Hello again to terms such as “rigged” and #NotMytaoiseach, last heard of in 2020 when a particular cohort of the Irish population seemed to misunderstand how democracy works in the Republic. “Rigged”, of course, is a US import now scattered freely around Irish media by people who should know better. #NotMyTaoiseach, a rip-off from the American #NotMyPresident, is once again pushed into service for the Irish version. A former politician whose career greatly benefited from the democratic deficit in Seanad elections has fired the term “sham election” out there about this one.
It is always entertaining to watch politicians and their conflicting interests dancing on the head of a pin, not to mention hearing answers to important questions fade into a sludgy grey. We rise above all that this week because something important is worth repeating: Ireland is the sixth most democratic nation in the world, according to V-Dem (Varieties of Democracy) Institute in Sweden. Elections are not rigged here.
The “rigged election” brigade may actually mean people are distinctly underwhelmed by the lawfully nominated candidates. That is a problem in itself, but a different one. Much of the mewling is about the constitutional requirements that stalled arch-conservative Maria Steen’s eleventh-hour run. The solution to this is obvious: amend the Constitution. Peadar Tóibín – Steen’s doughty champion – has made a start with a motion calling for a referendum. Though he makes it sound like a DEFCON 1 emergency while knowing it will take years, it’s still a grown-up move.
The serious problem with dismissing any election as “rigged” or a “sham” is it attempts to delegitimise the person we will lawfully elect. Some familiar old activists and pundits are getting great mileage out of it with their #SpoilYourVote promotion, but it’s a dangerous stretch.
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So, to recap: Maria Steen left it too late to meet the constitutional requirements to get on the ballot. It was all fair and square. She chose not to pursue the county council route and – presumably based on last year’s anti-referendum shotgun marriage of minds – there would be a handy 20 Oireachtas members willing to back her.
With some serious long-term spadework and facilitation by the centre-right parties at council level, she just might have made it through. But facilitation from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael representatives was always a long shot when the same parties are clearly struggling to support themselves. The Irish electorate had already set the course: it failed to elect enough conservatives to the councils or the Oireachtas.
In the general election, 10 parties (out of 20) got candidates elected, of which the vast majority were left to centre-right. Right-wing Aontú, led by Tóibín, got under 4 per cent of the vote. Independent Ireland, a party of mainly conservative Independents, got 3.55 per cent. This was the national pool from which Steen’s right-wing supporters expected to fish out a win.
According to last week’s The Irish Times/Ipsos B&A poll, 44 per cent thought Steen should have got a nomination (though nearly two-thirds had no intention of voting for her). But recall that only a few weeks before, Steen was at 5 per cent in a Business Post/Red C poll. The difference was the priceless publicity gleaned by the loud keening about perceived unfairness when she failed to land the Oireachtas nomination. (Note: it wasn’t just about Michael McDowell’s vote; she needed another to make it 20.) The recent poll added fuel to the notion Steen was Ireland’s great lost president.
Had she been nominated, she might have flourished under the bright lights of debates and interviews – as veteran political operator Catherine Connolly has. However, the electorate would also need to have taken a dramatic pivot to the right. There was also the issue of a woman purporting to represent the grassroots while wielding an obscenely expensive vibrant blue handbag. The handbag was a deliberate ploy, she said, “to expose the hypocrisy of the left, who don’t love the poor; they just hate the rich”. Whether that was a unifying presidential move is open to debate. Imagine for a moment if Tóibín turned up to lobby “grassroots” politicians in a vibrant blue Ferrari.
Yet, rather than lavish their cash and energy on the long game of fighting for change – perhaps by properly preparing Steen for the next general election – the #SpoilYourVote brigade are on the rampage claiming they’ve been robbed. Social media is bejewelled with tutorials on how to do the spoiling. One prominent account directs voters not to use the pencils provided but to bring their own pen. One cute girlie “badge” features the words #SpoilMe under a bright blue handbag backed by the Tricolour. The mixed message is awe-inspiring.
Others on the right see Jim Gavin’s ghostly presence on the ballot as a more productive way of winning a rerun. A big vote for him could make it interesting for officialdom, save FF some cash and provide a few transfers for Humphreys. It also has less of the toddler-tantrum vibe about it. And importantly, its promoters are not claiming their vote will delegitimise this election.
The most responsible deed one can perform on Friday is to pick a candidate, however uninspired you feel by the whole thing. Vote for her and pray she doesn’t drive us mad. Because that’s democracy.
