SENATOR MICHAEL MCDOWELL has said he didn’t nominate Maria Steen for the presidency because he has been “consistently liberal” and that her election would have been a “step backwards” for Ireland.

In today’s Irish Times, McDowell said he was approached by a “pro-life” caucus but that he had no intention of joining it.

He added that the subsequent election of Steen “might very well have happened” had she been nominated and that this “would have been divisive and a step backwards for the kind of Ireland I believe in”.

There are two routes to be nominated for the presidential election – the backing of four local authorities or the nominations of 20 Oireachtas members.

After failing to secure the backing of a local authority, Steen set her sights on the signatures of 20 Oireachtas members.

She got the backing of 18 but as the nomination deadline loomed, many started looking towards McDowell as a key figure in getting Steen across the line.

Two days before the nomination deadline, a front page headline on the Irish Daily Mail described McDowell as the “gatekeeper” in relation to Steen’s presidential bid.

Writing in today’s Irish Times, McDowell said in July, he was “informed of plans by pro-life members of the Oireachtas, including Aontú,” to set up a process to interview aspiring candidates.

McDowell said such candidates included Steen and Declan Ganley, who he describes as “known pro-life activists”.

McDowell said he informed them that he was “not interested in becoming involved in such a caucus”.

He then writes that Steen “deliberately chose” the Irish Catholic as the publication in which to formally announce her candidacy at the end of August.  

In that article, Steen said some candidates “seem to wish to push the boundaries of the Presidential office” and that she has “no expansionist ambitions”.

She added that she “stands over everything I have ever said and written publicly”.

On 4 September, McDowell said he was approached by Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín.

McDowell said that Tóibín told him that it would be a major pity if there wasn’t “a voice standing up for our values in the race”.

McDowell said that at this time, he was asked to support a “nominating caucus” that would decide upon potential candidates by way of secret ballot, and that there would be no compulsion to nominate whoever the eventual ballot winner was.

McDowell said he didn’t agree with the process because it was “clearly intended to select a pro-life candidate”.

It was then put to McDowell that he could nominate a candidate whose views he disagreed with, but McDowell said he “would not propose a candidate for the presidency whose election I was opposed”.

He added that an Oireachtas member should be willing to support the subsequent election of anyone they nominate.

Steen then made direct contact with McDowell on 1 September, asking if McDowell would “have time to take a quick call”.

McDowell replied that he would make no decision until potential nominations on the local authority route become clearer and until Sinn Féin decided if it was running its own candidate or backing Catherine Connolly.

When it became clear no one would be nominated via the local authorities and when Sinn Féin decided to back Connolly, McDowell said he informed Independent Ireland leader Michael Collins that he “did not intend to support” Steen.

Related Reads

Blame game begins as Maria Steen supporters divided on why her campaign failed at last hurdle

Catherine Connolly says she was asked to nominate Steen herself 'but it was too late in the day'

Maria Steen narrowly misses out on nominations to get on the Áras ballot

Two days before the nomination deadline, Steen’s campaign team asked to meet with McDowell but he informed them that “he would not be nominating her”.

He noted that at this point, there were “at least eight” senators who were unwilling to nominate Steen for “different reasons”.

“I was in no sense ‘gatekeeper’ for her nomination, as each of those eight Senators had already made their own completely independent decisions on the matter,” said McDowell.

He added that meeting Steen face-to-face would not have served a “useful purpose” as his position was well known.

“Suggestions that I was motivated by envy, jealousy, misogyny or other base reasons are simply untrue,” he added.

‘Not done just yet’

Writing in the Sunday Independent, Steen said that had McDowell decided to put his name forward for president, she would not have done so – McDowell publicly stated in May that he would not run.

After he ruled himself out, Steen said she decided to run for the Áras as it would have been “foolish” to go up against him. 

Steen remarked that calls and emails to “certain Oireachtas members went unanswered”.

She also noted that McDowell spoke alongside her at a press conference to argue against the referendums on family and care.

Steen said that many texts and calls to McDowell between first making contact on 1 September and close of nominations on 24 September “went unanswered” but that he was “not the only politician not to respond”.

She added: “I am sorry that I didn’t make it for the sake of all those who were hoping to hear a different perspective from outside the political establishment.”