October date set for Áras vote
Environment Minister Phil Hogan moved the order for the election yesterday, confirming the already speculated date of October 27 as voting day.
Candidates must be declared nearly a month ahead of polling day, with September 28 set as the final date for nominations.
All citizens over the age of 18 are entitled to vote and polling booths will open from 7am until 10pm.
The total electorate stands at about 3.1 million. Eligible voters not on the register of electors have until October 10 to apply to the supplementary register.
So far there are four confirmed candidates: Fine Gael’s Gay Mitchell, Labour’s Michael D Higgins and Independents Sean Gallagher and Mary Davis.
Fianna Fáil’s parliamentary party will today meet to discuss whether to back an internal party candidate, although this is unlikely after a special FF committee yesterday decided against this.
The six-man committee ignored appeals by deputy party leader Éamon Ó Cuív to enter the race, with the party’s huge financial debt and voters’ anger with FF cited as the main reasons.
The FF parliamentary party will meet in Leinster House at lunchtime today with some members set to argue that the party must back a candidate.
Leader Micheál Martin is expected to face criticism at the meeting after deciding with a committee earlier this week not to bring the party into the race.
He told the committee that issues like the bailout, which was agreed by the former FF-led government, would haunt any candidate during the race.
FF chairman John Browne said he expected members to debate the issue today but they were unlikely to challenge Mr Martin’s decision.
“We still have a few like myself who feel that we should have a candidate,” he said. “That will be a minority. We will be fighting a lone battle.”
Members will hear of internal party polls on candidates who were being considered as nominees.
Mr Martin is also set to make a strong argument that FF should concentrate on building electoral strength ahead of the 2014 local elections.
But it is anticipated that some members may raise the leader’s failed appeal to broadcaster Gay Byrne to run and the subsequent decision by party MEP Brian Cowley not to contest the race. Party sources do not expect Mr Crowley to attend the meeting.
Meanwhile, a leading Sinn Féin TD has said his party will decide next week about entering the race.
Martin Ferris told Radio Kerry that he wanted Sinn Féin to contest the election.
He admitted the party were considering the likes of Mary Lou McDonald TD, health spokesman Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin, leader Gerry Adams and the North’s deputy first minister Martin McGuinness as candidates.
Mr Ferris also raised the possibility of the North’s agriculture minister, Michelle Gildernew, competing in the race.
