Presidential hopefuls seek Tipp backing
Councils receives 18 expressions of interest ahead of meeting
The race for the Áras is hotting up and Tipperary Co Council is to have its say in the nomination of a presidential candidate next week.
The council had by Tuesday of this week received 18 expressions of interest from candidates seeking its backing to get on the ballot paper for the October 24 election. Among the names on the list is Derry entrepreneur and former ‘Dragons’ Den’ panellist Peter Casey, who succeeded in securing Tipperary Co Council’s nomination for the 2018 presidential election. Also included is Dublin businessman Gareth Sheridan, who visited Nenagh last month and has been publicly endorsed by local councillor Séamie Morris. Professor Dolores Cahill from Kilsheelan, Co Tipperary, a former UCD academic and former chair of the Irish Freedom Party, is also on the list.
A special meeting of the council will be held at the Civic Offices in Nenagh next Tuesday, at which the hopefuls will have an opportunity to make their case for a nomination.
This week’s meeting of the council heard that all candidates would have to attend the meeting in person, rather than opting for remote presentation. It is understood that the council will inform all 18 candidates of this position and give them until Friday of this week to decide whether or not they will attend the meeting. The candidates will also have to submit a copy of their passport and a copy of their presentation in advance of that meeting.
Candidates will require a proposer and a seconder to secure a nomination. In the event that more than one candidate is proposed, the council will resort to vote by roll call to choose the nomination.
Fine Gael has instructed all of its councillors to block the nomination of potential independent presidential candidates, given that the party has chosen Heather Humphreys as its candidate for President. However, Tipperary’s 10 Fine Gael councillors are reportedly prepared to break ranks and make their own decision on whom to support, based on next week’s presentations to the council.
Candidates seeking to contest the presidency must secure the support of either 20 Oireachtas members or four local authorities. Most of the country’s 31 councils are holding meetings to hear from candidates, the first of them taking place in Kerry last Monday, where 14 prospective candidates were allowed to make five-minute oral submissions, followed by 10 minutes of questions.
The 18 hopefuls to have made contact with Tipperary Co Council are Dominick Plant, Professor Doctor Joseph Chikelue Obi, Lorna McCormack, Barry Wheely-Row, Nick Delahunty, Paudie Dineen, Gareth Sheridan, Cabdi Ní Chianáin (Charlotte Keenan), Dr Cora Stack, Sarah Louise Mulligan, Billy O'Connell, Donnacha MacGabhann, Walter Ryan-Purcell, William P Allen, Gerben Uunk, Gearóid Duffy, Professor Dolores Cahill and Peter Casey.