Members of the Eighth Dáil - Frank MacDermot

Frank C. J. MacDermot (25 November 1886 – 24 June 1975) was an Irish barrister and politician.

MacDermot was born in Dublin, the seventh and youngest son of Hugh Hyacinth O'Rorke MacDermot, Prince of Coolavin. He was educated at Downside School and the University of Oxford and qualified as a barrister. He was commissioned into the Army Service Corps during World War I and ended the war as a Major. He later emigrated to the United States and became a banker in New York City from 1919–27. He returned to Ireland in the late 1920s and stood unsuccessfully as an Independent Republican candidate for Belfast West in the 1929 United Kingdom general election. An Anglophile he was elected to Dáil Éireann in the 1932 Irish general election as an Independent Teachta Dála (TD) for Roscommon. He founded the National Centre Party that year with James Dillon and became the party’s leader.

He was a persistent critic of Fianna Fáil and Éamon de Valera. He criticised the abolition of the oath of allegiance, the abolition of the Free State Seanad Éireann, the abolition of the Governor-General and the introduction of the Constitution of Ireland in 1937 arguing each time that these actions would copper-fasten partition and arguing of the need for rapprochement with the government of Northern Ireland and the wider Unionist Community. He continually stated that partition could only be addressed when Dublin-London relationships were normalised. He was widely regarded as one of the best speakers in the Dáil.

In 1933 he led the National Centre Party to merge with Cumann na nGaedheal and the Blueshirts to form Fine Gael and MacDermot became a Vice-President of the party. He did not seek re-election in 1937 but surprisingly joined Fianna Fáil that year. He had had personal differences with his Fine Gael colleagues on issues such as the degree of emphasis to be given to Ireland's membership of the Commonwealth. De Valera appointed him to the re-established Seanad as a Senator in 1938. He remained in the Seanad until 1943. During World War II, he was a critic of Irish neutrality throughout his time in the upper house, arguing that Ireland should be fighting with the allies. He subsequently became the U.S. and Paris correspondent for The Irish Times newspaper.

Members of the Eighth Dáil - Conor Maguire

Conor Alexander Maguire

Conor Alexander Maguire (1889 – 26 September 1971) was an Irish politician, lawyer and judge. He was a founding member of the Legal and Economic Society in UCD in 1911; now known as the University College Dublin Law Society. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála (TD) for the National University of Ireland constituency at the 1932 general election and was re-elected at the 1933 general election.

He was appointed as Attorney General of the Irish Free State in March 1932. In November 1936, he resigned as Attorney General and as a TD on his appointment as a High Court judge. In 1946, he was appointed as Chief Justice of Ireland, that is the president of the Supreme Court of Ireland, where he served until 1961.

Members of the Eighth Dáil - Helena Concannon

Helena Concannon (née Walsh; 1878 – 27 February 1952) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician, historian, author and language scholar.

She was Professor of History at University College Galway. Many of her writings were on the subject of Irish women, including Women of Ninety Eight (1919), Daughters of Banba (1922), The Poor Clares in Ireland (1929), and Irish nuns in penal days (1931).

She was first elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála (TD) at the 1933 general election for the National University of Ireland constituency. At the 1938 general election, she was elected to Seanad Éireann for the National University of Ireland constituency. She was re-elected at each successive election and served in the Seanad until her death in 1952.

Her husband was the Irish scholar Tomás Bán Ó Conceanainn.

Members of the Eighth Dáil - Eamon Rice

(Edward) Eamon Rice (26 April 1873 – 7 November 1937) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician. A national teacher before entering politics, he was first elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála (TD) at the 1932 general election for the Monaghan constituency. He was re-elected at the 1933 and 1937 general elections. He died while still in office in 1937. His widow Bridget Rice succeeded him as a TD for the same constituency from 1938 to 1954.

Members of the Eighth Dáil - Robert Davitt

Robert Emmet Davitt (12 December 1899 – 26 September 1981) was an Irish Fine Gael politician and medical practitioner. He was elected to Dáil Éireann as a Cumann na nGaedheal Teachta Dála (TD) for the Meath constituency at the 1933 general election. He did not contest the 1937 general election. He was a son of Michael Davitt.

Members of the Eighth Dáil - James Morrisroe

James Morrisroe (died December 1937) was an Irish politician. He was elected to Dáil Éireann as a Cumann na nGaedheal Teachta Dála (TD) for the Mayo North constituency at the 1933 general election. He lost his seat at the 1937 general election.

Members of the Eighth Dáil - Charles Fagan

Charles Fagan (1 October 1881 – 8 May 1974) was an Irish politician and farmer. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann at the 1933 general election as a National Centre Party Teachta Dála (TD) for the Longford–Westmeath constituency. He became a Fine Gael TD on 8 September 1933 when Cumann na nGaedheal and the National Centre Party, along with the Army Comrades Association merged to form the new party of Fine Gael. He was elected as a Fine Gael TD for the Meath–Westmeath constituency at the 1937 general election. He was re-elected at the 1938, 1943 and 1944 general elections.

He left Fine Gael in 1948 and was elected as an independent TD for Longford–Westmeath at the 1948 general election, and was re-elected as an independent TD at the 1951 general election. He re-joined Fine Gael in 1954 and was elected as a Fine Gael TD for Longford–Westmeath at the 1954 general election, and was re-elected at the 1957 general election. He did not contest the 1961 general election.