REILLY’S LAST STAND

DUBLIN, FINGAL CANDIDATES:

Fine Gael –

Senator James

Reilly; Fianna Fáil

– Senator Lorraine

Clifford–Lee; Sinn

Féin – Cllr Ann

Graves; Labour –

Cllr Duncan

Smith; Green –

Cllr Joe O’Brien; Social Democrats – Tracey Carey; Independents/Others – Gemma O’Doherty; Cllr Dean Mulligan (Independents 4 Change); Cormac McKay; Glenn Brady; Charlie Keddy; Peadar O’Kelly.

MAIN ISSUES:

Intriguingly the central story here centres on the future of James Reilly, inset. Should Fine Gael’s high–profile former deputy leader fail to end up in the medal positions the talk in Fine Gael is that Burke and Hare … apologies … Paschal Donohoe and Tom Curran, will be sent up from FG HQ to call time of political death on the good doctor.

CONTROVERSIES:

Lorraine Clifford-Lee’s Twitter travails have dominated headlines and disrupted her campaign. In a commentary on the real ineffectuality of the Twitterati, the candidate’s decade-old views on ginger-haired Brazilian dwarves on buses are unlikely to influence the public.

MOMENTS OF LEVITY:

The one– woman invasion by Gemma O’Doherty of an empty James Reilly Fine Gael public meeting, which scattered the event to the four winds. A startled Reilly gawped haplessly as Gemma demanded he answer questions at his own event. One observer subsequently noted: ‘it was like old fashioned GAA tackle, man ball and everything was taken.’

LIKELY OUTCOME:

Quite a brawl here – May, like the good old days, end up as a case of Fianna Fáil versus the rest. Mr Reilly believed to be trailing badly so whoever wins the battle between Duncan Smith of Labour and the Greens Joe O’Brien, may overtake Ms Clifford-Lee in the final furlong. Given the existence of a strong Green tradition a very hesitant vote goes to the Greens.