Businessman Gareth Sheridan said he has “no regrets” about seeking a nomination to stand in the Irish presidential election.
He was speaking outside Aras an Chontae in Tullamore, Co. Offaly where his campaign ended after the county council voted against endorsing any candidate, with two abstentions.
That decision came after Meath County Council had voted by 14 votes to 13 to reject his nomination, making a pathway “mathematically” unviable.
Barrister Maria Steen also suffered a blow as she fell short with the 18-member Leitrim County Council. Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín, who has been attempting to marshall support for Ms Steen’s candidacy, said he expected there would be up to 18 Oireachtas members ready to sign her nomination papers on Monday. She needs 20.
Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil candidate Jim Gavin has sought action from social platforms about ‘destructive and vicious smears’.
The party said that of the three social media companies – Meta (which owns Facebook and Instagram), X and TikTok – only Meta has responded to complaints about the posts.
And ahead of the official launch of her campaign this evening, Catherine Connolly has been generating headlines following an interview with BBC Northern Ireland’s Talkback programme.
Key Reads
- Meet the three hopefuls who will be on the ballot paper next month
- Pat Leahy: Backing Catherine Connolly suggests Sinn Féin could not come up with better idea
Cork County Council also says No to a nomination, bringing total so far to 9
Unsurprisingly at this stage of the evening, all of the nine local authorities who have decided today to invoke their Article 12 powers to consider nominating a presidential candidate have said No.
Cork did allow candidates to go through to a second round for consideration but none of the three who were nominated and seconded - Maria Steen, Cork City councillor Kieran McCarthy and Cork-based sports administrator William Allen - could garner enough votes to overcome blocking votes.
There are now only three councils left to decide.
For the first time since 1990, 35 years, there is no independent candidate who has come through the county council route.
Steen got 11 votes, McCarthy nine, and Allen four, from the 50-member council but it was not enough to counter the 26 councillors who voted against a nomination.
Sligo, Leitrim, Monaghan, Louth, Kildare, Westmeath, Offaly, Limerick, Cork County, Clare, Kilkenny and Meath have been holding special meetings today, with only Louth, Kilkenny and Westmeath to conclude this evening.
Connolly disagrees that Hamas can have no role in a future Palestinian state
Ahead of the official launch of her campaign this evening, Catherine Connolly has been generating headlines following an interview with BBC Northern Ireland’s Talkback programme.
Pat Leahy reports that she told the BBC she disagreed that Hamas can have no role in a future Palestinian state, saying this was a matter for Palestinians to decide themselves.
Ms Connolly also said the events of October 7, 2023 – when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people – were not comparable with the Israeli attacks on Gaza.
She said she condemned the events of October 7 but would not describe it as genocide, as that has a “very specific meaning under international law.
“What happened on 7 October was wrong, absolutely wrong, I’ve no hesitation in saying that, but they’re not comparable at all,” she said.
She also said she did not believe that British prime minister Keir Starmer should have a say in defining the role of Hamas. “It’s up to the Palestinian people. What Keir Starmer and other countries should be doing is stopping the genocide and using our voices to stop it.”
Sheridan bows out of contest after two “hammer blows”.
Gareth Sheridan has conceded it is impossible for him to secure a presidential nomination and will not now be seeking an endorsement from Louth County Council.
His spokesman confirmed that his campaign to gain a place on the ballot paper is over.
“Meath and Offaly County Councils were two of the four prime targets for us,” said his spokesman. “Losing Meath by one vote was a hammer blow. It was so tantalisingly close.
“If we had brought three council endorsements to Offaly we might have had a favourable wind there. While not guaranteed, the fact that we had only two nominations allowed Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil to execute a very robust block.”
The spokesman confirmed that Mr Sheridan will not now be travelling to Dundalk to seek a nomination there.
Maria Steen fails to win a nomination form Leitrim County Council
On a bad day for Independents, Maria Steen also fell short with 18-member Leitrim County Council.
Marie O’Halloran reports: Independent campaigner Maria Steen has failed to secure the backing of Leitrim County Council after it voted by nine votes to seven not to nominate her with one abstention.
There was an expectation that though Ms Steen is seeking Oireachtas support, she could secure nomination from Leitrim after two Fianna Fáil councillors Mary Bohan and Justin Warnock and Independent Councillor Irene Guckian Rabbitte each issued notices of motion to nominate her.
The 18-member council has Six Fianna Fáil members, three Fine Gael, four Sinn Féin and five Independents, 17 of whom were in attendance.
However all four Sinn Féin councillors and three Fine Gael councillors voted against Ms Steen’s nomination as did one Independent councillor and Fianna Fáil Cllr Gary Prior.
Four Fianna Fáil Cllrs voted for Ms Steen with one absentee party member.
Fianna Fáil Cllr Mary Bohan who proposed Ms Steen as a candidate believed she was very well qualified. “She is a barrister and most of all understands the role of the president and its limitations and this was not the case with a lot of the other candidates who presented to the council,” last week.
“I think it would be remiss that if we think there is a suitable candidate if we denied the public the right to vote for that candidate.”
Independent Cllr Irene Guckian Rabbitte seconded the proposal and said she was the best candidate the council heard from and “I wish to give her a chance to go forward”.
Sinn Féin Cllr Róisin Kenny said however that Ms Steen’s involvement with the Iona Institute “and her very conservative views” on social issues “hark back to the days when the Catholic church had a stranglehold on this country. I do believe that our nation has moved to a more inclusive and diverse country and that the President should be someone who would represent all of our people.
She said the council were there to represent all residents of the county “regardless of their gender, religion, race, marital status or who they choose to love. Surely the President should be someone who strives to the same aspiration.”
Ms Kenny said she would be supporting Independent TD and candidate Catherine Connolly who would champion a united Ireland and as a Gaelgeoir would promote Irish and uphold neutrality and human rights and economic justice for all.
Cllr Bohan said “we accept all religions and none but it seems to me that if you’ve anything got to do with the Catholic church you’re nearly treated like a criminal.”
Independent Cllr Eddie Mitchell said he had spoken to Ms Steen “and I thought she was a great woman and I really liked her” but “she is a candidate who has been established through the Iona Institute and I see it as a religious institute and I think there should be a separation of powers between State and Church” and for that reason he believed she was unsuitable as a candidate.
I’ve no regrets: Sheridan
Vivienne Clarke writes: Gareth Sheridan he has said he has “no regrets” about seeking a nomination to stand in the Presidential election.
He was speaking outside Aras an Chontae in Tullamore, Co. Offaly where his campaign ended.
The businessman’s campaign had been launched at Tullamore Show in August and he returned to the Faithful county on Monday in a bid to gain the endorsement of the 19 person council.
However, before the vote on his bid could be taken, a counter proposal from Fine Gael’s Liam Quinn, that Offaly County Council not endorse a candidate, was passed which meant the campaign concluded.
Following the vote Mr Sheridan acknowledged that “mathematically” it was the end of his campaign. “But that’s fine, we gave it our best shot, we got two nominations, which was really encouraging and we had a pathway and unfortunately the pathway in the plan didn’t work out.”
It had been a gruelling few weeks, he said. When asked if he would contest the election again in seven years or if he would pursue a career in politics, Mr Sheridan said he did not have to be involved in politics to be an advocate for the causes in which he was passionate – housing and climate change. “These are issues that I’m very passionate about as a person, as a proud Irishman, so, you know, if I can’t do it from the Aras, I’ll be doing it from somewhere, and I’ll have to work out where that is over the next couple of weeks, but it’s not going away.
“One thing that I was really trying to push was encouraging younger people to get involved and if I’m able to at least take that out of the process or encourage younger people to put their name forward for roles that historically don’t deem to be suitable, I would count the last couple of weeks as a success.
“We’re trying to open the narrative and invite younger people into the conversation. If we start that narrative through the process over the last number of weeks.”
He said the outcome wasn’t what we wanted. “Obviously I’m devastated that we didn’t get the four nominations, it would have been great, but wouldn’t change anything during the process. It was hard work, but I think we’ve made a little bit of a splash anyway.”
Gareth Sheridan bid for Presidential nomination looks all but over
The strategy of the 36-year-old businessman and his team from last February was to target councils where there were a large number of independent councillors.
It was a solid strategy until Fianna Fáil chose Jim Gavin in early September. While the party did not impose a whip or direction on its councillors, there was an informal understanding that they would back the party candidate.
With Fine Gael councillors already under instruction to block, it meant that the two Coalition parties were pursuing a strategy (albeit informal on Fianna Fáil’s part) of blocking all independent candidates coming through the county council route.
The only target council Sheridan can turn to now is Louth but even if it back his candidacy he will have only three of the four councils required. Unless some other council agrees to hastily convene a meeting tomorrow, he has run out of option.
Offaly has voted against nominating Gareth Sheridan
By a majority of 11 votes to five Offaly County Council has voted against endorsing any candidate, with two abstentions.
It means that the meeting could not take a vote on nominating businessman Gareth Sheridan.
The upshot is that two of the three key councils targeted by Sheridan and his team on Monday have now voted against nomination.
It now looks like there is no path for Sheridan to win a nomination, even if Louth County Council backs him later today.
He has two nominations at present – from Kerry and from Tipperary – but will require four to get on to the ballot paper.
That possibility now looks remote.
Gareth Sheridan addresses Offaly County Council
In a critical moment for his campaign to get on the slate of candidates, the businessman Gareth Sheridan is currently being questioned by members of Offaly, County Council.
He has been asked about Irish unity and about Gaza.
But underscoring this is the reality of the blocking votes. Fianna Fáil has a majority on the council and if it blocks Sheridan he has no chance of progressing through Offaly and – perhaps – through any other council.
Fine Gael councillors have just told him they will be voting against his nomination.
“I understand parties have their own candidates,” he said.
“I would just ask that you don’t block me, and don’t abstain and let me compete ... I am not asking for your support, I’m not asking for your vote, I am asking that you do not block,” he said.
He said if not selected he would continue to fight for the issues he has campaigned on when seeking a nomination.
Cathaoirleach of the council, Cllr John Leahy has made a passionate appeal for the parties not to use the block. “There will be a gap and a huge conversation had during the campaign about the blocking,” he said. “Let us give this young man an opportunity to go up the road with three nominations on his ballot paper,” he said.
The council has adjourned for ten minutes.
Monaghan votes not to nominate a candidate
There are 12 councils deciding on nominating candidates today and so far it has been a difficult day for presidential hopefuls.
Ten candidates presented to the council today. The best known was the Donegal businessman, Peter Casey, who stood in the 2018 contest. He addressed the council online from Atlanta in the US.
The vote against nominating a candidate was overwhelming. Fifteen councillors (out of 18) voted against a nomination with nobody supporting the proposition.
Sinn Féin voted with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael against a nomination. It has abstained in votes on other county councils.
Sligo County Council decides not to nominate presidential candidate
Sligo County Council has decided not to nominate any person to contest the Presidential election. It met today to hear presentations from prospective candidates. Only one person made a presentation to the council: Gearóid Duffy, a native of Sligo, long resident in Cork.
Only candidates who presented were eligible to be nominated. When an Independent councillor tried to nominate Gareth Sheridan, he was told by Cathaoirleach, Donal Gilroy, that only those who presented were eligible to be considered for nomination.
Fianna Fáil Statement on false stories about Jim Gavin on social media
This is a statement issued by Fianna Fáil a short time ago:
Over the last week, various invented and utterly false stories have been published on social media with the attempt to damage Jim Gavin, Fianna Fáil candidate for the Presidential election. He refuses to accept that anybody, whether they be a public figure or private citizen, should have to put up with these types of destructive and vicious smears which can have very real impacts on people, their families and friends.
For this reason, he decided to take a stand against the online smears by demanding action from the social media companies. Letters have been issued to Meta, X, TikTok and Coimisiún na Meán. So far, Meta has confirmed that several posts have been taken down on Facebook and Instagram, and he welcomes that. Meta has also confirmed several comments which breach their community standards relating to those posts have been removed. Responses are still awaited from the other companies, X and TikTok. A response is also awaited from Coimisiún na Meán.
Jim Gavin said, “Every person in our country knows the real and growing threat posed by online hate and disinformation. It is one of the forces driving the growing division and conflict in many societies. It is the cause of mental health issues among our young people due to online bullying and harassment.
“We’ve seen this in recent weeks where the Ceann Comhairle felt it necessary to convene discussions on confronting abuse and threats towards political figures, and it’s something every parent confronts when trying to ensure that their children are safe online.
“I refuse to accept that the price of participating in public life should involve having to put your family and friends through waves of online abuse and malicious smears. This is not the cost of service – it is a failure of our digital culture.
“I will continue to take whatever action is necessary to confront this appalling feature of social media. We all need to call it out for what it is: totally unacceptable. Social media companies must do far more to protect people from such nasty and destructive behaviour online.”
Maria Steen’s difficult route to a nomination
Conservative campaigner Maria Steen faces an uphill battle to get on the slate. She meets the four members of Independent Ireland later this evening seeking their support for an Oireachtas nomination.
Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín says that, already, 13 TDs and Senators have backed Steen, although several have not been named. With the support of the four TDs from the Dáil’s newest party, that would bring her total to 17, just three short of the 20 that would be required.
But it’s a difficult bar to reach. David Norris found out that to his cost in 2011 when he could only get to 18 before he went elsewhere and sought nominations from local authorities.
Steen getting over the line would require one or more of the Senators aligned with Michael McDowell to do a volte face, or for some other Independents who have said no to change their minds. Or for a Fianna Fáil representative to face the wrath of the parliamentary party by signing the nomination papers. All tough nuts to crack.
The county council route is even harder for her. Steen’s main problem is that she entered the race so late, not giving her enough time to make contact with councillors and to cultivate support regionally.
She is a very proficient speaker and debater but a five-minute presentation will never be enough.
Watch out for Leitrim though. The council is one of the smallest in the State with 18 members and already five (two Fianna Fáil and three Independents) have pledged support for her. With one or two more, and some abstentions, she could get her first local authority endorsement today. The difficulty is: where can she find the other three only two days before the final deadline for nominations?
Where does this leave Gareth Sheridan?
It’s not going to be a smooth day for the businessman (36). From the start, his team has targeted a number of councils with a high number of Independent members.
However, it was also relying on the support (albeit tacit) of Fianna Fáil councillors, even if they were to abstain.
In past presidential elections, Fianna Fáil representatives have shown an independent cast of mind and have not regarded themselves as subject to a party whip.
But this time it is different. Even though there is no formal instruction to councillors, they have acted consistently across councils and have, with Fine Gael, blocked the nominations of Independents.
They did so in Kerry, Meath, Carlow and Tipperary so far and it is expected that many of the other 12 councils today will follow suit.
Sheridan’s prospects have now narrowed to touch-and-go. If he does not get the backing of Offaly (its meeting starts at 2pm), it will be all but game over for him.
Was his strategy from last February to focus in on councils with a high number of Independents a wise one? It has meant he has not addressed many others that could potentially have backed him.
That said, the change of mood music from Fianna Fáil councillors has been the most significant factor.
If he does succeed in persuading councillors in Offaly to back him, there will be enormous pressure on Louth County Council to follow suit later this evening and gave him the fourth vital nomination that he requires.
It will be close.
Facebook removes posts about Jim Gavin that violated standards
Fianna Fáil has written to three social media companies to complain about a number of social media posts about its presidential candidate Jim Gavin.
The party is very concerned about the proliferation of false posts about its candidate being spread online. Jack Horgan Jones reported on this development this morning.
Pat Leahy has an update. He writes:
Fianna Fáil has confirmed that of the three social media companies – Meta (which owns Facebook and Instagram), X and TikTok – only Meta has responded to complaints about false and damaging information about presidential candidate Jim Gavin being posted on its platform.
Meta has removed a number of posts, it said. However, there is still no response from either X or TikTok, despite requests from Fianna Fáil. The party said it had not yet received a response from Coimisiún na Meán, the media regulator, either.
Gareth Sheridan narrowly fails to win backing of Meath County Council for presidential nomination
Businessman Gareth Sheridan has received a significant setback to his efforts to gain a presidential nomination after Meath County Council voted by 14 votes to 13 to reject his nomination.
Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael councillors all voted against his nomination while Sinn Féin members abstained. There were eight abstentions.
Mr Sheridan will now pin his hopes on nominations from Offaly and Louth County Councils later today.
Gareth Sheridan now speaking to councillors
The businessman Gareth Sheridan has addressed Meath County Council setting out his vision for his presidency, saying he would represent the younger demographic, particularly those with no opportunity of owning their own home.
He is now being quizzed by councillors including Cllr John Duffy who asks him why he is willing to abandon his business. “It is just the right time in history for a younger candidate to, at least, offer,” he has replied.
Cllr Nick Killian is asking him if he will step aside from his business if elected or will he return to the US?
He replies that Ireland is home and he does not have any ambition to relocate.
Gareth Sheridan’s path to presidency
Gareth Sheridan obtained two nominations last week, one from Kerry County Council and the other from Tipperary County Council.
His campaign received a setback later in the week when he failed to secure a nomination from Carlow County Council.
There are 12 councils hosting special meetings today: Meath; Monaghan; Sligo; Leitrim; Offaly; Clare; Cork County; Kildare; Westmeath; Kilkenny; Limerick; and Louth.
Of those Sheridan is focusing on three: Meath (which is going on at present); Offaly (which meets at 2pm) and Louth, which meets later in the afternoon.
The businessman will soon address Meath County Council. However, he may not get the opportunity to do so in Louth as his documentation was not submitted on time.
Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil voted against nomination of a candidate but were defeated by a combination of Independents and members of smaller parties. Sinn Féin councillors abstained.
As of now, it looks like he will be the only person who is nominated and seconded by a councillor. The preliminary vote has heightened his chances of securing a third nomination.
Good morning, it’s Harry McGee, with live reporting of a critical day for prospective presidential candidates.
Meath County Council is currently meeting to decide if it will endorse a nomination.
Before any candidates were afforded the opportunity to speak to the council, it voted a short while ago on a Fine Gael motion not to nominate any candidate.
The council voted against the motion by 11 votes to eight, which means that entrepreneur Gareth Sheridan has passed the first hurdle and his chances of getting a nomination have increased. The candidates will now have an opportunity to address the council.
