[1] In 1913 Hughes, who by this time had become affiliated with the socialist James Connolly, was involved in journalism and wrote articles supporting the strikers during the Dublin Lockout.

[1] In 1916, Hughes fought with the Irish Citizen Army in Jacob's biscuit factory during the Easter Rising and was subsequently imprisoned by the British until May 1917.

Following the Anglo-Irish treaty and the ensuing Irish Civil War, Hughes supported the Pro-Treaty faction.

This affiliation subsequently saw Hughes move away from his previous ties to the Labour movement in Ireland and join the ranks of Cumann na nGaedheal.

During the 1920s, in parallel to his move from Labour to Cumann na nGaedheal, Hughes became associated with Catholicism conservatism: In 1924 he began writing for the Catholic Herald, while in 1926 he joined the highly conservative An Ríoghacht organisation.