Profile: Kathleen Funchion (SF)

Kathleen Funchion (33) is a full-time Siptu organiser who was elected to the Kilkenny Borough Council in 2009, the first Sinn Féin representative to be on the council since 1923. She had contested three general election campaigns before being elected on her fourth bid. A holder of a first-class honours degree in sociology and a post-graduate qualification in employment law, the mother of two works with Siptu as a workers’ rights’ advocate. She is the separated wife of senator David Cullinane, who has been elected a TD in the Waterford constituency. Her vote in the constituency has been rising steadily, with the last outing before this one seeing her score 16.2 per cent of the first preference vote. – COLM KEENA