Records_of_Irish_heads_of_government_since_1922

Records of Irish heads of government since 1922

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The Taoiseach (plural: Taoisigh) is the head of government of Ireland. Prior to the enactment of the Constitution of Ireland in 1937, the head of government was referred to as the President of the Executive Council. This office was first held by W. T. Cosgrave from 1922 to 1932, and then by Éamon de Valera from 1932 to 1937. By convention Taoisigh are numbered to include Cosgrave,^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4] for example Micheál Martin is considered the 15th Taoiseach.

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[Elected-5] First elected to the British House of Commons in 1917 but did not take his seat.

[Sinn-6] First elected as member of Sinn Féin.

[CnaG-7] First elected as a Cumann na nGaedheal Teachta Dála.

[CosgravePreIndependence-8] Cosgrave also headed the Irish Government from 22 August 1922, during the transitional period before the state became officially independent on 6 December 1922 (See Irish heads of government since 1919).

[Devalera-9] De Valera became Taoiseach on 29 December 1937 under the Constitution of Ireland.

[DeValeraPreIndependence-10] De Valera also headed the pre-independence revolutionary Irish Government from 1 April 1919 to 9 January 1922 (See Irish heads of government since 1919).

[DevExecPrez-11] De Valera also served 3 terms as President of the Executive Council.

[ActingTaoisigh01-13] Days shown include five periods when a Taoiseach resigned but continued as Acting Taoiseach, as required by the Article 28.11.1 of the Constitution. These periods are 13 days for Charles Haughey (from 29 June to 12 July 1989), 57 days for Albert Reynolds (29 days from 14 December 1992 to 12 January 1993, and 28 days from 17 November to 15 December 1994), 57 days for Enda Kenny (from 10 March to 6 May 2016), and 128 days for Leo Varadkar from 20 February to 27 June 2020.^[5]

[14] De Valera served as Taoiseach for 5,613 days (15 years, 4 months).

[DeValeraPreIndependenceDays-15] De Valera also led the pre-independence revolutionary Ministry of Dáil Éireann from 1 April 1919 to 9 January 1922 (See Irish heads of government since 1919). Including these 1,015 extra days would raise his cumulative days served to 8,750 days (23 years, 11 months, 16 days).

[CosgravePreIndependenceDays-16] Cosgrave also led the Provisional Government from 22 August 1922, during the transitional period before the state became independent on 6 December 1922 (See Irish heads of government since 1919). Including these 106 extra days would raise his cumulative days served to 3,487 days (9 years, 6 months, 19 days).

[YoungerThanHarrisPreIndependence-17] Three leaders entered office when younger than Harris, during or after the 1916 Easter Rising, but before British rule officially ended, and the Irish Free State came into existence on 6 December 1922. The youngest was Michael Collins, aged 31 years, 3 months when he became Chairman of the Provisional Government of the Irish Free State on 16 January 1922. Éamon de Valera was aged 36 years, 5 months when he became President of Dáil Éireann on 1 April 1919. Patrick Pearse was also aged 36 years, 5 months when he became President of the Irish Republic proclaimed on Easter Monday, 24 April 1916. (See Irish heads of government since 1919 and Easter Rising).

[CosgravePreIndependenceAge-18] Cosgrave entered office as Chairman of the Provisional Government on 22 August 1922, when aged 42 years, 2 months. The age given in the table is his age when the Irish Free State was established on 6 December 1922 and he was appointed as President of the Executive Council. (See Irish heads of government since 1919).

[DeValeraPreIndependenceAge-19] De Valera also headed the pre-independence revolutionary Irish Government from 1 April 1919 to 9 January 1922, thus entering the office of President of Dáil Éireann when aged 36 years, 5 months (he was aged 38 years, 10 months when the office was renamed President of the Irish Republic on 26 August 1921). The table shows his age when he became President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State on 9 March 1932. Under the new 1937 Constitution, his title changed to Taoiseach on 29 December 1937, when he was aged 55 years, 2 months. (See also Irish heads of government since 1919 and Éamon de Valera).

[act-20] Held between the resignation or death of a member of the cabinet and the appointment of another member to the position.

[1] [1]
"Coughlan new Tánaiste in Cowen Cabinet". The Irish Times. 7 May 2008. Retrieved 17 May 2008.

[2] [2]
"Taoiseach reveals new front bench". RTÉ News. 7 May 2008. Retrieved 17 May 2008.

[3] [3]
"Cowen confirmed as Taoiseach". BreakingNews.ie. 7 May 2008. Retrieved 17 May 2008.

[4] [4]
"Former Taoisigh". Department of the Taoiseach. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 11 May 2011.

[Oireachtas28June2016a-12] [5]
Oireachtas Library and Research Service (28 June 2016). "Caretaker governments and caretaker conventions" (PDF). Houses of the Oireachtas. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 March 2017. Retrieved 21 March 2017. (Page 2) … Article 28.11.1 … (Page 4) … Box 1. Irish Caretaker Governments … 2016 … 1994 … 1992 … 1989

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No.	Name	Born	First elected	Party	Constituency	Left Dáil
1	W. T. Cosgrave	6 June 1880	10 August 1917^{[lower-alpha 1]}	Cumann na nGaedheal^{[lower-alpha 2]}	Kilkenny City (1917–1918) North Kilkenny (1918–1921) Carlow–Kilkenny (1921–1927) Cork Borough (1927–1944)	30 May 1944
2	Éamon de Valera	14 October 1882	10 July 1917^{[lower-alpha 1]}	Fianna Fáil^{[lower-alpha 2]}	East Clare (1917–1922) Clare (1922–1959)	23 June 1959
3	John A. Costello	20 June 1891	24 January 1933	Fine Gael^{[lower-alpha 3]}	Dublin County (1933–1937) Dublin Townships (1937–1943; 1944–1948) Dublin South-East (1948–1969)	18 June 1969
4	Seán Lemass	12 July 1899	18 November 1924	Fianna Fáil^{[lower-alpha 2]}	Dublin South (1924–1948) Dublin South-Central (1948–1969)	18 June 1969
5	Jack Lynch	15 August 1917	29 March 1948	Fianna Fáil	Cork Borough (1948–1969) Cork City North-West (1969–1977) Cork City (1977–1981)	11 June 1981
6	Liam Cosgrave	13 April 1920	29 March 1943	Fine Gael	Dublin County (1943–1948) Dún Laoghaire and Rathdown (1948–1977) Dún Laoghaire (1977–1981)	11 June 1981
7	Charles Haughey	16 September 1925	29 March 1957	Fianna Fáil	Dublin North-East (1957–1977) Dublin Artane (1977–1981) Dublin North-Central (1981–1992)	25 November 1992
8	Garret FitzGerald	9 February 1926	18 June 1969	Fine Gael	Dublin South-East	25 November 1992
9	Albert Reynolds	3 November 1932	16 June 1977	Fianna Fáil	Longford–Westmeath (1977–1992) Longford–Roscommon (1992–2002)	17 May 2002
10	John Bruton	18 May 1947	18 June 1969	Fine Gael	Meath	31 October 2004
11	Bertie Ahern	12 September 1951	16 June 1977	Fianna Fáil	Dublin Finglas (1977–1981) Dublin Central (1981–2011)	1 February 2011
12	Brian Cowen	10 January 1960	14 June 1984	Fianna Fáil	Laois–Offaly	1 February 2011
13	Enda Kenny	24 April 1951	12 November 1975	Fine Gael	Mayo West (1975–1997) Mayo (1997–2020)	14 January 2020
14	Leo Varadkar	18 January 1979	24 May 2007	Fine Gael	Dublin West
15	Micheál Martin	1 August 1960	15 June 1989	Fianna Fáil	Cork South-Central
16	Simon Harris	17 October 1986	25 February 2011	Fine Gael	Wicklow

No.	Name	Entered office	Left office	Elected	Period	Party
1	W. T. Cosgrave	6 December 1922^{[lower-alpha 4]}	9 March 1932	5 terms	–	Cumann na nGaedheal
2	Éamon de Valera	9 March 1932^{[lower-alpha 5]}^{[lower-alpha 6]}	18 February 1948	6 terms^{[lower-alpha 7]}	1st time	Fianna Fáil
3	John A. Costello	18 February 1948	13 June 1951	1 term	1st time	Fine Gael
(2)	Éamon de Valera	13 June 1951	2 June 1954	1 term	2nd time	Fianna Fáil
(3)	John A. Costello	2 June 1954	20 March 1957	1 term	2nd time	Fine Gael
(2)	Éamon de Valera	20 March 1957	23 June 1959	1 term	3rd time	Fianna Fáil
4	Seán Lemass	23 June 1959	10 November 1966	3 terms	–	Fianna Fáil
5	Jack Lynch	10 November 1966	14 March 1973	2 terms	1st time	Fianna Fáil
6	Liam Cosgrave	14 March 1973	5 July 1977	1 term	–	Fine Gael
(5)	Jack Lynch	5 July 1977	11 December 1979	1 term	2nd time	Fianna Fáil
7	Charles Haughey	11 December 1979	30 June 1981	1 term	1st time	Fianna Fáil
8	Garret FitzGerald	30 June 1981	9 March 1982	1 term	1st time	Fine Gael
(7)	Charles Haughey	9 March 1982	14 December 1982	1 term	2nd time	Fianna Fáil
(8)	Garret FitzGerald	14 December 1982	10 March 1987	1 term	2nd time	Fine Gael
(7)	Charles Haughey	10 March 1987	11 February 1992	2 terms	3rd time	Fianna Fáil
9	Albert Reynolds	11 February 1992	15 December 1994	2 terms	–	Fianna Fáil
10	John Bruton	15 December 1994	26 June 1997	1 term	–	Fine Gael
11	Bertie Ahern	26 June 1997	7 May 2008	3 terms	–	Fianna Fáil
12	Brian Cowen	7 May 2008	9 March 2011	1 term	–	Fianna Fáil
13	Enda Kenny	9 March 2011	14 June 2017	2 terms	–	Fine Gael
14	Leo Varadkar	14 June 2017	27 June 2020	1 term	1st time	Fine Gael
15	Micheál Martin	27 June 2020	17 December 2022	1 term	–	Fianna Fáil
(14)	Leo Varadkar	17 December 2022	9 April 2024	1 term	2nd time	Fine Gael
16	Simon Harris	9 April 2024	Incumbent	1 term		Fine Gael

	Name	First entered office	Finally left office	Periods	Cumulative days^{[lower-alpha 8]}
2	Éamon de Valera	9 March 1932^{[lower-alpha 5]}	23 June 1959	3	7,735 (21 years, 2 months)^{[lower-alpha 9]}^{[lower-alpha 10]}
11	Bertie Ahern	26 June 1997	7 May 2008	1	3,968 (10 years, 10 months)
1	W. T. Cosgrave	6 December 1922	9 March 1932	1	3,381 (9 years, 3 months)^{[lower-alpha 11]}
5	Jack Lynch	10 November 1966	11 December 1979	2	3,205 (8 years, 9 months)
4	Seán Lemass	23 June 1959	10 November 1966	1	2,697 (7 years, 5 months)
7	Charles Haughey	11 December 1979	11 February 1992	3	2,646 (7 years, 3 months)^{[lower-alpha 8]}
13	Enda Kenny	9 March 2011	14 June 2017	1	2,289 (6 years, 3 months)^{[lower-alpha 8]}
3	John A. Costello	18 February 1948	20 March 1957	2	2,233 (6 years, 1 month)
8	Garret FitzGerald	30 June 1981	10 March 1987	2	1,799 (4 years, 11 months)
14	Leo Varadkar	14 June 2017	9 April 2024	2	1,589 (4 years, 4 months)^{[lower-alpha 8]}
6	Liam Cosgrave	14 March 1973	5 July 1977	1	1,574 (4 years, 4 months)
9	Albert Reynolds	11 February 1992	15 December 1994	1	1,038 (2 years, 10 months)^{[lower-alpha 8]}
12	Brian Cowen	7 May 2008	9 March 2011	1	1,036 (2 years, 10 months)
10	John Bruton	15 December 1994	26 June 1997	1	924 (2 years, 6 months)
15	Micheál Martin	27 June 2020	17 December 2022	1	904 (2 years, 5 months)
16	Simon Harris	9 April 2024	Incumbent	1	14 (14 days)

	Name	Entered office	Left office	Period No.	Period length	Length in days^{[lower-alpha 8]}
2	Éamon de Valera	9 March 1932^{[lower-alpha 5]}	18 February 1948	1	15 years, 11 months, 16 days	5,824
11	Bertie Ahern	26 June 1997	7 May 2008	1	10 years, 10 months, 11 days	3,968
1	W. T. Cosgrave	6 December 1922	9 March 1932	1	9 years, 3 months, 4 days	3,381^{[lower-alpha 11]}
4	Seán Lemass	23 June 1959	11 November 1966	1	7 years, 4 months, 17 days	2,697
5	Jack Lynch	11 November 1966	14 March 1973	1	6 years, 4 months, 4 days	2,316
13	Enda Kenny	9 March 2011	14 June 2017	1	6 years, 3 months, 5 days	2,289^{[lower-alpha 8]}
7	Charles Haughey	10 March 1987	11 February 1992	3	4 years, 11 months, 1 day	1,799^{[lower-alpha 8]}
6	Liam Cosgrave	14 March 1973	5 July 1977	1	4 years, 3 months, 22 days	1,574
8	Garret FitzGerald	14 December 1982	10 March 1987	2	4 years, 2 months, 27 days	1,547
3	John A. Costello	18 February 1948	13 June 1951	1	3 years, 3 months, 24 days	1,211
14	Leo Varadkar	14 June 2017	27 June 2020	1	3 years and 13 days	1,109^{[lower-alpha 8]}
	Éamon de Valera	13 June 1951	2 June 1954	2	2 years, 11 months, 19 days	1,085
9	Albert Reynolds	11 February 1992	15 December 1994	1	2 years, 10 months, 4 days	1,038^{[lower-alpha 8]}
12	Brian Cowen	7 May 2008	9 March 2011	1	2 years, 10 months, 2 days	1,036
	John A. Costello	2 June 1954	20 March 1957	2	2 years, 9 months, 18 days	1,022
10	John Bruton	15 December 1994	26 June 1997	1	2 years, 6 months, 11 days	924
15	Micheál Martin	27 June 2020	17 December 2022	1	2 years, 5 months and 21 days	904
	Jack Lynch	5 July 1977	11 December 1979	2	2 years, 5 months, 6 days	889
	Éamon de Valera	20 March 1957	23 June 1959	3	2 years, 3 months, 3 days	825
	Charles Haughey	11 December 1979	30 June 1981	1	1 year, 6 months, 19 days	567
	Leo Varadkar	17 December 2022	9 April 2024	2	1 year, 3 months and 23 days	479
	Charles Haughey	9 March 1982	14 December 1982	2	9 months, 5 days	280
	Garret FitzGerald	30 June 1981	9 March 1982	1	8 months, 9 days	252
16	Simon Harris	9 April 2024	Incumbent	1	14 days	14

	Name	Born	Died	Age as of 23 April 2024
6	Liam Cosgrave	13 April 1920	4 October 2017	97 years, 174 days
2	Éamon de Valera	14 October 1882	29 August 1975	92 years, 319 days
1	W. T. Cosgrave	6 June 1880	16 November 1965	85 years, 163 days
8	Garret FitzGerald	9 February 1926	19 May 2011	85 years, 99 days
3	John A. Costello	20 June 1891	5 January 1976	84 years, 199 days
5	Jack Lynch	15 August 1917	20 October 1999	82 years, 66 days
9	Albert Reynolds	3 November 1932	21 August 2014	81 years, 291 days
7	Charles Haughey	16 September 1925	13 June 2006	80 years, 270 days
10	John Bruton	18 May 1947	6 February 2024	76 years, 264 days
13	Enda Kenny	24 April 1951		72 years, 365 days
11	Bertie Ahern	12 September 1951		72 years, 224 days
4	Seán Lemass	12 July 1899	11 May 1971	71 years, 303 days
12	Brian Cowen	10 January 1960		64 years, 104 days
15	Micheál Martin	1 August 1960		63 years, 266 days
14	Leo Varadkar	18 January 1979		45 years, 96 days
16	Simon Harris	17 October 1986		37 years, 189 days

Records_of_Irish_heads_of_government_since_1922

Records of Irish heads of government since 1922

Electoral history

Periods in office

Cumulative days served

Length of individual periods

Longevity

Age on entering/leaving office

Cabinet positions

Education

Living officeholders

Timeline of living/deceased officeholders

See also

Notes

References

External links

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	Name	Before or after position of Taoiseach	While Taoiseach
1	W. T. Cosgrave	Minister for Local Government (1919–1922) Minister for Finance (1922–1923) Chairman of the Provisional Government (1922) President of Dáil Éireann (1922)	Minister for Finance (1922–1923) Minister for Defence (1924)^{[lower-alpha 15]} Minister for External Affairs (1927)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
2	Éamon de Valera	President of Dáil Éireann (1919–1922)	Minister for External Affairs (1932–1948) Minister for Education (1939–1940)^{[lower-alpha 15]} Minister for Local Government and Public Health (1941)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
3	John A. Costello	Attorney General (1926–1932)	Minister for Health (1951)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
4	Seán Lemass	Minister for Industry and Commerce (1932–1939, 1941–1948, 1951–1954, 1957–1959) Minister for Supplies (1939–1945) Tánaiste (1945–1948, 1951–1954, 1957–1959)	Minister for Justice (1964)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
5	Jack Lynch	Minister for the Gaeltacht (1957) Minister for Education (1957–1959) Minister for Industry and Commerce (1959–1965) Minister for Finance 1965–1966)	Minister for Education (1968)
6	Liam Cosgrave	Minister for External Affairs (1954–1957)	Minister for Defence (1976)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
7	Charles Haughey	Minister for Justice (1961–1964) Minister for Agriculture (1964–1966) Minister for Finance (1966–1970) Minister for Health (1977–1979) Minister for Social Welfare (1977–1979)	Minister for Education (1982)^{[lower-alpha 15]} Minister for the Gaeltacht (1987–1992) Minister for Defence (1990–1991)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
8	Garret FitzGerald	Minister for Foreign Affairs (1973–1977)	Minister for Trade, Commerce and Tourism (1983)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
9.	Albert Reynolds	Minister for Posts and Telegraphs (1979–1981) Minister for Transport 1980–1981) Minister for Industry and Energy (1982) Minister for Industry and Commerce (1987–1988) Minister for Finance (1988–1991)	Minister for Energy (1992–1993)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
10	John Bruton	Minister for Finance (1981–1982, 1986–1987) Minister for Industry and Energy (1982–1983) Minister for Industry, Trade, Commerce and Tourism (1983–1986) Minister for the Public Service (1987)	Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications (1996)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
11	Bertie Ahern	Minister for Labour (1987–1991) Minister for Finance (1991–1994) Minister for Industry and Commerce (1993)^{[lower-alpha 15]} Tánaiste (1994) Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht (1994)
12	Brian Cowen	Minister for Labour (1992–1993) Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications (1993–1994) Minister for Health and Children (1997–2000) Minister for Foreign Affairs (2000–2004) Minister for Finance (2004–2008) Tánaiste (2007–2008)	Minister for Foreign Affairs (2011)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
13	Enda Kenny	Minister for Tourism and Trade (1994–1997)	Minister for Defence (2014)^{[lower-alpha 15]} Minister for Defence (2016–2017)
14	Leo Varadkar	Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport (2011–2014) Minister for Health (2014–2016) Minister for Social Protection (2016–2017) Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment(2020–2022) Tánaiste (2020–2022)	Minister for Defence (2017–2020)
15	Micheál Martin	Minister for Education and Science (1997–2000) Minister for Health and Children (2000–2004) Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (2004–2008) Minister for Foreign Affairs (2008–2011) Minister for Foreign Affairs (2022–present) Minister for Defence(2022–present) Tánaiste (2022–present)	Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (July 2020 and Aug. 2020)^{[lower-alpha 15]}
16	Simon Harris	Minister for Health (2016–2020) Minister for Justice (2022–2023) Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (2020–2024)

	Name	Second level	Third level
1	W. T. Cosgrave	St. Joseph's Secondary, Fairview	none
2	Éamon de Valera	C.B.S. Charleville Blackrock College	Royal University of Ireland Trinity College Dublin (did not graduate)
3	John A. Costello	St. Joseph's Secondary, Fairview O'Connell School	University College Dublin
4	Seán Lemass	O'Connell School	University College Cork
5	Jack Lynch	North Monastery	University College Cork King's Inns
6	Liam Cosgrave	Synge Street CBS Castleknock College	King's Inns
7	Charles Haughey	St. Joseph's Secondary, Fairview	University College Dublin
8	Garret FitzGerald	Belvedere College	University College Dublin
9	Albert Reynolds	Summerhill College	none
10	John Bruton	Clongowes Wood College	University College Dublin King's Inns
11	Bertie Ahern	St Aidan's C.B.S.	College of Commerce, Rathmines
12	Brian Cowen	Cistercian College, Roscrea	University College Dublin Law Society of Ireland
13	Enda Kenny	St Gerald's College, Castlebar	St Patrick's College, Dublin University College Galway
14	Leo Varadkar	The King's Hospital	Trinity College Dublin
15	Micheál Martin	Coláiste Chríost Rí	University College Cork
16	Simon Harris	St David's Holy Faith, Greystones	Dublin Institute of Technology (did not graduate)

Taoiseach	Term of office	Date of birth
Bertie Ahern	1997–2008	(1951-09-12) 12 September 1951 (age 72)
Brian Cowen	2008–2011	(1960-01-10) 10 January 1960 (age 64)
Enda Kenny	2011–2017	(1951-04-24) 24 April 1951 (age 72)
Micheál Martin	2020–2022	(1960-08-01) 1 August 1960 (age 63)
Leo Varadkar	2017–2020 2022–2024	(1979-01-18) 18 January 1979 (age 45)

Date	Living	Deceased	Notes
9 April 2024	6	10	Simon Harris accedes
6 February 2024	5	10	John Bruton dies
27 June 2020	6	9	Micheál Martin accedes
4 October 2017	5	9	Liam Cosgrave dies
14 June 2017	6	8	Leo Varadkar accedes
21 August 2014	5	8	Albert Reynolds dies
19 May 2011	6	7	Garret FitzGerald dies
9 March 2011	7	6	Enda Kenny accedes
7 May 2008	6	6	Brian Cowen accedes
13 June 2006	5	6	Charles Haughey dies
20 October 1999	6	5	Jack Lynch dies
26 June 1997	7	4	Bertie Ahern accedes
15 December 1994	6	4	John Bruton accedes
11 February 1992	5	4	Albert Reynolds accedes
30 June 1981	4	4	Garret FitzGerald accedes
11 December 1979	3	4	Charles Haughey accedes
6 January 1976	2	4	John A. Costello dies
29 August 1975	3	3	Éamon de Valera dies
14 March 1973	4	2	Liam Cosgrave accedes
16 May 1971	3	2	Seán Lemass dies
10 November 1966	4	1	Jack Lynch accedes
11 May 1965	3	1	W. T. Cosgrave dies
23 June 1959	4	0	Seán Lemass accedes
18 February 1948	3	0	John A. Costello accedes
9 March 1932	2	0	Éamon de Valera accedes
6 December 1922	1	0	W. T. Cosgrave accedes