A former customs clerk with the Ford Motor Company in Cork, Wallace was first elected to the 24th Dáil at the November 1982 general election, and was re-elected to Dáil Éireann in every subsequent general election until he retired at that 2007 general election.
A former customs clerk with the Ford Motor Company in Cork, Wallace was an unsuccessful candidate at the 1981 and February 1982 general elections. He was first elected to the 24th Dáil at the November 1982 general election, and was re-elected to Dáil Éireann in every subsequent general election until he retired at that 2007 general election.