Seamus Lynch

Seamus Lynch (born 1945) is a former Irish republican and socialist politician.

Born in North Belfast,^[1] Lynch became a republican activist around the start of The Troubles, and sided with the Official wing of Sinn Féin in the split of 1970.^[2] He was interned from October 1971 until the following year.^[1] He was a strong supporter of the Official IRA's ceasefire in 1972 and Official Sinn Féin's vocal socialism.^[2] As a result, he became active in the Republican Clubs movement, and stood for the organisation in Belfast North at the 1973 Northern Ireland Assembly election. He received only 1.7% of the first preference votes cast and was not elected. He stood again for the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention, but his vote dropped to just 1.3%. He was elected to Belfast City Council in 1977, representing Area G, but lost his seat in 1981.^[3]

Lynch next stood in the Westminster seat of Belfast North at the 1979 general election, increasing his vote to 4.5%, the best result for Republican Clubs in Northern Ireland, and at the 1982 Northern Ireland Assembly election, he increased his share to 7.1%.^[4]

In 1982, Republican Clubs was renamed the Workers' Party and Lynch became its Northern Chairman and national Vice-President^[2] He then stood in the 1983 general election, receiving 5.7% of the vote,^[5] but did less well in the Northern Ireland-wide European Parliament election in 1984, taking only 1.3% and seventh position of eight candidates.^[6] He was re-elected to Belfast City Council in 1985, representing Oldpark, and held his seat in 1989.

Lynch's best result in a Westminster election came when he took 11.8% of the vote in a three-way contest in the 1986 Belfast North by-election. At the following year's general election, he dropped back to 8.3%.^[5] He also stood in the 1989 European election, placing eighth out of ten candidates.^[7]

In 1992, Lynch sided with the split from the Workers' Party which produced Democratic Left, and he became the new group's main figure in Northern Ireland.^[8] Standing for the new organisation, at the 1992 UK general election his vote fell to 3.7%^[5] and he lost his council seat the following year.^[9] His last contest for the party was heading its North Belfast list for the Northern Ireland Forum election in 1996, but the list took only 123 votes.^[10] Democratic Left dissolved in 1999, its members invited to join the Irish Labour Party but not permitted to organise in Northern Ireland.^[11]

In 2003, Lynch was elected Chairman of the North Belfast sub-group of the Belfast District Policing Partnership.^[12] He was Public Affairs Officer with Age NI until 2012. He now works as Public Affairs Manager for Age Sector Platform and is the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Pensioners Parliament.