'I think people want fresh choices': One-third of FF election candidates are non-incumbents, says Tánaiste

FIANNA Fáil will look to retain its current number of seats in the upcoming local elections, party leader Micheál Martin has said.

In recent months the Tánaiste has been campaigning with local election candidates in Cork and elsewhere and said the reception to the party at the doors has been “positive”.

“On a personal level and in terms of people’s engagement on the doors, it’s been very positive in the sense of good conversations,” he told The Echo.

“We’ve done very well in the last local elections compared to others and we did very well in 2014, and so we’re the largest by number party in local government.

Retaining seats

“We have the largest number of councillors, so we’re aiming to retain that. Anything in and around retaining that would be successful. In addition to that, we’re introducing new candidates all over the country, so if we got some of them elected, you create a pipeline for future general elections,” he said.

Mr Martin said that 33% of Fianna Fáil candidates running in the local elections in June are non-incumbents.

“I think people want fresh choices as well and so that can help us in the campaign,” he said.

Next general election 

Asked if he would like to see the current coalition see out its full term in government, Mr Martin said he would.

“I’m a long-term believer in the idea that governments should go the full distance after a general election because that enables more medium to long-term decision-making to be made.

“I think if people are always keeping an eye on a potential election, say in two years or after an election, the decisions are more short-term and they’re not good for the country, so I believe passionately in the idea that you should go four to five years once the election has been held. There’s an obligation on those of us in the Oireachtas and in Government to make sure that it does go the four to five years so that we can take decisions in the first two years that the benefits of which may not be apparent for another five or six, but at least you’re doing the right thing in areas like research, investment in education, investment in infrastructure; those kinds of decisions are important.

“Whereas if people are looking too short term, you can get very short-term decisions designed to court popularity in the short term but may not necessarily be the best in the long term,” he said.

A general election must be held by March 2025. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has previously said he is not planning for a general election to be held this year.