Jim Gavin now has the support of almost all the Fianna Fáil Cabinet Ministers and a growing number of backbenchers in his bid to be the party’s candidate in the presidential election.
Momentum continued to grow behind Mr Gavin all weekend, with a series of declarations of support from members of the parliamentary party.
All the Fianna Fáil Cabinet Ministers, with the exception of Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan, who has not yet declared, have indicated their support for Mr Gavin.
Extensive soundings with Fianna Fáil TDs and Ministers over the weekend, as well as a series of public declarations, suggested that Mr Gavin enjoys a strong lead over MEP Billy Kelleher in the tally of votes in the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party.
RM Block
As of last night, 15 members of the parliamentary party had declared their support for Mr Gavin, against just three for Mr Kelleher (including himself).
Several TDs who have not officially declared for Mr Gavin told The Irish Times that they would support him.
Mr Gavin is understood to be contacting TDs to seek their support, both by phone and in person.
[ Jim Gavin profile: Is the former Dublin GAA manager a good fit for president?Opens in new window ]
It is expected that party leader and Taoiseach Micheál Martin will set out the process for selecting the Fianna Fáil candidate in the coming days. Nominations are expected to be opened this week, with a meeting of the parliamentary party a week later to choose the candidate by secret ballot.
But Mr Martin’s management of the process was criticised on Sunday by the former minister Mary Hanafin.
Ms Hanafin complained that she had been kept in the dark about the intentions of the leadership. “Unfortunately in Fianna Fáil you tend to learn a lot in the newspapers,” she said.
[ Mary Hanafin says she will not contest Fianna Fáil presidental nominationOpens in new window ]
Asked if she had been treated with respect, she said, “A phone call would have made a difference ... I would have accepted that.”
She also said former taoiseach Bertie Ahern had been badly treated by the party leadership.
“He’s a former taoiseach, a former party leader,” she said, suggesting that Mr Ahern should have been told by Mr Martin that he would not back him for the presidency.
Does Jim Gavin have what it takes for a presidential campaign?
Many members of the parliamentary party who spoke privately to The Irish Times expressed their liking for Mr Kelleher – but signalled they would support Mr Gavin and expected him to win the contest in the party.
“Momentum does seem to be with Gavin,” one said.
“Billy is popular in the PP but the general view is that Jim Gavin could actually win,” the TD added.
“I like Billy but I get a sense there is real momentum building behind Jim. I believe he’ll be selected,” said another.
Independent presidential candidate Catherine Connolly said on Sunday that comments made previously by her about not trusting the US, the UK and France were “very much in the context of the genocide in Gaza”.
In an interview on RTÉ’s This Week programme on Sunday, Ms Connolly said: “Have I a trust problem with America? I think everyone in the country has a trust problem with America.
“We have a President Trump who’s volatile, unpredictable, acting like a bully, bringing in tariffs when it suits them.
“We keep talking about the consequences of tariffs, but we never talk about the consequences of genocide ... Famine has been created in Gaza like it was in Ireland in 1845, a man-made famine.”
Fine Gael is expected to formally confirm on Tuesday that former minister Heather Humphreys will be its candidate, while Sinn Féin has not yet decided if it will run a candidate.
In an interview with the Sunday Times party leader Mary Lou McDonald again declined to say if she would be the party’s candidate.
