A Letter from Ireland
a Chara,
By the time this email lands in your inbox, voting will be underway in the Irish Presidential elections. It is expected that the result will be known by late afternoon on Saturday, October 25th, Irish time.
This has been an election like no other. The first two weeks of the campaign were marked by high drama as one of the three candidates withdrew from the race. Jim Gavin started as the favourite, was the nominee of one of the governing parties, Fianna Fáil, and had been championed by the Taoiseach, Micheal Martin.
Due to a series of mishaps and poor media performances, his campaign struggled from the get-go. It then went from bad to worse when a previous tenant claimed that Mr Gavin had failed to repay overpaid rent. This was denied by Fianna Fáil, and the candidate claimed to be unaware of the issue.
The tenant was able to provide evidence of solicitor’s letters and a record of efforts to reclaim the overpayment. Mr Gavin exited the race, apologised, and repaid the former tenant. His name still lingers on the ballot paper.
That left two candidates to contest the position, Heather Humphreys, the Fine Gael nominee and now the sole candidate of the government parties and Cathrine Connolly, an Independent TD from Galway with the backing of the main opposition parties.
As the campaign began, Connolly was trailing the field.
Sinn Féin consulted its membership as to whether to support a party nominee or an independent candidate. When that consultation ended, Sinn Féin President Mary Lou teased that the party’s decision would be a “game changer”. Later announcing that Sinn Féin, the largest party across the island, would support Connolly. With the campaign underway, Connolly began to grow in the polls. Each debate demonstrated the strength, depth and vision of the candidate.
We have been out on the doors in support of Catherine Connolly, and last week we were joined by other Sinn Féin party members from the North of Ireland. They came to canvass, despite being denied a vote in the election.
The Irish President is not like a US President; their legislative role is to protect the constitution and rights of citizens, to be the head of state and more to represent the Irish nation, our culture, values and aspirations.
The Irish nation is not confined by partition or seas. It lives beyond the border of the state, with Irish Citizens in the North, the US, Canada, Britain, Australia and across the globe. It is in the hearts of generations of the diaspora.
In many ways, the office of the President is above politics. That is why, as the campaign has progressed, Catherine Connolly has become the frontrunner. She has offered a vision of a new republic, a President independent of the government and a united Ireland.
In response, the campaign of Heather Humphreys grew more negative. Her former party colleague and Minister advised the campaign to “smear the bejasus” out of Connolly. Advice that the campaign has taken on board. It remains to be seen if these low tactics for such a high office pay dividends for Humphreys, Fine Gael and their government partners.
By Saturday evening, we will know the name of the new President.
Have a great weekend,
