The elections were fought in a highly charged political atmosphere, with a major emphasis on the issues of parliamentary reform and free trade.

Instead, the Dublin Castle administration was undertaken by a group that was referred to by Edmund Burke as the Junta; dominated by individuals such as John FitzGibbon, the new Attorney General and later Lord Chancellor.

John Foster was appointed as the Junta's Chancellor of the Exchequer, succeeding William Gerard Hamilton, who had treated the position as a sinecure posting.

The companies were as concerned about British interference in Irish politics as they were about resisting potential foreign invasions, and pushed for free trade between Ireland and Great Britain.

The returning officer in each county or parliamentary borough fixed the precise date (see hustings for details of the conduct of the elections).