Ciara Phelan: Sinn Féin must grow local if it is to bloom at national level

One Sinn Féin source said they believe the party is struggling to identify candidates is due to how toxic politics has become in recent times.

Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald during her keynote speech at the Sinn Fein ard fheis at the RDS in Dublin on November 5, 2022.

Sinn Féin members are human after all. Fallible. Flawed like the rest of us.

For almost three years now, we have been conditioned to the idea the party is merely a hop, skip, and a jump away from being the largest in the next Government, with Mary Lou McDonald assured of becoming the country’s first-ever female Taoiseach.

The truth, however, is not so clear-cut.

The party may be soaring in the opinion polls, but whether it can get people to put themselves forward to strengthen its support on the ground is another story.

Sources have said the party is well aware it has a job of work to do to try to recruit people in constituencies across the country to run in next year's local elections.

With just 81 council seats, Sinn Féin would need to regain the 78 seats it lost in the 2019 local election and add at least another 50 bodies to the councils.

For context, with just under 27% of the overall first preference vote, Fianna Fáil won 279 council seats in 2019. With Sinn Féin in the mid-30s in opinion polls, it would hope to reach similar figures on the day next May.

That being said, one Sinn Féin source said they believe one of the reasons why the party is struggling to identify candidates is due to how toxic politics has become in recent times.

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This will be no different for Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, so Sinn Féin’s struggles may not be an isolated case.

The source cites social media abuse, low pay for councillors, the "risks" of the job, and having to put themselves out there, something which is already difficult to do without the added pressure of being targeted online. 

Confirmation earlier this week in the Seanad that councillors can use expenses to pay for security upgrades to their homes was welcomed, but many pointed out that the very existence of the question was worrying.

Major task

A number of local authorities across the country have either none or only one councillor who is a member of Sinn Féin.

It will be a major task for the party to turn this around and take control of councils, with sources saying they’re feeling the pressure already.

This raises questions about whether the party has a strong enough constituency organisation in areas across the country.

The absence of councillors in areas can be detrimental as busy TDs focusing on national issues in the Dáil can’t delegate local work to other members of their party.

After all, addressing, communicating and seeing through local issues brought forward by constituents is what can almost guarantee votes for political parties. In most areas across the country, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael significantly outnumber Sinn Féin councillors.

The question must be asked: if the party is already struggling to find potential candidates to run in the local elections, will they have the same issue with securing numbers come the next general election?

Sinn Féin will be banking on the local elections to give them an indication of how much of an uphill battle that will be.

The party knows it also needs to pick up additional seats in local authorities so it will have enough councillors to vote for its candidates in Seanad elections.

The local elections will be Sinn Féin’s chance to build momentum ahead of a potential autumn general election next year, which will be the party’s defining moment.