Immigrants in Irish Politics: African and East European Candidates in the 2009 Local Government Elections

Abstract

A BSTRACT High levels of immigration to Ireland have left an impact on the economy and society, but arguably less of an impact on politics. Though immigration has been an issue in party politics and the subject of a controversial referendum, the immigrants themselves have had little direct impact on parties or the political system. This article treats the immigrant as the political actor of interest, and through a series of interviews examines individual motivations for political participation, status factors (i.e. residency/citizenship) and finally, how social capital interacts and combines with other forms of capital (human and cultural capital)in impacting the political agency of immigrants.

Monitoring report on integration 2020

“…As noted in previous Monitoring Reports, ethnic minorities are less likely to register to vote than the majority population (Heath et al, 2013) and less likely to | Mo nit orin g report o n int egrat ion 2018 stand as candidates (Fanning and O'Boyle 2010;O'Boyle et al, 2016). Irish NGOs have been actively seeking to increase the proportion of non-Irish nationals registered to vote and become more informed about Irish politics, often via government-funded programmes.…”

Monitoring report on integration 2016

“…Dublin City Council was among local authorities that ran voter registration campaigns (Dublin City Council, 2016 Looking in particular at Polish migrants standing for and voting in the 2014 local election in Ireland, O'Boyle et al report a disappointing level of engagement in 2014 compared to 2009. Drawing on survey research on the policies and practices of political parties regarding immigrant communities and ethnic-minority groups (Fanning et al, 2007) and on immigrant candidates (Fanning and O'Boyle, 2010) the authors comment that political parties do not actively seek to include, nor exclude, immigrants. It is proposed that there was a sense of disillusionment amongst Irish political parties, arising from low levels of immigrant voter turnout during the 2009 local government elections, and perceptions that immigrant candidates performed poorly in the 2009 elections .…”

Citizenship and Political Participation: The Role of Electoral Rights Under European Union Law

“…Very few EU citizens take advantage of the right to stand for election (and even fewer achieve election), and there are rather low levels of interactive engagement between the electoral rights and political parties. Quite a number of EU citizens who are elected in fact stand as independent candidates, operating outwith the 'normal' party systems (Fanning 2010). Qualitative data on the 'experience' of free movement, even among elite groups, collected by Favell (2008Favell ( , 2010 points to a low level of awareness both of 2 Council Directive 93/109/EC laying down detailed arrangements for the exercise of the right to vote and stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament for citizens of the Union residing in a Member State of which they are not nationals, OJ 1993 L329/34; Council Directive 94/80/EC laying down detailed arrangements for the exercise of the right to vote and stand as a candidate in municipal elections by citizens of the Union residing in a Member State of which they are not nationals, OJ 1994 L368/38.…”

“…Placing the legal framework in context allows us to address a number of key questions about the evolving nature of citizenship in the European Union and its Member States, and about how more abstract debates about the intersection of sovereignty, citizenship and suffrage can mix with the politics and policies of immigration and immigrant incorporation in host polities. Ireland has a unique mix of 'voluntary' arrangements (local electoral rights for non-EU citizens and limited national electoral rights for UK citizens) and those mandated by EU law, and it is intriguing to see how the two have moulded together, especially so far as political mobilisation is concerned (Fanning 2010). The scope of voting rights is a regularly contested issue within most polities-if not always at the macro constitutional level, then certainly at the level of implementation and especially in relation to mobilisation around such rights.…”