GREEN PARTY LEADER Roderic O’Gorman has announced that he intends to stand for re-election as leader of the party.

O’Gorman is the party’s only TD following November’s general election. He took over leadership of the party from Eamon Ryan in June last year following a leadership election. Former senator Róisín Garvey is the deputy leader, having taken on the role following Catherine Martin’s stepping down.

The Dublin West TD confirmed his intention to stand for reelection today as the process for the election commences. Under the party’s constitution, there must be a leadership election within six months of the formation of a government and appointment of the Taoiseach. 

In a statement, O’Gorman said that the party had “a really disappointing outcome in the general election”, but that he had led work to rebuild the party.

The Greens faced a near wipeout in November when it lost 11 of its 12 seats. The party went from a junior coalition partner in government to a party with only one representative in the Dáil.

One of his actions included drafting a new strategic plan for the party.

“In the Strategic Plan, we are looking to listen and to learn why we lost votes, and understand how we can build back support across all parts of our country,” O’Gorman said.

“We’ve a lot to do, but I’m absolutely committed to driving this forward, over the next five years. I’m asking members for their nomination, so we can get going on this vital work”.

He said that the Green Party’s role was to highlight environmental challenges faced by Ireland and bringing forward solutions that “benefit everyone in Irish society” as the climate crisis worsens.

In the party’s most recent leadership in election, O’Gorman ran against then-Senator Pippa Hackett. He won by the narrow margin of 984 votes to 912.