The 1829 Clare

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

was notable as this was the first time following the

Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 ( 10 Geo. 4. c. 7), also known as the Catholic Emancipation Act 1829, was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that removed the sacramental tests that barred Roman Catholics in the United Kingdom f ...

that a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

MP,

Daniel O'Connell Daniel(I) O’Connell (; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilisation of Catholic Irelan ...

was elected. O'Connell had been elected in the 1828 Clare by-election but as a Catholic he refused to take the Oath and his seat was vacated. The Prime Minister, the

Duke of Wellington Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...

, and the Home Secretary, Sir

Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850), was a British Conservative statesman who twice was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835, 1841–1846), and simultaneously was Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834–183 ...

, who had previously opposed Catholic participation in Parliament, saw that denying O'Connell his seat would cause outrage and could lead to another rebellion or uprising in Ireland, which was about 85% Catholic. This led directly to the

allowing Roman Catholics to become MPs. Simultaneously, the Parliamentary Elections (Ireland) Act 1829 changed the 40 shilling franchise (£2) in Ireland to £10, and it was unclear whether O'Connell would be able to win again with many tenant farmers disenfranchised. This was not tested at the 1829 by-election as O'Connell was the only candidate and so was elected unopposed. O'Connell did not stand again in Clare at the 1830 general election.

References

{{refs 1829 in Ireland By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in County Clare constituencies 1820s elections in Ireland