Anti H-Block was the political label used in 1981 by supporters of the Irish republican hunger strike

1981 Irish hunger strike

The 1981 Irish hunger strike was the culmination of a five-year protest during The Troubles by Irish republican prisoners in Northern Ireland. The protest began as the blanket protest in 1976, when the British government withdrew Special Category Status for convicted paramilitary prisoners...

 who were standing for election in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

 and the Republic of Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

. "H-Block" was a metonym

Metonymy

Metonymy is a figure of speech used in rhetoric in which a thing or concept is not called by its own name, but by the name of something intimately associated with that thing or concept...

 for the Maze Prison

Maze (HM Prison)

Her Majesty's Prison Maze was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from mid-1971 to mid-2000....

, within whose H-shaped blocks the hunger strike was taking place.

Bobby Sands

Bobby Sands

Robert Gerard "Bobby" Sands was an Irish volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army and member of the United Kingdom Parliament who died on hunger strike while imprisoned in HM Prison Maze....

, the leader of these hunger strikers, was nominated in the April 1981 by-election in Fermanagh and South Tyrone. After his victory and death, legislation was passed to prevent convicted prisoners serving sentences of more than one year from standing for Parliament in the United Kingdom, so Owen Carron

Owen Carron

Owen Gerard Carron is an Irish republican activist and who was Member of Parliament for Fermanagh and South Tyrone from 1981 to 1983.Carron is the nephew of former Nationalist Party politician John Carron....

, Sands' agent, stood as an "Anti-H-Block Proxy Political Prisoner" and won the seat in the subsequent by-election.

In the Republic of Ireland's general election in June 1981

Irish general election, 1981

The Irish general election of 1981 was held on 11 June 1981, three weeks after the dissolution of the Dáil on 21 May. The newly elected 166 members of the 22nd Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 30 June when a new Taoiseach and government were appointed....

 twelve candidates ran under the Anti H-Block banner, nine of whom were prisoners. Kieran Doherty

Kieran Doherty

Kieran Doherty TD was an Irish republican hunger striker, Teachta Dála and a volunteer in the Belfast Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army ....

 and Paddy Agnew won seats in Cavan–Monaghan

Cavan–Monaghan (Dáil Éireann constituency)

Cavan–Monaghan is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 5 deputies...

 and Louth

Louth (Dáil Éireann constituency)

Louth is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 5 deputies...

 respectively, while both Joe McDonnell and Martin Hurson

Martin Hurson

Edward Martin Hurson was an Irish republican hunger striker and a volunteer in the East Tyrone Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army .-Background:...

 narrowly missed election in Sligo–Leitrim and Longford-Westmeath . Eamonn Sweeney noted that :
The successes of the Anti H-Block movement galvanised the Irish republican

Irish Republicanism

Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...

 movement and led to the entry the following year into mainstream electoral politics of Sinn Féin

Sinn Féin

Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...

.

Candidates in the 1981 Irish general election

Nine candidates were officially endorsed by the Anti H-Block committee, eight of which were imprisoned at the time. Three candidates also ran as Anti H-Block candidates but it is unknown whether they received formal backing.

Endorsed candidates:

Denotes candidates elected to Dáil Éireann

Constituency	Candidate	Paramilitary and political affiliation	1st Pref. votes	%	Notes
Cavan–Monaghan Cavan–Monaghan (Dáil Éireann constituency) Cavan–Monaghan is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 5 deputies...	Kieran Doherty Kieran Doherty Kieran Doherty TD was an Irish republican hunger striker, Teachta Dála and a volunteer in the Belfast Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army ....	Provisional IRA Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...  – Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...	9,121	15.10	Elected on the fourth count
Clare	Tom McAllister	INLA Irish National Liberation Army The Irish National Liberation Army or INLA is an Irish republican socialist paramilitary group that was formed on 8 December 1974. Its goal is to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and create a socialist united Ireland....  – Irish Republican Socialist Party Irish Republican Socialist Party The Irish Republican Socialist Party or IRSP is a republican socialist party active in Ireland. It claims the legacy of socialist revolutionary James Connolly, who founded the Irish Socialist Republican Party in 1896 and was executed after the Easter Rising of 1916.- History :The Irish Republican...	2,120	4.68
Cork North Central Cork North Central (Dáil Éireann constituency) Cork North–Central is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 4 deputies...	Mairéad Farrell Mairéad Farrell Mairéad Farrell was an Irish volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army . She was killed by SAS soldiers during Operation Flavius, a British Army operation to prevent a bombing in Gibraltar.-Early life:...	Provisional IRA Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...  – Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...	2,751	6.05
Dublin West	Anthony O'Hara	INLA Irish National Liberation Army The Irish National Liberation Army or INLA is an Irish republican socialist paramilitary group that was formed on 8 December 1974. Its goal is to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and create a socialist united Ireland....  – Irish Republican Socialist Party Irish Republican Socialist Party The Irish Republican Socialist Party or IRSP is a republican socialist party active in Ireland. It claims the legacy of socialist revolutionary James Connolly, who founded the Irish Socialist Republican Party in 1896 and was executed after the Easter Rising of 1916.- History :The Irish Republican...	3,034	6.49	Candidate was the brother of Patsy O'Hara Patsy O'Hara Patsy O'Hara was an Irish republican hunger striker and member of the Irish National Liberation Army .He was born in Bishop Street, Derry, Northern Ireland. O'Hara joined Na Fianna Éireann in 1970, and in 1971 his brother Sean was interned in Long Kesh. In late 1971, he was shot and wounded by a...
Kerry North	Seán McKenna	Provisional IRA Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...  - Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...	3,860	11.26
	Martin Hurson Martin Hurson Edward Martin Hurson was an Irish republican hunger striker and a volunteer in the East Tyrone Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army .-Background:...	Provisional IRA Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...  – Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...	4,573	10.08	Was not eliminated. Deemed not elected on last count
Louth Louth (Dáil Éireann constituency) Louth is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 5 deputies...	Paddy Agnew	Provisional IRA Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...  – Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...	8,368	18.29	Topped the Poll
Sligo–Leitrim	Joe McDonnell	Provisional IRA – Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...	5,693	11.82	Eliminated on fourth count
Waterford Waterford (Dáil Éireann constituency) Waterford is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 4 deputies...	Kevin Lynch	INLA Irish National Liberation Army The Irish National Liberation Army or INLA is an Irish republican socialist paramilitary group that was formed on 8 December 1974. Its goal is to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and create a socialist united Ireland....  – Irish Republican Socialist Party Irish Republican Socialist Party The Irish Republican Socialist Party or IRSP is a republican socialist party active in Ireland. It claims the legacy of socialist revolutionary James Connolly, who founded the Irish Socialist Republican Party in 1896 and was executed after the Easter Rising of 1916.- History :The Irish Republican...	3,337	7.63

Other candidates:

Constituency	Candidate	Political affiliation	1st Pref. votes	%	Notes
Cork South West Cork South West (Dáil Éireann constituency) Cork South–West is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 3 deputies . The method of election is the single transferable vote form of proportional representation .- History and boundaries :It was...	Sean Kelleher	Independent Anti H-Block	1,097	3.25	Son of Tom Kelleher Tom Kelleher Tom Kelleher was a member of the Irish Republican Army in the 1920s and 1930s. He took part in various engagements of the West Cork Flying Column during the Irish War of Independence, notably the Crossbarry Ambush in March 1921....  member of the Cork IRA during the war of independence.
Dublin North Central Dublin North Central (Dáil Éireann constituency) Dublin North–Central is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 3 deputies...		People's Democracy People's Democracy People's Democracy was a political organisation that, while supporting the campaign for civil rights for Northern Ireland's Catholic minority, stated that such rights could only be achieved through the establishment of a socialist republic for all of Ireland... /National H Block/Armagh Committee	1,481	3.65	Stood in An Taoiseach Charles Haughey's constituency.
Dublin North East Dublin North East (Dáil Éireann constituency) Dublin North–East is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 3 deputies...	Paddy Healy	League for a Workers Republic League for a Workers Republic The League for a Workers' Republic was a Trotskyist organisation in Ireland.- Foundation :It was founded in 1968 by members of the Irish Workers' Group, which was mainly centred on Irish emigrants to Britain and was itself the result of a previous split in the Irish Communist Group between those,... /Trade Unionists against the H-Blocks	1,063	3.65	Brother of Seamus Healy Séamus Healy Séamus Healy is an Irish politician. He has been a Teachta Dála for Tipperary South since the general election in February 2011,having previously held the seat from 2000 to 2007.... TD.