Profile: Declan Breathnach (FF)

Declan Breathnach held a seat in Louth for Fianna Fáil following the retirement of former ceann comhairle Seamus Kirk. He is a former school principal and served on Louth County Council for 25 years. Breathnach began to sniff the possibility of topping the poll when transfers from across the political spectrum seemed to be coming in his direction. “We were on the doorsteps from early October. I certainly got a very strong sense from a very early time that change was going to happen,” he said of his party’s success in the election. Breathnach said there was little support for Enda Kenny in the country and that his party leader Micheal Martin could be proposed as taoiseach within days.