Éamon de Valera among the electorate, 75-year-old de Valera had begun to be seen by the electorate as too old and out of touch to remain as head of government. At the urging of party officials, de Valera decided to retire from government and the Dáil and instead seek the presidency of Ireland. He won the 1959 presidential election on 17 June 1959 and resigned as Taoiseach, Leader of Fianna Fáil and a TD for Clare, six days later, handing over power to Seán Lemass. De Valera was inaugurated President of Ireland on 25 June 1959. He was re-elected President in 1966, aged
South West Party South West Party The South West Party (in Afrikaans: "Suidwes Party", in German: "Südwestpartei") was a political party in South West Africa, today Namibia. Initially the party was known as Union Party ("Unie Party" in Afrikaans). The party was founded in Windhoek in September 1924 by F. van der Heever, A.P. Olivier, and Andries de Wet. It took the name SWP in 1926. In 1926, the SWP created a pact with the National Party of South West Africa, against the German League in South West Africa (, DBSW). The party contested four seats in the 1926 legislative elections, winning in