Catholic Democrats (Ireland)

The Catholic Democrats was a minor conservative political party in Ireland that existed between 1995 and 2019.[2] It was initially known as the National Party and later as the Christian Democrats before adopting its final name.

For the American not-for-profit organisation, see Catholic Democrats.

Catholic Democrats
FounderNora Bennis
Founded1995 (1995)
Dissolvedc. 2019
IdeologySocial conservatism
Political Catholicism
Anti-abortion
Hard Euroscepticism[1]
Political positionRight-wing[2]
Address47 O'Connell St.
Limerick

History

It was founded in December 1995 by Nora Bennis, a Catholic values and anti-abortion activist. Bennis had attained approximately 5% of the vote in the 1994 European election in the Munster constituency, running under the Family First label. Bennis played a role in the campaign against the divorce referendum of that year, which passed with 50.3% of vote in favour. She had run a conservative pressure group called Family Solidarity. The creation of the party by the Limerick-based Bennis caused tension in conservative Catholic circles, because it followed the establishment of the Christian Solidarity Party by Gerard Casey and other Dublin-based activists, who named their party to show support for Bennis' group. The National Party aimed to attract the support of those who support traditional Catholic morality in legislation. The party's policies also included financial support for rural communities and a smaller role for the state in economic affairs.

The party had no electoral success at any level during its existence. The party was renamed the Christian Democrats in 1998,[3] and then again during the course of 2012 as the Catholic Democrats. As of 2016, it was listed on the Register of Political Parties as "Catholic Democrats (The National Party)".[4] They campaigned against the children referendum in 2012.[5] Theresa Heaney from Cork ran, unsuccessfully, for the party in the 2014 European election in the South constituency.

The party ran three candidates in the 2016 general election;[6][7] Bennis in Limerick City, Heaney in Cork South-West and Noel McKervey in Longford-Westmeath. None of them were elected.

By October 2016 they no longer appeared on the Register of Political Parties.[8] In November 2017, the Standards in Public Office Commission stated that no statements of accounts had been received from the Catholic Democrats, in breach of the Electoral Act.[9]

In February 2019 party founder and lynchpin Nora Bennis died, signalling the final demise of a party which had already begun to wind down.[10]

General election results
Election Seats won ± Position First Pref votes  % Leader
1997
0 / 166
 Steady Increase8 19,077 1.1% Nora Bennis
1998 Limerick East by-election
0 / 1
 Steady Steady 700 1.64% Nora Bennis
2002
0 / 166
 Steady Steady 479 0.96% Nora Bennis
2016
0 / 158
 Steady Decrease12 2,013 0.1% Nora Bennis

European election results
Election Seats won ± Position First Pref votes  % Leader
2014
0 / 11
 Steady Steady 13,569 0.8 Nora Bennis

See also

References
  1. Brown, Tony (2010). ""Saying No". An Analysis of the Irish Opposition to the Lisbon Trea" (PDF). Retrieved 28 November 2020. Mothers Alliance Ireland is led by Nora Bennis who has been associated with small parties such as the Christian Democrats and the National Party. She polled more than 18,000 votes in the 1994 European Parliament election, standing as an Independent. Mothers Alliance Ireland opposes the EU, the Charter of Fundamental Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
  2. Maol Muire Tynan (13 February 1996). "Bennis says new party will surprise". The Irish Times. p. 4. At the launching of the fledgling conservative and "pro family" party in Dublin yesterday
  3. List of Bodies Approved by the Referendum Commission under Section 7 of the Referendum Act 1998, in respect of the Referendum on the Thirty-First Amendment of the Constitution (Children) Bill 2012 (PDF), retrieved 13 January 2014
  4. "Register of Political Parties" (PDF). Houses of the Oireachtas. 10 December 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
  5. Griffin, Dan (6 November 2012). "No campaign bemoans lack of time and resources". The Irish Times. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
  6. "Election 2016 - Catholic Democrats". RTÉ News. 10 February 2016.
  7. Nora is back on the election trail in limerick Limerick Post, 11 February 2016.
  8. "Register of Political Parties" (PDF). Houses of the Oireachtas. 20 October 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 January 2017. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
  9. Burke, Ceimin (29 November 2017). "Nearly half of Ireland's political parties failed to submit accounts to watchdog". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
  10. "Nora Bennis obituary: anti-abortion and divorce campaigner". Irish Times. 23 February 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2020. Theresa Heaney, a member of the – now disbanded – Catholic Democrats and long-time friend of Nora Bennis


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