2016 Irish government formation
| Date | March–May 2016 |
|---|---|
| Location | Dublin, Ireland |
| Participants | |
| Outcome | Government of the 32nd Dáil |
The events surrounding the formation of Ireland's government in 2016 took place during March, April and May of that year, following the general election held on 26 February, which failed to produce an overall majority for any of the country's outgoing political alliances and resulted in a hung parliament.
The outgoing administration was a coalition government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party. Both parties lost many seats, meaning they no longer commanded an overall majority in Dáil Éireann and that the government had been defeated. The largest opposition party, Fianna Fáil, more than doubled its number of seats, becoming the second-largest party in the Dáil. The parties comprising the left-wing Right2Change alliance, as well as other unaligned parties such as the Green Party or the Social Democrats, also failed to win a majority of seats. Consequently, senior figures from both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil embarked on talks with each other and also with independent politicians and representatives of several smaller parties, aiming at forming a viable administration.
This eventually resulted in Ireland's first minority government since 1989: a coalition led by Fine Gael with the support of nine independent politicians, and with a formal agreement that Fianna Fáil would abstain on matters of confidence and supply.
After the 2011 general election, Fine Gael and the Labour Party formed a coalition government, taking over from the previous Fianna Fáil-Green Party coalition government shortly after the latter had agreed to embark on the Economic Adjustment Programme for Ireland. Fine Gael and the Labour Party continued with these measures.
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