Election hopefuls are playing the catchphrase game

If you’re running as a candidate in the General Election, you need a good slogan or catchphrase.

It should be short and simple, capturing the essence of your campaign and if it rhymes, even better for easy repetition, it seems.

The catchphrase that rhymes with a candidate’s name has become popular. For example, school teacher Jim Codd came up with ‘Give Codd the Nod’ during his debut local election campaign in May last year, that saw him successfully elected to Rosslare Municipal District Council.

The newcomer to politics is running for Aontú in the upcoming General Election and is continuing to use the same catchphrase. He also has his own song.

Independent Rosslare LEA chairman Ger Carthy has entered the General Election fray for the second time with the catchphrase’ Forget the Parties, Vote for Carthy’, emphasising that he intends to be a ‘true Independent’ for Wexford.

On Fianna Fail candidate Cllr. Lisa McDonald’s Facebook page and her election vehicle, there is the snappy hashtag #LetsBackLisaMac while some of her posters feature ‘Vote Local Vote Lisa’ with a map of south Wexford as a ‘political blackspot’

Independents4Change candidate Seanie O’Shea is using the tagline Fair Play alongside his name, in a nod to his former position as a soccer referee and his current chairmanship of Wexford FC in a bid to win back the Dáil seat formerly held by Mick Wallace.

Independent candidate Verona Murphy garnered widespread publicity with ‘She’s Local and She’s Vocal’ in her recent controversial by-election campaign when she ran as a first-time ine Gael candidate.

The Irish Road Hauliers Association President has changed her catchline to ‘Capable, Committed, Consistent’ while the Fine Gael colours on the logo have become the Kilkenny colours.

Fianna Fail candidate Cllr. Michael Sheehan of New Ross is using the lines ‘The Same Won’t Do’ and ‘Change is Now’ on social media.

Fine Gael candidate Cllr. Michael D’Arcy is ‘Working for Wexford, Delivering for You’ while his party colleague, the sitting Fine Gael TD and Minister of State, Paul Kehoe is ‘Working for Wexford, Working for You’.

Brendan Howlin, the county’s longest serving TD, a former government minister and current leader of the Labour Party is making a simple but effective statement with ‘Wexford’s Strongest Voice’.

Gorey-based TD Malcolm Byrne of Fianna Fail who won the recent by-election, is continuing with the slogan ‘Fighting for Wexford’s Future’ which he had printed on his car for the November 29 contest.

Having served in the Dáil since the beginning of December, he is facing into his fourth election in eight months after also contesting the local elections and the European elections in May.

Enniscorthy-based TD James Browne, the Fianna Fail spokesperson on Mental Health, has been using the slogan ‘Working for Wexford’ since he was elected to Dáil Eireann in 2016, succeeding his father John, a former Minister of State for Fisheries.