LAST UPDATE | 22 Mar
ELEVEN FINE GAEL TDs have now announced that they will not be contesting the next general election – exactly one third of the party’s 33 TDs.
Minister of State and TD for Dublin Rathdown Josepha Madigan today announced her resignation from her ministerial post and said that she does not intend to run again in the next general election.
Earlier this week, Ciaran Cannon TD of Galway East also said he will not run again, citing an increased “toxicity” in Irish politics.
There have been suggestions that others may yet follow their eleven party colleagues before the next general election, which has to take place before March of next year. Outgoing Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced his resignation this week, but has not yet said if he will run again for his Dublin West seat in the next election.
The latest exits once again raises questions about the party’s future ahead of the next election, and how the departures reflects on the party’s ability to contest the next election with energy.
With Simon Harris set to lead Fine Gael into the next election, it remains to be seen if he can re-energise the party, or if more resignations are to come.
Some of those leaving Fine Gael told The Journal last year that they disagreed that the numbers leaving is a reflection on the party leader, while Varadkar said in the past that there are multiple reasons why someone may choose not to run for re-election, and that it is “normal” within any political party.
Here’s a list of all of the other TDs who have said they won’t be running again so far:
1. In May 2022, Joe McHugh became the first Fine Gael TD to announce that he would not be contesting the next general election.
The Donegal representative said he made the decision to stand down in order to spend more time with his family.
“The reason for this is a simple one. I have three children and, as they grow older, I want to be around more and available to them,” he said.
“Politics is a 24/7 job that demands absolute commitment. I have given politics everything I could throughout my career and it has been my greatest honour to serve as a TD representing the people of Donegal in Dáil Éireann.”
2. Kerry TD Brendan Griffin confirmed in January 2023 that he would not be standing in the next election.
Griffin, who was elected in 2011, said that family reasons had played a part in his decision to step away from politics.
“The reason for my decision is very straightforward, I want to be around my children for the remaining years of their childhood,” he told Radio Kerry.
He also said that he never envisaged having a long career in politics, adding: “I wanted to give it everything I could while I could, and the minute I felt that I couldn’t give it 100% commitment, I would step back.”
3. In April last year, Carlow-Kilkenny TD John Paul Phelan announced that he would not be standing at the next general election.
The 45-year-old, who was first elected in 2011, cited his health as the main reason for standing down. He had a heart attack during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Once I regained consciousness that day, a doctor asked about my work, lifestyle and the need to remove stress from my life and change how I lived. When I told him my job we both laughed,” he told KCLR radio.
“In reality that prognosis has not changed. As a result I have decided not to seek the Fine Gael nomination to contest the next General Election.”
4. Cork North West TD and former Agriculture Minister Michael Creed also announced that he would not be contesting the next election in April 2023.
The 60-year-old was first elected to the Dáil in 1989 and held his seat until 2002, when he lost out to his Fine Gael running mate Gerard Murphy. He was re-elected in 2007.
In a statement announcing that he would not be seeking re-election, he said: “Politics by its nature requires renewal and it’s time for me to move on.”
He also told The Journal at the Fine Gael think-in last year that he hasn’t really thought about his retirement, stating that he is focused on the job “until the curtain drops”.
“I just felt it was the right time for me personally, but everybody has their own different circumstances that impact on their own decision making, but I’m quite happy with my own decision.”
5. Fine Gael TD for Cork East David Stanton announced that he would not seek re-election in May last year after more than 25 years in office.
Stanton said that it had been “the utmost privilege of mine” to represent his constituents since he was first elected to the Dáil in 1997 and that he would continue to work for them in the same manner until the next election.
Speaking to The Journal at the Fine Gael think-in last September, Stanton said: “You have to be realistic, you can’t keep going this way into you 70s.”
6. In September last year, Dublin Bay North TD Richard Bruton declared his intention to retire at the next election.
The 70-year-old’s career in politics has spanned 41 years, having first been elected to the Dáil in 1982.
Announcing his decision to stand down, Bruton thanked voters and those who had helped him throughout his career, adding: “This is the right time, as new constituencies are forming, to give others the chance to take on the role.”
7. That same month, former Minister for Justice and Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan announced that he would stand down at the next general election.
First elected to the Dáil in 1987, the Laois-Offaly TD said it was the right time to step away from politics.
“It is now 36 years since I was first elected to Dail Eireann. Between my father Oliver J and myself that’s 80 years of public service and 23 General Elections. In my view now it’s time to pass the baton to a younger generation,” he said.
8. In November last year, Fergus O’Dowd announced that he would be retiring at the next general election.
O’Dowd, who served in the Louth and East Meath constituency, has been a public representative for 50 years.
The 75-year-old said that it had been “an honour and a privilege” to represent the people of his constituency for that length of time, and that he intends to continue to be a “strong and forceful advocate for improved care and supports for older people”.
9. Wexford TD Paul Kehoe announced in February 2024 that he would not contest the next election.
The 51-year-old told supporters at the Wexford Fine Gael Constituency AGM that while it had been a difficult decision to make, he felt that “now is the right time for me and my family”.
Speaking at the time of Kehoe’s announcement about the number of Fine Gael TDs deciding not to stand in the next election, Minister for Public Expeniture Paschal Donohoe said he believes “it’s a reflection of the fact that we have had a large group of TDs who’ve been in politics for some time, who contested many, many, many elections”.
“They’re all reaching a point, as everybody can do in their career, regarding what else they want to do with their own personal lives and career,” he said.
10. Former junior minister and TD for Galway East Ciaran Cannon said this week that he was ending his career in politics and would not contest the next genearl election.
He cited a “coarseness” and “toxicity” in politics in his decision not to run again.
Cannon was briefly leader of the Progressive Democrats before joining Fine Gael in 2009 and was elected as a TD for the party in 2011. He served as Minister for State within both the Departments of Education and Foreign Affairs.
In his statement, Cannon said that after 20 years in politics, he has begun to “reach a point where you’ve given all you can give”.
11. Just two days after her party leader’s shock resignation as Taoiseach, Josepha Madigan unexpectedly resigned as a Junior Minister and said she would not be contesting the next general election.
Madigan had been a Fine Gael representative – first as a councillor and then as a TD – for almost ten years.
She was Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht between 2017 and 2020. In a statement, she said representing people has been an “enormous honour”.
Madigan did not give any reason for her departure.
Additional reporting by Eimer McAuley and Christine Bohan
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