The upcoming local elections were the main highlight at the Fianna Fáil conference, where a special section was allocated for seminars provision as the party strives to maintain its 279 seats. Subjects of discussion included “Final push: Social media for local campaigns”, along with a campaigning workshop, and a “How to engage the local media” strategy talk.
However, the question is – Can Fianna Fáil retain its position as the party with the most local authority seats?
Leanne Mallon from South Kildare, who is currently involved with Cillian Keane’s campaign, the youngest candidate from the Athenry/Oranmore electoral region, made it clear: “We should realistically look at hitting the 200 seats benchmark. Nationally, the party may not be performing well as per opinion polls, but I believe our local candidates have solid local support, which can lead to their re-election. Sinn Féin, on the other hand, I see continuing to gain some seats, but they currently only hold one seat in Galway County Council’s Ballinasloe area, and I predict they may try to secure up to five seats.”
For John Morgan of Dublin Fingal and president of the Malahide Cricket Club, a realistic target is more around 240 seats. “We’d be fortunate to achieve 240. We hope to maintain all, but in case of losses it won’t be less than 10 per cent”, he says. On the underperformance of Sinn Féin in the 2019 elections (where they lost 79 seats, but held onto 82), he believes that increase in seats is inevitable, but not as much as they anticipate. He also stated that there are rising concerns around Sinn Féin, particularly in relation to housing. “If our plan was to construct 50,000 homes, we’d need builders. The question is, who are they going to hire to build these?”
On a brighter note, Brenda Clifford from Dublin West has a more positive outlook. “Our objective is to retain and possibly increase our seats. It’s important to stay motivated and aim for growth.” The former county councillor who served Dublin West between 2004 and 2009 considers Sinn Féin as the party that appears uncertain on their stand and objectives. Hence, she hopes that voters will choose a more stable party.
As Simon Harris steps up to lead Fine Gael, the prevailing sentiment within Fianna Fáil is largely positive regarding the potential of an electoral alliance between the two parties. Martina Kealy, a resident of Castleknock, Dublin West, is all praises for Harris, emphasising his dynamic personality and innovative ideas. She believes that the Irish public largely trusts the unity of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, and is keen to see them regain power.
Kealy is also an ardent admirer of her party’s leader, Micheál Martin, appreciating his eloquence, operational efficiency, and unyielding commitment to his duties. Similarly, Ms Clifford honoured the adept leadership of former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, reminiscing about working with him in the council in 2004. She speculated on the promising idea of an electoral pact, however, placed the final decision in the hands of the party leaders.
Conversely, Mr Morgan, another Fianna Fáil supporter, objected to any coalition possibility with Sinn Féin, referencing their contentious history as a reason not to trust them. Ms Mallen, however, is firm in her belief of Fianna Fáil’s desire to be a transformative power, seeing governance as the platform for instigating change. Ms Clifford echoed this, firmly rejecting the idea of a partnership from her standpoint.