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THE STARTING GUN on this year’s by-elections has been fired, with a flurry of activity and speculation about candidates for the two races in Dublin-Central and Galway-West constituencies in recent days.
The by-elections have been sparked by the departure of Paschal Donohoe from Irish politics and Catherine Connolly getting elected as President of Ireland.
Fine Gael has kicked off its proceedings today by opening its nomination process to select the party’s candidate for the upcoming Galway West bye-election today.
Nominations will remain open until 12 February and a selection convention will take place in the Galway on 22 February.
There’s much speculation that current senator and former TD Sean Kyne will get the nod by the party.
Kyne contested the general election in 2024. He is currently a senator on the Cultural and Educational panel at present but was previously a TD for the party from 2011 to 2020. He lost his seat in 2020 and was then appointed to the Seanad by the Taoiseach.
Kyne came in seventh on the first count and was less than 700 votes behind his running mate Naughton, who’s now a Minister of State.
No news yet from Fianna Fáil on who they might choose following the unsuccessful bid by presenter Gráinne Seoige in the area in 2024.
Former TD and minister Éamon Ó Cuív was described as being “coy” about whether he would be interested in contesting the by-election. So, perhaps watch this space.
One party that announced its candidate for the area last night was the Labour Party. Councillor Helen Ogbu has been chosen as the party’s preferred candidate for the upcoming Galway West bye-election.
Ogbu was elected a Labour Party Councillor in 2024 and was the first person of colour to serve on Galway City Council, said the Labour Party.
Born and raised in Nigeria, she and her family moved to Ireland in 2006 seeking refuge.
She has spent 20 years volunteering, mentoring, and advocating for social justice, and fostered more than 30 children.
Labour says this is an election that they can win, with the party leader previously pointing to her own success in by-elections.
The Social Democrats has already selected its candidate for Galway-West, Míde Nic Fhionnlaoich, who was born and raised in the Gaeltacht and is native Irish speaker.
Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns said their candidate’s values closely align with the party.
“As a Galway native, Míde is perfectly positioned to understand the needs of this beautiful constituency, which has long been neglected by successive governments when it comes to badly needed investment,” said Cairns.
Independent Ireland’s Noel Thomas, currently a sitting councillor and formerly a member of Fianna Fáil, confirmed last year that he intends on contesting the by-election after meeting with party leader Michael Collins in the days after Connolly’s election.
The Aontú candidate for the Galway West by-election is Orla Nugent. The party made the announcement earlier this afternoon.
The Green Party has also selected its candidate for the Galway-West region, with software engineer, Niall Murphy getting the nod. He has worked for medical device and communications multinationals in Galway for the past twenty five years.
From 2020 until 2024, he served as a Green Party councillor for Galway City West.
It was in the Molesworth Gallery in Dublin this afternoon that the Green Party concluded its selection process, announcing that its candidate for the Dublin-Central by-election would be local councillor Janet Horner.
The Green Party was decimated in the last general election, falling from record high Dáil representation of 12 seats to a single TD – O’Gorman.
But party leader Roderic O’Gorman batted away suggestions that the party was still in a regrowth period today, telling The Journal today that the party is in the election to win it.
He spoke highly of Horner’s experience as a trade union activist and her social justice work in other countries such as Palestine.
Speaking at her campaign launch O’Gorman said Horner “is a person who lives her values”.
“As a councillor and a long-term resident of the north inner city, I know the people of Dublin Central deserve a TD who will fight fearlessly for our area,” she said.
The constituency is a noteworthy one: it is the stomping ground of Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald and also saw Gerry “The Monk” Hutch come close to getting a seat in the 2024 general election.
Turning to Sinn Féin, who many say this by-election is theirs to lose, there had been speculation around Councillors Janice Boylan and Séamas McGrattan as two possibilities.
However, over the weekend, mother of Harvey Morrison Sherratt, Gillian, has been mentioned as a Sinn Féin contender.
The party would not comment on the matter when contacted by The Journal, only saying that the date for the convention has yet to be set.
The spokesperson did say the party would be running candidates in both by-elections.
In terms of Fine Gael, who would like to hold their seat, the obvious choice is Lord Mayor of Dublin Ray McAdam.
Asked if he would consider running last year, McAdam told The Journal that he would have to talk to his family, friends and supporters.
Fianna Fáil has not had a TD in Dublin Central since 2011 and the days of Bertie, meaning it will be a tough race for whichever candidate the party chooses.
Right now, it looks like it will be one of two: Senator Mary Fitzpatrick or the party’s only councillor in the constituency, Deputy Lord Mayor of Dublin, John Stevens.
As for the Social Democrats, the party has selected a staffer who worked for TD Gary Gannon, Daniel Ennis, who is also a councillor for the North Inner City.
Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin has been selected as People Before Profit Candidate for Dublin Central By-Election. The party said he is a fluent Irish speaker and an award-winning singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, with his musical roots in sean-nós singing.
Last year he won RTÉ Folk Awards for Best Folk Singer and Best Original Folk Track.
In this constituency race, all eyes will be on whether gangland figure Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch, who narrowly lost out on the fourth and final seat, will throw his hat in the ring again.
Hutch famously ran from the RDS last December after failing to win a seat, telling reporters he would “consider” running in an election again and adding, “I’ve been running my whole life”.
An Instagram account used during his general election campaign teased a potential run last year – flashing an image of the Five Lamps with the slogan ‘The People’s Choice’. However it’s not known if Hutch still has control of the account.
There’s no date set yet for the by-elections, but more runners and riders will be announced in the time ahead, no doubt.
With reporting by Jane Matthews
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