Presidential race to heat up as third candidate to be confirmed

The Irish presidential race is expected to gather pace this week as local authorities hear pitches from candidate hopefuls and big parties set out their election stalls.

Polling day has been confirmed as Friday, October 24, and nominations for candidates will close a month before that.

With seven weeks to go before votes are cast, there are just two confirmed candidates in the race.

Fianna Fáil is expected to confirmed the third on Tuesday when it hosts a head-to-head between a popular Cork parliamentarian and a Dublin sporting hero.

Former Dublin football manager and retired army officer Jim Gavin has the public backing of senior party figures, while MEP and former junior minister Billy Kelleher appears to have more of a battle ahead of him.

Drama

The parliamentary party will vote for its preferred candidate by secret ballot, possibly offering an element of drama.

To run as a presidential candidate, a person must be an Irish citizen over the age of 35 and nominated by either 20 Irish parliamentarians or by four local authorities.

There are 174 TDs and 60 senators in the Irish parliament, with Fianna Fail (48), Sinn Fein (39) and Fine Gael (38) commanding enough support in the Dail to put forward their own candidates.

Left-wing independent Catherine Connolly, who is a strong voice on Palestine and neutrality, secured the backing of a variety of opposition parties to become the first candidate in the race in July.

The Galway TD has faced questions over a trip to Syria in 2018 and her description of ex-MEPs Clare Daly and Mick Wallace as “like-minded”.

Former social protection minister Heather Humphreys, Fine Gael’s presidential nominee, is expected to launch her campaign officially in the coming days.

She has already faced questions over an abandoned policy that would have seen disabled people in receipt of social welfare medically assessed every five years.

Sinn Féin has not yet clarified if it will support Ms Connolly or run its own candidate and is expected to announce its decision on September 20.

Irish unity

Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill told the PA news agency that the next president should use the office to advocate for Irish unity.

A number of celebrities and high-profile figures have expressed their interest in the role in recent months.

Their most likely route to secure the nomination to become a presidential candidate is through 31 councils.

Former weather forecaster Joanna Donnelly and Riverdance star Michael Flatley announced last week that they would no longer be looking to become candidates.

Mr Flatley said he had to put his family and health first, while Ms Donnelly said she came to understand she was “underprepared” for a tilt at the Áras, just days after publicly declaring her interest.

Mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor has also appealed to the public to convince councillors to nominate him, while millionaire entrepreneur Gareth Sheridan, previous presidential candidate Peter Casey, and independent Nick Delehanty have also said they would look to be nominated through the council route.

On Monday, around a dozen candidates are to address Kerry County Council at lunchtime to pitch why they should be nominated as a presidential candidate.

The outgoing president Michael D Higgins has been in the role since 2011, having served the maximum two terms.