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Badge, Vote Dev, sticker type badge, circular, "vote DEV" in centre
Badge, “vote Dev”, sticker type badge, circular, central green circle with words “vote/DEV” in white, surrounded by two narrow rings of colour, the middle is white and the outer ring is orange. The sticker is attached to a plastic type backing which has been cut unevenly around the badge with parts of the badge edge being removed at some points.
Discoloured, the edges have been trimmed by scissors.
Eamon de Valera’s connection with elections and Clare go back to 1917. On the 7th June 1917, Willie Redmond, MP for East Clare was killed in action while leading the Royal Irish Brigade to victory at the Battle of Ypres in Belgium during the First World War. He had represented East Clare for 25 years as an MP and the subsequent by-election was hotly contested between Eamon de Valera, the Sinn Fein candidate and Patrick Lynch of the Irish Party.Polling took place on Tuesday 10th July 1917, and de Valera was elected by a huge majority of 2975 votes. Afterwards he appeared on the steps of the Courthouse in Ennis wearing his Volunteers uniform, accompanied by Countess Markievicz, Count Plunkett MP, and Sinn Fein leader Arthur Griffith. For de Valera, it was the start of a long political career representing County Clare which continued until 1959, when he went on to serve two consecutive terms as President of Ireland.
It is likely this paper badge dates to one of the elections he contended in Clare.
Collection: De Valera Museum
Category: Emblem