Michael McDowell (politician)

Senator Michael McDowell
McDowell in 2024
Senator
Incumbent
Assumed office 8 June 2016
Constituency	National University
Tánaiste
In office 13 September 2006 – 14 June 2007
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	Mary Harney
Succeeded by	Brian Cowen
Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform
In office 6 June 2002 – 14 June 2007
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	John O'Donoghue
Succeeded by	Brian Lenihan
Leader of the Progressive Democrats
In office 11 September 2006 – 25 May 2007
Preceded by	Mary Harney
Succeeded by	Mary Harney
27th Attorney General of Ireland
In office 17 July 1999 – 6 June 2002
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	David Byrne
Succeeded by	Rory Brady
Teachta Dála
In office May 2002 – May 2007
In office November 1992 – June 1997
In office February 1987 – June 1989
Constituency	Dublin South-East
Personal details
Born	(1951-05-01) 1 May 1951 (age 73) Dublin, Ireland
Political party	Independent (2009–present)
Other political affiliations	Fine Gael (until 1985) Progressive Democrats (1985–2009)
Spouse	Niamh Brennan ​ (m. 1979)​
Children	3[1]
Education	Gonzaga College
Alma mater	University College Dublin
Military service
Branch/service	Army Reserve
Years of service	1970–1981

Michael McDowell (born 1 May 1951)^[2] is an Irish independent politician and barrister. Active in politics since the 1980s, he has held a number of prominent roles in Irish public life. He currently serves as a senator for the National University.

A grandson of Irish revolutionary Eoin MacNeill, McDowell was educated at Gonzaga College and studied law at University College Dublin and King's Inns. He began practicing as a barrister in 1974, becoming a senior counsel in 1987. Initially a member of Fine Gael, he co-founded the Progressive Democrats in the mid-1980s and was elected three times as a TD for the Dublin South-East constituency, serving in the 25th Dáil (1987–1989), the 27th Dáil (1992–1997), and the 29th Dáil (2002–2007). He served as Attorney General of Ireland from 1999–2002 and as Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform from 2002–2007.

After Mary Harney resigned as leader of the Progressive Democrats in September 2006, McDowell became party leader and Tánaiste. He led the Progressive Democrats into the 2007 general election, in which the party lost six of its eight seats in Dáil Éireann, including his own. He immediately resigned as party leader—his brief tenure having made him the shortest-serving party leader in the history of the state—and left public life to resume his private legal career. However, he returned to politics in 2016 and was elected to Seanad Éireann, to which he was re-elected in 2020. He was regarded as instrumental in campaigning for No votes in the March 2024 constitutional referendums on Family and Care, both of which were comprehensively defeated.