FF denies claims of bid to remove Healy-Rae voters from electoral register

FIANNA FÁIL chiefs in Kerry yesterday strongly denied a claim the party had attempted to remove names of people that vote for Independent TD Jackie Healy-Rae from the register of electors in Healy-Rae’s native Kilgarvan.

A row has flared up between the Healy-Rae camp and Fianna Fáil, with Cllr Danny Healy-Rae, a son of the deputy, claiming a request to take more than 30 voters from their local register was politically motivated. “Fianna Fáil doesn’t stand for much at the moment if it has to try to take some of our voters off the register,” he said.

The submission for the amendment was signed by Kerry mayor and FF councillor Ted Fitzgerald at the behest of FF candidate in Kerry South, Tom Fleming.

Mr Healy-Rae’s director of elections, another son, Michael, said it was “bizarre beyond belief”.

It is also understood the names of a small number of Fine Gael supporters, in Kilgarvan, were on the list for omission.

However, Mr Fitzgerald said he was acting in good faith at the request of Mr Fleming when he was asked to sign a claim form.

“I just signed the form and any changes to it are to be made by an enumerator,” Mr Fitzgerald said.

“I was facilitating someone making a submission to improve the register. I have no say on whether a person should, or should not, be on the register.”

Mr Fleming said both FF headquarters and Arts, Sport and Tourism Minister John O’Donoghue had directed each of the FF cumann in the Kerry South constituency to check their local registers and to make necessary amendments.

He said a local cumann representative from Kilgarvan contacted him to sign the claims form, which requested some amendments. But, as he himself was not available to sign it, he asked that Mr Fitzgerald sign it.

A Kerry County Council spokesman said the council did not take information relating to the register at face value, whether from councillors or members of the public, but checked it with council enumerators.

The pre-election row reflects ongoing rivalry between the Fianna Fáil and the Healy-Rae camp.

Fianna Fáil came close to winning a second seat in the constituency in the 2002 election, in which Mr Healy-Rae defeated Tom Fleming by just 200 votes after a recount.

With FF already mounting a strong campaign for a second seat, another close battle is expected in this year’s election.