How some of the councils voted
KERRY DAVIS
Kerry County Council yesterday formally nominated the Independent Mary Davis as a candidate in the presidential election, with strong support from Fianna Fáil.
Ms Davis was proposed by Fianna Fáil councillor John Brassil and seconded by Independent councillor Brendan Cronin.
The vote was 15 for, 10 not voting and two members were absent.
She received the backing of Fianna Fáil and Labour, one of two Sinn Féin councillors, as well as Independent councillors. However Fine Gael councillors abstained on block, alongside Sinn Féin’s Toireasa Ferris.
Ms Ferris, who had previously supported the candidacy of David Norris when the matter came before the July council meeting, said she wanted to register her objection to the “undemocratic” nature of the presidential election.
Ms Davis had enough councils behind her and someone else should be given Kerry’s support, she added.
Fianna Fáil’s Paul O’Donoghue, while voting for Ms Davis, said: “An opportunity should be given to David Norris to enter the race”.
Mr O’Donoghue is the brother of the former ceann comhairle John O’Donoghue and heads the six Fianna Fáil councillors in the chamber.
ANNE LUCEY
CORK CITY GALLAGHER
Independent candidate and Dragon’s Den personality Seán Gallagher has received the backing of Cork City Council to contest the presidential election.
Some 13 councillors voted for the entrepreneur’s inclusion on the ticket with eight against and eight abstentions. Fine Gael abstained from the vote with the exception of Cllr Pat Gosch who voted against.
Labour councillors voted against adding Mr Gallagher’s name to the ticket for the forthcoming election. Mr Gallagher received support from Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin and Independent councillors.
Fine Gael members previously said they would abstain from any vote while Labour Party members said they would vote against the council nominating any candidate and as a consequence any prospective candidate.
Writing on his Twitter feed Mr Gallagher said he was “thrilled” to have received his fourth council nomination from Cork. Mr Gallagher has ties to the area as his wife Trish (nee O’Connor) is from Kanturk.
In his address to the city council last week Mr Gallagher spoke of the challenges facing Ireland and how the country needs to restore its reputation. “Ireland needs to go back to and develop sustainable principles. We have to work out what we are good at and live life with our abilities and not our disabilities. We need to focus on what we can do.”
OLIVIA KELLEHER
CORK COUNTY DAVIS
Independent presidential hopeful Mary Davis was leaving Cork County Hall following her presentation to councillors yesterday when she was informed she had secured enough support from local authorities to have her name put on the ballot paper.
“I have just heard that South Tipperary have come through so I am absolutely delighted. Monaghan as well. I have Galway and I have Sligo. I am there – an official candidate.
“I am thrilled not just for myself but for the huge number of supporters I have who have worked so incredibly hard over the last few months,” she said.
Speaking in the council chamber earlier Ms Davis said councillors had the power to put an independent voice on the ticket for election day. “I would be honoured to be that Independent voice and seek your support here today,” she said.
“I really do believe that the office can present something tangible, something practical, particularly in those very challenging and unprecedented and disturbing times that we live in right now. I believe we need a president who can help to rebuild ourselves at home, who can inspire hope and belief and promote that sense of community that I grew up with in Mayo. A president who can represent us on an international stage and who can make Ireland a better, more fair and a more equitable society to live in,” she added.
Fermoy native Richard McSweeney also made his case for a presidential nomination before Cork County Council. A philosopher and author, he spoke of the need to widen the ticket to include an “Independent intellectual.”
The county council won’t decide on who to nominate until its next meeting.
OLIVIA KELLEHER
MONAGHAN DAVIS
Monaghan County Council decided at a special meeting yesterday to formally nominate Mary Davis as a candidate for the presidential election. She was proposed by Clones-based Sinn Féin county councillor Pat Treanor and seconded by Independent councillor and former TD Paudge Connolly.
Ms Davis said following the nomination: “I am really delighted and I want to publicly thank both my proposer and seconder for their support and help in my campaign.”
PATSY McARDLE
MAYO DAVIS
With her candidacy for president already secured, Mary Davis wore a satisfied smile when she arrived last evening to her home turf in Co Mayo.
By the time she got to Castlebar, Ms Davis had secured the required number of endorsements from county councils to ensure a nomination to contest next month’s election.
The Special Olympics Ireland founder is a native of the townland of Kinaffe, midway between Kiltimagh and Swinford.
The Mayo nomination was her ninth, “a nice feeling”, she said as she basked in the warm glow of support shown by a group of admirers as they saw her off to Galway, where she was to address the city council.
Asked about how difficult it would be to fund her campaign, Ms Davis said that posed a challenge. “I will be looking for small donations from a lot of people . . . I hope to raise funds in that way.”
TOM SHIEL
GALWAY DAVIS
Galway City Council also nominated Mary Davies to contest the presidential election last night.
Galway County Council was the first local authority to nominate her and its counterparts in the city added their support last night.
The four independent members and three Fianna Fáil councillors backed the motion, which was proposed by former Progressive Democrat, Cllr Terry O’Flaherty.
The five Labour and three Fine Gael councillors abstained.
JOHN FALLON
DÚN LAOGHAIRE-RATHDOWN
Attempts to nominate Mary
Davis as a presidential candidate were blocked last night in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council by Fine Gael and Labour Party councillors.
At a monthly meeting of the council, attended by all 28 members, 20 councillors voted not to suspend standing orders to facilitate a debate on Ms Davis’s candidacy. Four resolutions to nominate presidential candidates had already been tabled in advance of last night’s meeting. Davis had been nominated twice: first by Independent councillors Victor Boyhan and Tony Fox, then Fianna Fáil councillors. Fine Gael had nominated Gay Mitchell and Labour nominated Michael D Higgins.
Voting on the separate resolutions would have forced Government-party councillors, many of whom were reluctant to be seen to vote against Davis, into taking a position on her nomination.
FIONA GARTLAND