Electoral (Amendment) Act 1959
| Electoral (Amendment) Act 1959 | |
|---|---|
| Oireachtas | |
| |
| Citation | No. 33 of 1959 |
| Signed | 26 November 1959 |
| Commenced | 26 November 1959 (in part) |
| Repealed | 14 July 1961 |
| Legislative history | |
| Bill citation | No. 34 of 1959 |
| Introduced by | Minister for Local Government (Neil Blaney) |
| Introduced | 22 July 1959 |
| Repealed by | |
| Electoral (Amendment) Act 1961 | |
| Status: Struck down | |
The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1959 (No. 33) was a law in Ireland which sought to revise Dáil constituencies. It was found to be repugnant to the Constitution and never came into effect.
It was challenged by John O'Donovan, a Fine Gael senator and former TD. In O'Donovan v. Attorney-General (1961), the High Court held that the Act was unconstitutional and suggested that the ratio of representation to population across constituencies should differ by no more than 5%. The court, interpreting the "so far as it is practicable" condition of the Constitution, suggested a 5% variation as the limit without exceptional circumstances.
It was formally repealed by the Electoral (Amendment) Act 1961.