1931 Seanad

The 1931 Seanad was the part of the Seanad of the Irish Free State (1922–1936) in office from the 1931 Seanad election to the 1934 Seanad election. Elections to the Seanad, the Senate of the Oireachtas (parliament of the Irish Free State), took place on a triennial basis, with senators elected in stages. The 1931 Seanad included members nominated in 1922, and members elected at the 1925, 1928 and 1931 Seanad elections.

It sat as a second chamber to the 6th Dáil elected at the September 1927 general election, the 7th Dáil elected at the 1932 general election and the 8th Dáil elected at the 1933 general election. The Seanad of the Irish Free State was not numbered after each election, with the whole period later considered the First Seanad.

Composition of the 1931 Seanad
There were a total of 60 seats in the Seanad. In 1931, 23 senators were elected. The 1925 Seanad election was a popular election. However, at the 1928 and subsequent Free State Seanad elections, the franchise was restricted to Oireachtas members.

17 Senators had been elected at the 1928 Seanad election and 19 Senators had been elected at the 1925 Seanad election. In 1922, 30 Senators had been elected by Dáil Éireann, and 30 had been nominated by the President of the Executive Council, W. T. Cosgrave.

The following table shows the composition by party when the 1931 Seanad first met on 9 December 1931.