This article is from page 4 of the 2011-04-26 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
CLARE’S Oireachtas representation could be boosted to record levels on Thursday when the votes to make up the 24th Seanad Éireann are counted.
A record four Clare candidates are contesting the election with former Mayor of Clare Tony Mulcahy from Shannon and former Irish National Teachers Organisation National President Declan Kelleher from Corofin the two leading candidates for seats in the Upper House.
Fine Gael’s Cllr Mulcahy, who doubled his first preference total in the recent General Election, is contesting the Labour panel where 11 seats are up for grabs while independent candidate Mr Kelleher is bidding to win one of the three National University of Ireland seats.
Mr Kelleher has vowed to lead the charge towards reforming the Seanad if he follows in the footsteps of Joe O’Toole in winning a Seanad seat for the INTO.
“I believe that it can be reformed and through the presence of independent voices, can hold the government to account for its actions,” he told The Clare People . “My campaign is to bring about a reformed Seanad with just 30 members who would be elected directly by the people and would therefore be far more independent of political control,” he said this Tuesday’s final polling day.
Clare’s two other candidates are Fine Gael’s Martin Conway and John Crowe, who are contesting the Administrative and Industrial and Commercial panels respectively.
Cllr Conway is considered to be up against it being the first Oireachtas representative from Ennistymon since fellow Fine Gael man Deputy Bill Murphy served on Dáil Éireann from 1951 to ‘67. This is because of the presence of two Fine Gael candidates in the contest who lost their seats in the recent General Election – Tom Sheehan in Kerry South and Michael Darcy in Wexford.
With only seven seats up for grabs in the Administrative Panel, Sheehan and Darcy national profile as former members of Dáil Éireann could give them at a distinct advantage over Cllr Conway.
Cllr Crowe is contesting his second successive Seanad Election and could be a dark horse to win one of the nine seats on the Industrial and Commericial panel.
He narrowly missed out on election in 2007, while his profile as one of the Clare members on the General Council of County Councils could yet garner him enough votes to secure election.