Six years after it was founded Fianna Fáil won 72 seats in the 1932 general election, and had a "plurality" in the Dáil. That is, it was the largest party but had less than half of all of the seats, which would be a "majority". On 9 March Governor-General James McNeill appointed de Valera President of the Executive Council . He abolished the oath and stopped paying money owed to Britain.