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William Sheldon (Irish politician)

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William Sheldon
Senator
In office
14 December 1961 – 1 June 1973
ConstituencyNominated by the Taoiseach
Teachta Dála
In office
June 1943 – October 1961
ConstituencyDonegal East
Personal details
Born(1907-01-18)18 January 1907
Derry, Ireland
Died1 November 1999(1999-11-01) (aged 92)
County Donegal, Ireland
Political partyIndependent
Other political
affiliations
Clann na Talmhan
Spouse
Margaret Whyte
(m. 1942)
EducationFoyle College
Alma materQueen's University Belfast

William Alexander Watson Sheldon (18 January 1907 – 1 November 1999) was an Irish politician and farmer. From a protestant background,[1] he was elected to Dáil Éireann at the 1943 general election as a Clann na Talmhan Teachta Dála (TD) for the Donegal East constituency.[2] He was re-elected as an independent TD at the 1944, 1948, 1951, 1954 and 1957 general elections.[3] He did not contest the 1961 general election.[1]

When tributes were paid to him in the Seanad after his death, it was said that this was because the constituency was reduced from 4 to 3 seats.[4][a] In 1961, he was nominated by the Taoiseach, Seán Lemass to the 10th Seanad. He was re-nominated to the Seanad in 1965 and 1969, and he retired from politics in 1973. He was also a member of Donegal County Council from 1945 to 1955.[4]

Notes

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  1. ^ The four-seat Donegal East was abolished and the three-seat Donegal North-East was created.

References

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  1. ^ a b Murphy, Angela. "Sheldon, William Alexander Watson". Dictionary of Irish Biography. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  2. ^ "William Sheldon". Oireachtas Members Database. Retrieved 9 April 2009.
  3. ^ "William Sheldon". ElectionsIreland.org. Retrieved 9 April 2009.
  4. ^ a b "Seanad Éireann – Volume 160 – 3 November 1999 – Death of Former Member: Expressions of Sympathy". House of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 17 October 2020.