Fianna Fáil shocked as second Healy-Rae enters Kerry fight

With minutes to spare before the 12pm deadline, the Independent councillor for the Killarney area, Danny Healy-Rae, surprised everyone and handed in his nomination papers to run in the 2016 general election.

Some 16 candidates have now declared for the new five-seater single constituency of Kerry.

Danny Healy-Rae was accompanied to county registrar Padraig Burke’s Tralee office by his younger brother Michael Healy-Rae, the TD for Kerry South, who quietly handed in his nomination papers on Tuesday.

Danny Healy-Rae said it was “a joint” decision with his brother to put both names forward.

The brothers and the wider Healy-Rae team had been deliberating about it for some time, under pressure from constituents to run two candidates, he said.

The withdrawal last weekend of TD Tom Fleming, the only sitting political candidate in the Killarney area, had meant those requests had “intensified”.

The decision to run two candidates meant that the Healy-Rae “political service” was expanding.

For more election news, analysis and general banter join us HERE

“We took the decision in order to expand the first-class political service that the Healy-Raes gave to South Kerry over many years,” said Danny Healy-Rae.

The move has caused shockwaves in Fianna Fáil, which had hoped to gain most from Mr Fleming’s decision to withdraw.

“We are running together, not against each other,” said Danny Healy-Rae, who pointed out that his son, Johnny, a councillor who topped the poll in South and West Kerry, was heading off in the afternoon to canvass for Michael Healy-Rae in Killorglin.

Ever wondered what the main players in #GE16 are saying on Twitter? Well find out HERE. https://t.co/IRB1F7XDKd pic.twitter.com/QLwlwfUp3f

— Irish Examiner (@irishexaminer) February 8, 2016

Danny Healy-Rae, who got 4,388 first-preference votes — over twice the quota — in the Killarney area local elections in 2014, said there had been “many, many requests over many, many months” to run two candidates in the new Kerry constituency.

He was further persuaded to run for the sake of Killarney and east Kerry now that Mr Fleming was not running, meaning there was no sitting councillor or TD running in the area.

He appealed directly to the people of the Killarney area, and in particular to Mr Fleming’s supporters, to vote for him.

Danny Healy-Rae said: “I’m especially calling on Tom Fleming supporters, a man that I have high regard for and who sat on my right-hand side on Kerry County Council for many years, with Michael on my left, to come out and vote for me.”

He knew “every turn and every stone and every person” in the Killarney electoral area, said Danny Healy-Rae.

“I’m asking these people to give me the number one and to continue their number two preference to Michael Healy-Rae,” he said.

For more election news, analysis and general banter join us HERE

The Healy-Raes believe the time is right to expand the first-class political service they had given to Kerry South over the years, he said.

Fianna Fáil officials were left speechless by the surprise move.

Just last weekend, when Mr Fleming said he was pulling out, meaning east Kerry was wide open, two Fianna Fáil councillors in Killarney, including director of elections Niall Kelleher, approached party headquarters to add them to the ticket to mop up the support for the party.

Fianna Fáil senator Mark Daly also asked to be added — he said this was in order to secure the second seat for the party.

However, speaking in Killarney on Monday, party leader Micheál Martin ruled out adding a third candidate.

“There’s no possibility,” Mr Martin said, adding that Fianna Fáil had two strong candidates in Norma Moriarty, based in Waterville, and John Brassil, from Ballyheigue.