All in the family as dynasties fight for 27 seats

COUNCIL PROFILE: KERRY:THE BATTLE for the 27 seats on Kerry County Council sees the positioning of political dynasties for the next general election.

Names such as Healy-Rae, O’Donoghue, Sheahan, Spring, McEllistrim, Ferris and Foley are well known on the national stage. Locally, the efforts of family members to secure council seats are as much about shoring up an existing Dáil base, or carving out a new one, as anything else.

The Healy-Rae triumvirate of TD Jackie and councillor sons, Michael and Danny, represents something akin to a small political party locally.

Michael, the heir apparent to the Independent Healy-Rae Dáil seat, is contesting the Killorglin five-seater, where the other outgoing councillors are Fianna Fáil’s Paul O’Donoghue, brother of Ceann Comhairle John O’Donoghue, Michael Cahill, who has come close to winning a Seanad seat, and Fine Gael’s Patrick Connor-Scarteen, and Johnny “Porridge’’ O’Connor.

There will be much interest in who will top the poll, given the rivalry between the Healy-Raes and O’Donoghues.

A strong Healy-Rae performance will inevitably lead to renewed speculation that Michael might rejoin Fianna Fáil before the next general election and be its candidate, given that the Ceann Comhairle will be automatically returned to the Dáil, effectively reducing Kerry South to a two-seater.

While Michael Healy-Rae insists that there will be no going back to Fianna Fáil, local political observers point to the pragmatism of the Fianna Fáil-Healy-Rae-Sinn Féin deal to share the prestigious council mayoralty during the term of the outgoing council.

Danny Healy-Rae, meanwhile, is contesting the seven-seater Killarney electoral area, which also has Fine Gael’s John Sheahan, brother of the third Kerry South TD, Tom Sheahan.

Labour’s fightback in Kerry South begins with the candidacy of Marie Moloney, who was secretary to former TD Breeda Moynihan-Cronin.

Arthur John Spring, nephew of former Labour leader and tánaiste Dick Spring, is contesting the Tralee electoral area as a first step to winning a Dáil seat.

Sinn Féin’s Toireasa Ferris, daughter of TD Martin Ferris, is seeking to retain her seat while also contesting the European Parliament election in the South.

Fianna Fáil’s Anne McEllistrim, sister of Tom McEllistrim TD, and Norma Foley, daughter of former FF TD Denis Foley, are seeking to retain their Tralee seats.

The outcome of the Tralee contest will give clues to the battle for Dáil seats in the new Kerry North-Limerick West constituency in the general election.

The Green Party is running four local election candidates, including David Grey, who contested the general election and is seeking seats on the county council in the Tralee electoral area and on Tralee Town Council.

Strong Independents have a long tradition in local politics in the county, and the performance of community activist Brigid O’Connor, seeking an Independent seat in the Dingle electoral area, will be followed with interest. Issues on the doorsteps include unemployment, roads and planning.

Kerry now has 15,401 people on the live register, almost double the figure for the same period last year. As elsewhere, the imponderable is just how effectively the Fianna Fáail councillors can rise above dissatisfaction with the party.