Independent candidate Sean Gallagher will be getting the vote from the majority of Kilkenny’s Fianna Fail councillors, while Green Party councillor Malcolm Noonan will be voting for David Norris next Thursday.
While Labour, Sinn Fein, and Fine Gael councillors will put their support behind their party-nominated candidates, local councillors from the two parties without a candidate spoke to the Kilkenny Advertiser this week about for whom they would be voting.
Sean Gallagher, the current frontrunner in the election according to a recent Red C poll, has emerged as the most popular choice among Fianna Fail councillors. Mr Gallagher has past links to Fianna Fail, having been a party member in his teens, and having sat on the national executive until 2009.
Despite repeated attempts by Gay Mitchell to woo Fianna Fail voters, all of the councillors were adamant that they would not be voting for the struggling Fine Gael candidate.
Cllr Malcolm Noonan said that both Senator David Norris and Michael D Higgins would be closest to his own values.
“The Green Party allowed its members to make up their own minds in terms of who we support overtly, particularly the elected representatives,” he said.
“For me, it will be David Norris – with a second preference for Michael D. I think they’re both exceptional candidates. I think they have the most to bring to the office in terms of an international role.”
Fianna Fail councillor Joe Malone said that he would be voting for independent candidate Sean Gallagher.
“At the start, I said I would vote for Dana, but I’ve since changed my mind. I think Sean Gallagher has more to offer,” he said.
“He talks a lot about community, which I would be into myself – and he seems to be getting on well around the country, and is clicking with young people.”
Cllr Malone said he agreed with his party leader’s decision not to field a candidate.
“We got a walloping in the last General Election and we would have got the same now. Brian Crowley is a nice man, and a decent man, but unfortunately for being loyal to Fianna Fail, he would have been destroyed in the debates.”
Cllr John Coonan said that he would also be voting for Sean Gallagher, but he thought the decision not to put forward a candidate was a mistake by Fianna Fail.
“I think Brian Crowley was done an awful disfavour,” he said.
“The response I got on the ground from people about him was very positive.”
His party colleague, Cora Long, agreed with Cllr Coonan’s sentiments.
“I was very disappointed about it – especially with the way the election is turning out,” she said.
“I am sure that Brian Crowley would have been an excellent candidate. I told him that I would have canvassed for him.”
Fianna Fail’s Patrick Millea refused to reveal who he would be voting for, but said that he was glad that his party had no candidate in the election.
“We couldn’t win with the environment that’s there, and the party is not strong financially,” he said.
“Mr Martin had a call to make and I have no regrets about there being no Fianna Fail candidate.”
Fellow councillor Sean Treacy said he would most likely vote for Sean Gallagher, but that he was very disappointed with the decision not to field a Fianna Fail candidate.
“Brian would be very popular in Munster, among the grassroots and even with non-Fianna Fail people,” he said.
Cllr Matt Doran said he was as yet undecided on the candidates, but he was certain that he would not be voting for candidates Davis, McGuinness, Mitchell and Scallon.
He also felt that the decision not to put Brian Crowley forward was a mistake by the party hierarchy.
