The former IFA president, Mr Tom Parlon, yesterday declared for the Progressive Democrats and will run what he termed "a vigorous campaign" in Laois-Offaly in the forthcoming general election.
A "delighted" Tánaiste, who made it clear at a press conference in the Bridge House Hotel that she had travelled to Tullamore by car, described the latest addition to her party as "a man of courage, steel and ability".
"I have got two new men in my life this year, and that cannot be too bad," joked Ms Harney, who had just arrived back in Ireland from her honeymoon in Kenya.
"After all," she said, "I did spend most of my wedding day with Tom Parlon," referring to her involvement in the negotiations between the IFA and the Irish Sugar Company which she chaired on the day she married shortly before Christmas.
She said she had invited the former IFA president to run for the party several weeks ago because she admired the skilful and honourable way he had led the IFA over the past four years.
She had worked with him several times over that period in the partnership negotiations and more recently in the beet talks, where she saw at first hand "a very skilful, professional and honourable person".
He had led the IFA not in an urban-rural rift way, she said, but had genuinely recognised the interdependence between urban and rural Ireland, bringing him admiration from all sides.
"He is a huge asset to the Irish political system at a time when there is huge cynicism, and it is very difficult for any party to get high-calibre people to come forward and allow themselves go forward," she said.
She believed in his ability to deliver. It had taken a lot of courage and steel to join a small party like the PDs which, with only four TDs, had "punched way above their weight". In the last election 11,000 voters had not opted for the two big political parties.
Mr Parlon said he had been an admirer of Mary Harney and the Progressive Democrats for many years. They had made a major contribution to shaping Ireland into a modern, prosperous and confident nation.
He was convinced the PDs would play a key role in the formation of the next government and felt he could have a real impact on helping to shape the policies for the people of Laois-Offaly.
He would, he said, campaign on all the major issues affecting the people of the constituency and the country as a whole and would ensure that Laois-Offaly got its fair share of EU funding as part of the BMW region.
In reply to questions, the 48-year-old pig and sheep farmer from Coolderry, near Birr, said he did not know which of the local TDs he would take a seat from and he was not worried about that.
He denied he had made any particular deal with the party about his role after election. What he was going to do was to give it "a very hard shot".
"If everything goes well and the balls hop in the right direction, I will be driving a hard bargain for myself, but I am not looking beyond where I am now," he said.
Mr Parlon would not reveal anything about his discussions with Fine Gael but said he not made up his mind until Saturday night.
Fine Gael holds two of the seats and hopes to retain the seat held by Mr Tom Enright from Birr, who is retiring. His solicitor daughter, Olwyn, has been chosen to contest the seat. The other FG seat is held by Mr Charlie Flanagan.
Fianna Fáil holds the remaining three seats, with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, the most high-profile deputy alongside Mr John Moloney and Mr Sean Fleming.
Local activists believe the Enright seat is the most vulnerable to Mr Parlon because he lives in the same area, which has a strong rural base.
The Tánaiste told reporters she was hoping Mr Michael McDowell would run again for the party but as it was "Tom Parlon's day" there was nothing more she could say about it.
On her use of an Air Corps aircraft to fly to Sligo to open an off-licence, she said she had dealt fully with the issue. She had apologised and had dealt openly and honestly with the matter.