The 27th Seanad has been in office since February 2025. The 2025 Seanad election took place in January 2025, following the 2024 general election to the 34th Dái

27th Seanad
27th Seanad
←	26th Seanad
Overview
Legislative body	Seanad Éireann
Jurisdiction	Ireland
Meeting place	Leinster House
Election	29–30 January 2025
Government	35th government of Ireland
Members	60
Cathaoirleach	Mark Daly (FF)
Leas-Chathaoirleach	Maria Byrne (FG)
Leader of the Seanad	Seán Kyne (FG)
Deputy leader of the Seanad	Fiona O'Loughlin (FF)
Leader of the Opposition	Conor Murphy (SF)
Sessions
1st
1st	12 February 2025 –

The 27th Seanad has been in office since February 2025. The 2025 Seanad election took place in January 2025, following the 2024 general election to the 34th Dáil on 29 November 2024. It was fully composed on 7 February 2025 on the nomination of members by the taoiseach.

It is the first Seanad to have a member from Aontú, as well as the first senator elected for the Social Democrats.

Background

The Constitution of Ireland requires a general election for Seanad Éireann, the senate of the Oireachtas, to take place no later than ninety days after the dissolution of Dáil Éireann. There are 60 seats in the Seanad: 43 were elected on five vocational panels by serving politicians; 6 were elected in two university constituencies; and 11 are nominated by the taoiseach who was appointed after the assembly of the 34th Dáil. It will remain in office until the close of poll for the 28th Seanad.

The 33rd Dáil was dissolved on 8 November 2024. On 15 November 2024, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O'Brien, signed orders for the Seanad election, providing 29 January as the deadline for ballots in the university constituencies and 30 January as the deadline for ballots for the vocational panels. Under the Seanad Electoral (University Members) (Amendment) Act 2024, this is to be the last Seanad in which the two university constituencies will exist. At the next Seanad general election, they will be replaced by a new Higher Education constituency.

On 7 February 2025, the taoiseach, Micheál Martin, nominated eleven members with their prior consent to be members of the Seanad.

Cathaoirleach

Cathaoirleach
- Senator Mark Daly (12 February 2025 – present)
Leas-Cathaoirleach
- Senator Maria Byrne (19 February 2025 – present)

On 12 February 2025, Mark Daly (FF) was proposed as Cathaoirleach by Fiona O'Loughlin (FF) and seconded by Shane Curley (FF). He was elected without a division.

On 19 February 2025, Maria Byrne (FG) was proposed as Leas-Chathaoirleach by Seán Kyne (FG) and seconded by Joe O'Reilly (FG). Eileen Flynn (Ind) was proposed by Frances Black (Ind) and seconded by Nessa Cosgrove (Lab). Byrne was elected by a vote of 36 to 15.

Composition of the 27th Seanad

Origin Party		Vocational panels					NUI	DU	Nominated	Total
Origin Party		Admin	Agri	Cult & Educ	Ind & Comm	Labour	NUI	DU	Nominated	Total
●	Fianna Fáil	3	3	1	3	3	0	0	6	19
●	Fine Gael	2	4	2	2	3	0	0	5	18
	Sinn Féin	1	1	1	1	2	0	0	0	6
	Labour Party	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	2
	Green Party	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
	Aontú	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
	Social Democrats	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1
	Independent	1	1	1	2	1	3	3	0	12
Total		7	11	5	9	11	3	3	11	60

Government parties are denoted with bullets (●).

Effect of changes

		Feb. 2025	Feb. 2025
	Fianna Fáil	19	19
	Fine Gael	18	17
	Sinn Féin	6	6
	Labour	2	2
	Aontú	1	1
	Green	1	1
	Social Democrats	1	1
	Independent	12	13
Total		60

Senator James Heffernan joined the Social Democrats in September 2015; he had been elected as a Labour candidate in 2011 and lost the whip in 2012. Heffernan was a Social Democrat Senator for nine months until the 24th Seanad was dissolved in June 2016, but was never elected as a Social Democrat candidate.
Composition after the 2025 Seanad election and the completion of nominations by the taoiseach.
Composition after the resignation of Martin Conway from Fine Gael.

List of senators

^ +: New senator.
^ #: Member of the 33rd Dáil who was not re-elected at the 2024 general election.

Panel	Name	Portrait	Party affiliation (Technical group)				Assumed office
Panel	Name	Portrait	Start of Seanad term		Current		Assumed office
Administrative Panel	Garret Ahearn			Fine Gael			29 June 2020
	Martin Conway			Fine Gael		Independent Resigned from Fine Gael in Feb. 2025	25 May 2011
	Mark Daly			Fianna Fáil			13 September 2007
	Eileen Flynn			Independent (Civil Engagement Group)			29 June 2020
	Fiona O'Loughlin			Fianna Fáil			29 June 2020
	Nicole Ryan			Sinn Féin			30 January 2025
	Diarmuid Wilson			Fianna Fáil			12 September 2002
Agricultural Panel	Niall Blaney			Fianna Fáil			29 June 2020
	Paraic Brady			Fine Gael			30 January 2025
	Victor Boyhan			Independent			8 June 2016
	Maria Byrne			Fine Gael			21 April 2021
	Joanne Collins			Sinn Féin			30 January 2025
	Teresa Costello			Fianna Fáil			30 January 2025
	Paul Daly			Fianna Fáil			8 June 2016
	Eileen Lynch			Fine Gael			30 January 2025
	P. J. Murphy			Fine Gael			30 January 2025
	Malcolm Noonan			Green Party			30 January 2025
	Sarah O'Reilly			Aontú			30 January 2025
Cultural and Educational Panel	Cathal Byrne			Fine Gael			30 January 2025
	Joe Conway			Independent			30 January 2025
	Shane Curley			Fianna Fáil			30 January 2025
	Seán Kyne			Fine Gael			20 February 2020
	Pauline Tully			Sinn Féin			30 January 2025
Industrial and Commercial Panel	Frances Black			Independent (Civil Engagement Group)			8 June 2016
	Ollie Crowe			Fianna Fáil			29 June 2020
	Aidan Davitt			Fianna Fáil			8 June 2016
	Mary Fitzpatrick			Fianna Fáil			29 June 2020
	Laura Harmon			Labour			30 January 2025
	Garret Kelleher			Fine Gael			30 January 2025
	Sharon Keogan			Independent			29 June 2020
	Conor Murphy			Sinn Féin			30 January 2025
	Linda Nelson Murray			Fine Gael			30 January 2025
Labour Panel	Chris Andrews			Sinn Féin			30 January 2025
	Pat Casey			Fianna Fáil			29 June 2020
	Nessa Cosgrove			Labour			30 January 2025
	Gerard Craughwell			Independent			14 October 2014
	Mark Duffy			Fine Gael			30 January 2025
	Robbie Gallagher			Fianna Fáil			8 June 2016
	Mike Kennelly			Fine Gael			30 January 2025
	Maria McCormack			Sinn Féin			30 January 2025
	Margaret Murphy O'Mahony			Fianna Fáil			30 January 2025
	Joe O'Reilly			Fine Gael			8 June 2016
	Patricia Stephenson			Social Democrats			30 January 2025
National University of Ireland	Alice-Mary Higgins			Independent (Civil Engagement Group)			8 June 2016
	Michael McDowell			Independent			8 June 2016
	Rónán Mullen			Independent			13 September 2007
Dublin University	Tom Clonan			Independent			5 April 2022
	Aubrey McCarthy			Independent			30 January 2025
	Lynn Ruane			Independent (Civil Engagement Group)			8 June 2016
Taoiseach's nominees	Manus Boyle			Fine Gael			7 February 2025
	Nikki Bradley			Fine Gael			10 July 2024
	Lorraine Clifford-Lee			Fianna Fáil			8 June 2016
	Alison Comyn			Fianna Fáil			7 February 2025
	Evanne Ní Chuilinn			Fine Gael			7 February 2025
	Joe Flaherty			Fianna Fáil			10 December 2024
	Imelda Goldsboro			Fianna Fáil			7 February 2025
	Noel O'Donovan			Fine Gael			7 February 2025
	Anne Rabbitte			Fianna Fáil			10 December 2024
	Dee Ryan			Fianna Fáil			7 February 2025
	Gareth Scahill			Fine Gael			7 February 2025

Changes

Date	Panel	Loss		Gain		Note
9 February 2025	Administrative Panel		Fine Gael		Independent	Martin Conway resigned from the Fine Gael parliamentary party

[1] Senator James Heffernan joined the Social Democrats in September 2015; he had been elected as a Labour candidate in 2011 and lost the whip in 2012. Heffernan was a Social Democrat Senator for nine months until the 24th Seanad was dissolved in June 2016, but was never elected as a Social Democrat candidate.

[11] Composition after the 2025 Seanad election and the completion of nominations by the taoiseach.

[12] Composition after the resignation of Martin Conway from Fine Gael.