Electoral change and its impact on the nature of representative politics in Ireland

For a parliament to effectively serve its citizens, its members must be willing to fulfil their core constitutional duties. This article explores how the representative roles of members of Dáil Éireann (TDs) have evolved within the context of a changing Irish political landscape. Classic accounts of TDs’ role orientations have emphasized a strong focus on constituency service, which has arguably had consequences for the Irish parliament's effectiveness. This paper reports findings from a recent survey of TDs and compare these with an earlier survey to reveal a noteworthy shift: while constituency work remains the most prominent activity for most TDs, it has declined in intensity compared to fifteen years ago. Importantly, more emphasis is now being placed on roles within the parliamentary arena, albeit with behavioural variation when we compare three groupings: TDs from ‘Established parties,’ from ‘Insurgent parties’ and non-party TDs. In particular, Sinn Féin TDs demonstrate a top-down adherence to party leadership directives, while independent TDs remain the most committed to constituency service. The increasing diversity of representative roles challenges the long-held perception of TDs as mere local agents, with potentially positive and negative consequences for parliamentary democracy functions in Ireland.