Eddie Downey, chairman of Fine Gael’s agriculture and rural affairs committee, walks through his farmyard in Slane and points out the Knowth passage grave, the hill of Slane where St Patrick lit the paschal fire and the location of the Battle of the Boyne. “You can tell the history of the country standing here,” he says.
There are thirty or forty people here surrounded by corrugated iron and fields. They’re from Monaghan, Cavan, Louth and Meath. Everyone who isn’t a politician, politician’s aide or a journalist is a Fine Gael-supporting farmer. “It’s the first time we’ll have a farmer in the Park,” says Downey. “She didn’t make enough of that line yet, but she should.”
Someone from the campaign explains to the gathered farmers that they should huddle behind Heather Humphreys “when the cameras are rolling”.
Gerard Meegan, a beef farmer from Termonfeckin, says that it’s important that the derogation on nitrates, chemicals used to promote grass growth, isn’t reduced. “We can only put out 170 kilos of nitrogen per hectare and they’re proposing reducing that to 120, for water quality.”
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Humphreys’s younger brother, Monaghan farmer Bert Stewart, worries that trade deals with America could lead to food coming in that’s produced to “a different standard and a different price”.
Did he foresee his sister running for president? “I didn’t. No more than anyone here.”
Does he get nervous for her? “I get a bit emotional sometimes.”
Would he like to be invited to the Aras? “I’ll go without being invited hopefully. I’ll drop in visiting.”
All around, people are discussing the negative opinion polls. Two other farmers, Joe and Brendan (they won’t give their second names) recall how former presidential candidate Sean Gallagher looked like he had it made until the week before the election. “I’d be surprised if 40 per cent turn out,” says Joe.
They are “diehard” Humphreys supporters. “She represents the values of rural Ireland,” says Joe.
David Drumm – “the farmer not the banker” – says that he was “alarmed” that Catherine Connolly asked the Department of Agriculture to suspend live cattle exports to Libya in 2020.
Joe also worries about this. “If there’s legislation needs to be signed off she could veto it and send it to the Supreme Court.”
“She’s also against rural pursuits like coursing,” says Brendan.
As we’re talking Humphreys and her entourage arrive. She’s wearing green wellies with her navy suit. She is, in fact, the only person here wearing wellies.
“She doesn’t need wellies here,” says Brendan.
“It’s very tidy,” says Joe.
“We power-hosed it this morning,” Eddie tells me later.
She’s quickly surrounded by people shaking her hand. “You have the place looking well,” she says to Eddie. “I could have worn the high-heeled shoes.”
Eddie gives his tour, then those present look at some cows. “I could still milk a cow,” says Humphreys. “I haven’t done it in a long time but I could do it.”
After a trip to the milking parlour (she doesn’t have a go) there’s an opportunity to respond to questions from a spread of photographers, camera-folk and reporters. She is combative about being sued by Paul Murphy, sanguine about the polls and passionate about a time she was in Singapore promoting “Irish duck”.
Before the questions, Humphreys asks an aide if she should change out of the wellies. “Keep them on,” he says. So she does.
