The first by-election in Galway for more than half a century will be held on Friday, May 22.
Irish and British citizens living in the Galway West constituency can register to vote in it before Tuesday, May 5.
The County Galway registrar, Marian Chambers-Higgins, should receive a writ from the Clerk of the Dáil today, Thursday April 23, instructing her to hold an election to fill the Dáil seat vacated by former independent TD, Catherine Connolly, who was elected President of Ireland in November last year.
The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne, will then appoint polling day for Galway West to be held within 25 days. This ministerial order is the starting gun, and allows election posters to be erected.
Galway West is a five-seat constituency, which elected John Connolly (FF ), Mairéad Farrell (SF ), Noel Grealish (RIG ), Hildegarde Naughton (FG ) and Catherine Connolly (Ind ) in November, 2024.
The electorate numbered just under 104,000 persons at the last general election, with a turn-out of 58.5 per cent generating just over 60,000 valid ballots, meaning each candidate needed a quota of just over 10,000 votes to be elected.
With only one seat up for grabs at the by-election, the quota could be as high as 20,000 – an almost impossible feat for any politician at first count – and election staff are already bracing themselves for long counts where almost every transfer down the ballot will carry weight in a field expected to number at least 14 candidates.
Dáil hopefuls now have until midday on Friday, May 1 to register their intention to stand in the by-election. If they undergo a last-minute change of heart, the deadline for removing one’s name from the ballot is midday on Saturday, May 2.
The deadline for applications for postal voting will be this Saturday, April 25.
Those informally declared at time of going to press are: Councillor Cillian Keane (FF ), Senator Sean Kyne (FG ), Councillor Helen Ogbu (Lab ), Mark Lohan (SF ), Míde Nic Fhionnlaoich (SD ), Niall Murphy (GP ), Denman Rooke (PBP ), Orla Nugent (Aú ), Councillor Noel Thomas (II ), AJ Cahill (IPP ), Councilllor Thomas Welby (Ind ), Sheila Garrity (Ind ) and Councillor Mike Cubbard (Ind ).
There has not been a by-election in Galway since 1975, when there were two: one in Galway North-East after the death of Michael F Kitt, and one in Galway West, after the death of Johnny Geoghegan. Both Fianna Fáilers were replaced after by-elections by their respective children, Michael P Kitt, and Máire Geoghegan-Quinn.
There will also be a by-election on the same day in Dublin Central to fill the seat vacated by Fine Gael’s Paschal Donohoe after he took up a position at the World Bank.
The count for both Galway and Dublin by-elections will begin at 9am on Saturday, May 23.
