The 1973 Irish general election to the 20th Dáil was held on Wednesday, 28 February 1973, following the dissolution of the 19th Dáil on 5 February by President Éamon de Valera on the request of Taoiseach Jack Lynch. The general election took place in 42 Dáil constituencies throughout Ireland for 144 seats in Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas.

Quick Facts 144 seats in Dáil Éireann 73 seats needed for a majority, Turnout ...

1973 Irish general election

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144 seats in Dáil Éireann[lower-alpha 1] 73 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	76.6% 0.3pp
First party Second party Third party   Leader Jack Lynch Liam Cosgrave Brendan Corish Party Fianna Fáil Fine Gael Labour Leader since 9 November 1966 21 April 1965 2 March 1960 Leader's seat Cork City North-West Dún Laoghaire and Rathdown Wexford Last election 75 seats, 45.7% 50 seats, 34.1% 18 seats, 17.0% Seats before 74 51 17 Seats won 69[lower-alpha 1] 54 19 Seat change 6 3 2 Percentage 46.2% 35.1% 13.7% Swing 0.5% 1.0% 3.3%
Percentage of seats gained by each of the three major parties, and number of seats gained by smaller parties and independents.
Taoiseach before election Jack Lynch Fianna Fáil Taoiseach after election Liam Cosgrave Fine Gael

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The 20th Dáil met at Leinster House on 4 March to nominate the Taoiseach for appointment by the president and to approve the appointment of a new government of Ireland. Liam Cosgrave was appointed Taoiseach, forming the 14th government of Ireland, a coalition government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party.

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By the time the general election was called in 1973, Fianna Fáil had been in office since March 1957, just under sixteen years. During that time the party had seen three different leaders: Éamon de Valera, Seán Lemass, and since 1966, Jack Lynch. Lynch had hoped to dissolve the Dáil in December 1972; however, events did not permit this, and the election was eventually called for February 1973.

While Fine Gael and the Labour Party had pursued individual opposition policies since 1957, they agreed to a pre-election pact to fight the election together on the issues that united them. The National Coalition, as it was known, offered the electorate the first credible alternative government in many years.

While Fianna Fáil increased its percentage of the vote, it lost seats. A transfer pact between the National Coalition parties in the single transferable vote system enabled a change of government to take place.

In an interview with Brian Farrell on RTÉ, Jack Lynch became the first Taoiseach to concede defeat live on Irish television. Although the full result was not yet known, Lynch was certain that the transfers between candidates would result in Fianna Fáil losing the general election.

The Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, approved in a referendum in December 1972 and signed into law in January 1973, had reduced the voting age from 21 to 18.^[3][4] However, the electoral register would not be updated until 15 April, five weeks after the election date.^[3][5] A 20-year-old student, represented by Seán MacBride, sought an injunction from the High Court postponing the election to vindicate his right to vote.^[3] He lost his case, although he was awarded his costs due to its "public importance".^[3]

Fine Gael and the Labour Party formed the 14th government of Ireland, dubbed the National Coalition, with Liam Cosgrave as Taoiseach and Brendan Corish as Tánaiste.^[10]

• 13th Seanad