SEÁN Ó FEARGHAÍL is considering seeking the Ceann Comhairle role in the 34th Dáil, despite the fact the Fianna Fáil Kildare South TD previously said he would not go for a third term. 

Sources have said Ó Fearghaíl, who has held the role since 2016, has been approached by a number of TDs from different parties, suggesting that he contest the position in the interests of stability and continuity.

However a councillor for Newbridge, which is in Kildare South, has criticised Ó Fearghaíl, saying that he would leave the constituency under-represented if he becomes Ceann Comhairle again. 

The Ceann Comhairle is essentially a chairperson role in the Dáil, tasked with keeping order among TDs who are speaking on the floor. The position is filled through a secret ballot by elected politicians in the Dáil.

Whoever is elected to the role is required to step back from national campaigns and politics for the duration of their term. Therefore, the TD is automatically re-elected at the next election as they did not get an opportunity to represent their constituents.

Ó Fearghaíl has now been re-elected automatically in the last two elections, having been elected to the role first in 2016. Ahead of the most-recent general election the TD said he would not be seeking re-nomination as the Ceann Comhairle.

It is understood that Ó Fearghaíl had already begun to pack away his office in preparation to step back and return to the Fianna Fáil backbenches. A source close to the TD said other politicians approached him, asking him to reconsider.

The vote will take place on 18 December, the first day of the new Dáil.

Chris Pender, a Kildare Social Democrats councillor and a representative of the same electorate in Ó Fearghaíl’s constituency, has questioned whether it is right for Ó Fearghaíl to seek re-election.

Posting to X, referring to the reports, Pender said: “If true this is beyond a joke. The people of Kildare South have been sorely underrepresented since March 2016 with only three voices on the floor instead of four.”

Pender said he believes there needs to be term limits, suggesting that otherwise politicians could seek to serve as Ceann Comhairle ‘indefinitely’. He later told The Journal that he would like to see the role reformed.

It is understood that Ó Fearghaíl is conscious of the time he has spent in the role and plans to step back from it during this incoming Dáil term. It is further understood that he will not contest the next general election.

Pender said that TDs could seek to make legislative changes to create term limits on the role, or an informal agreement could be agreed upon among TDs. He said the current arrangement is amounting to a “democratic deficit” for the electorate in Kildare South.

“It is one of the most important roles in the Dáil, and while I have no issue with the system, it looks like there’s an opportunity for this happen indefinitely – and that’s not right,” he said.

If Ó Fearghaíl is returned to the role, it will mean Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael will be two votes short of a working majority, rather than one, and will need to factor that in when considering who its next coalition partner will be.