FINE GAEL IS to open its nomination process for anyone seeking the party’s candidacy for the upcoming presidential election tomorrow. 

The nominations will close at 4pm on the following Tuesday, 15 July, a statement from the party said.

To be nominated, a candidate needs the nomination of 20 members of the Parliamentary Party, 25 Fine Gael Councillors and five members of the Executive Council, it said.

If a public representative is also a member of the Executive Council, they must indicate in which capacity they are nominating.

In the event of a contest where more than one person is successful in being nominated for the candidacy, an electoral college voting system applies. 

Under the voting system, every member of the party in compliance with the two-year rule has a vote. The membership element of the college is worth 30% of the overall vote, councillors’ votes are worth 15%, and the parliamentary party accounts for 55%.

There will be a number of hustings held in late July and a postal ballot of members will take place across August. The parliamentary party will vote in September, as will councillors. The selected candidate will be ratified at an event in September. 

President Michael D Higgins’s term will conclude on 11 November.

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The election of the next President must take place within the sixty days before that, leaving the election open to be held from any stage from 13 September to 10 November.

It is understood that at present, former European Commissioner Mairead McGuinness is the frontrunner for the party’s nomination for the presidency, although MEP Seán Kelly has also declared his interest in contesting.