond | MP 1910–1922 | TD 1923–1932 |
| Geoffrey Taylour, 4th Marquess of Headfort | Peer 1894–1943 | Senator 1922–1928 |
| Windham Wyndham-Quin, 4th Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl | Peer 1871–1926 | Senator 1922–1926 |
Diversity records
Women
- First female TD – Constance Markievicz, elected to the First Dáil in 1918
- First female minister – Constance Markievicz who served as Minister for Labour in the First Dáil from 1919–1922
- First female Senators – Eileen Costello, Ellen Cuffe, Alice Stopford Green and Jennie Wyse Power, elected or nominated in 1922
- First female Minister of State – Máire Geoghegan-Quinn became Minister of State for Industry and Energy in 1977
- First female cabinet minister since independence – Máire Geoghegan-Quinn became Minister for the Gaeltacht in 1979
- First female President of Ireland – Mary Robinson, who was elected in 1990 and served until 1997
- First female Tánaiste – Mary Harney, appointed in 1997
Religion
- First Jewish Senator – Ellen Cuffe, appointed to the Irish Free State Seanad Éireann as an independent member
- First Jewish TD – Robert Briscoe, Fianna Fáil TD for Dublin South and Dublin South-West
- First openly atheist TD – Jim Kemmy, Democratic Socialist Party/Labour Party TD for Limerick East 1981–1982 and 1987–1997
- First Muslim TD – Moosajee Bhamjee, Labour Party TD for Clare from 1992–1997
- First Quaker Senator – James G. Douglas, independent Senator from 1922–1936 and 1938–1957
LGBT people
- First openly gay Oireachtas member – David Norris, Independent Senator for University of Dublin since 1987.
- First openly gay TDs – John Lyons and Dominic Hannigan, both elected in 2011.
- First openly lesbian Senator – Katherine Zappone, Independent Senator from 2011 to 2016.
- First member of the Oireachtas in a recognised same-sex relationship – Katherine Zappone, who married Ann Louise Gilligan in British Columbia, Canada in 2003. This was recognised in Irish law as a civil partnership from 2010 and as marriage from 2015.
- First serving member of the Oireachtas to come out – Jerry Buttimer, Senator 2007–11 and since 2016, TD 2011–16, came out in April 2012.
- First serving cabinet minister to come out – Leo Varadkar, first elected in 2007, became a Minister in 2011, came out in 2015. Pat Carey was elected in 1997, and served as a Minister from 2010 to 2011 but did not come out until 2015, after his retirement.
- First openly lesbian TD – Katherine Zappone, Independent TD from 2016 to 2020.
- First openly lesbian serving cabinet Minister – Katherine Zappone, Minister from 2016 to 2020.
- First openly gay Taoiseach – Leo Varadkar, became Taoiseach in June 2017.
- First serving member of the Oireachtas to enter into a same-sex marriage – Jerry Buttimer in December 2017.
- First openly gay TD elected in a by-election, and first openly gay Fianna Fáil TD – Malcolm Byrne, elected in November 2019, served until February 2020.
- First openly gay Social Democrats TD – Cian O'Callaghan, TD since February 2020. Previously first openly gay mayor of a city or county council in Ireland. Mayor of Fingal County Council in 2012.
- First openly gay Green Party TD – Roderic O'Gorman, TD since February 2020.
- First constituency to elect two openly gay TDs in the same election – Dublin West since February 2020, with O'Gorman and Varadkar.
- First constituency to have two openly gay cabinet Ministers – Dublin West since June 2020; again, O'Gorman and Varadkar.
- First openly gay Tánaiste – Leo Varadkar, became Tánaiste in June 2020.
Ethnic minorities
- First member of the Traveller community – Eileen Flynn, appointed to the Seanad in 2020
Party leaders