Fine Gael has handpicked Councillor Shane O’Callaghan from Cork city and Councillor Una McCarthy from Cork county to represent Cork South Central in the imminent general election, with the aim of securing the seat vacated by former Tánaiste Simon Coveney. Both councillors triumphed over Senator Jerry Buttimer, Councillor Des Cahill from Cork City Council, and John Mullins, who previously vied unsuccessfully for the Ireland South Euro position, to win the nominations.
A local from Bandon, western Cork, Councillor O’Callaghan, a barrister, had his first taste of electoral success in Cork City Council in 2019 when he collected 1,234 first preference votes. He then served as the Deputy Lord of Cork for a year beginning in 2020. Following his victory in the Cork South Central Ward in the Cork City Council election last month, where he received 1,870 votes, Councillor O’Callaghan declared his intention to seek a nomination for the general election.
His running mate for the general election, Councillor McCarthy, originally from Rochestown and currently a resident of Carrigaline, joined Cork County Council in October 2023. She was chosen to succeed Councillor Michael Paul Murtagh to represent the Carrigaline Electoral Area. Councillor McCarthy, who is a schoolteacher in Passage West in Cork Harbour, is the daughter of Cork All-Ireland champion hurler Justin McCarthy Snr and the sister of RTÉ broadcaster Justin McCarthy Jnr. Last month, she successfully retained her Fine Gael seat in the local elections with 1,092 votes.
Incumbent TD Alan Farrell was also recently selected to run in the Dublin Fingal East constituency. Fine Gael’s candidate list now consists of 22 nominees across 14 constituencies. The party anticipates nominating candidates for half of the seats left open by retiring TDs by the end of July in readiness for the election.
A fortnight ago, Mr Coveney announced to the Fine Gael constituents in Cork South Central that he won’t be seeking re-election in the region, after dedicating 26 years to public service. This comes in the light of recent amendments that have changed Cork South Central into a five-seater constituency.
It was in 1998 when Mr Coveney first entered politics, after winning a by-election post his father Hugh Coveney’s demise. He successfully retained his position till 2004, before ascending to the role of an MEP for Ireland South. However, he forayed back into local politics in 2007, returning as an elected representative for Cork South Central.
Serving in the Cabinet since 2011, Mr Coveney narrowly lost to Leo Varadkar for the role of Taoiseach in 2017. Despite this, he served as Tánaiste from 2017 till 2020, when the current coalition was formed. This led to him transitioning from the Foreign Affairs to the domain of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.