Politics
The constituency electorate was predominantly Tory/Conservative during most of this period.
Catholics were excluded from qualifying as voters until 1793 and taking seats in Parliament until 1829 and there was a restrictive property based franchise. It was not until the electoral reforms which took effect in 1885 that most adult males became voters. See Catholic emancipation for further details.
In these circumstances most Members of Parliament came from a limited number of Protestant aristocratic and gentry families. There were few contested elections.
It was only in 1880, at the end of the period when this constituency existed, that the Liberals first won a seat from the area.
Read more about this topic: Tyrone (UK Parliament Constituency)
Famous quotes containing the word politics:
“Our family talked a lot at table, and only two subjects were taboo: politics and personal troubles. The first was sternly avoided because Father ran a nonpartisan daily in a small town, with some success, and did not wish to express his own opinions in public, even when in private.”
—M.F.K. Fisher (1908–1992)
“When feminism does not explicitly oppose racism, and when antiracism does not incorporate opposition to patriarchy, race and gender politics often end up being antagonistic to each other and both interests lose.”
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“Finishing second in the Olympics gets you silver. Finishing second in politics gets you oblivion.”
—Richard M. Nixon (b. 1913)