1977 general election's 40th anniversary: Razzmatazz gave Jack Lynch a massive majority he didn’t want

On the 40th anniversary, Ryle Dwyer looks at the momentous events of the 1977 general election.

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the 1977 general election, one of the most significant in our history. It was widely seen as the crowning triumph for Jack Lynch as leader of Fianna Fáil.

One of the two driving forces behind the campaign was the young party secretary Séamus Brennan, who had been sent to the US for the 1976 presidential election.