It's make your mind up time for FF - as Cumainn get nomination papers

The possible candidates for Fianna Fail in Galway West and Galway East have been ‘throwing shapes’ for months past. But the serious business really began in the past week when the nomination papers went out to all the FF cumainn in both constituencies.

I understand that, because of the awful weather in recent weeks, a bit of an extension was granted in the process, but the names of those the cumainn (branches) want on the party ticket – or those who have asked the cumainn to nominate them – will have to be officially submitted by the weekend.The betting in informed circles is that the el

ection might still go out to mid-March, especially if the Greens have a raft of legislation they want passed ..... with some rumour that they have their own plans for the Senate that might ‘spike’ Fine Gael guns for a move on abolition.

In Fine Gael the nomination process sparked the shock retirements of long-serving TDs Paul Connaughton and Ulick Burke when the process began. Then at the weekend there was that resounding rejection of Senator Ciaran Cannon by convention. Now we have to wait and see if the coming weeks produce shocks in Fianna Fail.

In Galway West, where Fianna Fail have two seats out of five – the TDs are Minister Eamon Ó Cuív and Frank Fahey – there are still many in the FF organisation who think that it may be possible to hold the two seats despite the absolutely dire findings of national opinion polls.

Ironically, the hope that two seats might be retained comes on foot of a Fine Gael poll which was leaked a few weeks ago that showed Frank Fahey was featuring in the final shake-up for a seat, while Minister Ó Cuív seemed safe enough.

One of the major discussions of recent times has been whether Fianna Fail might run two candidates (Ó Cuív and Fahey) or three (the outgoing TDs being joined by Mayor of Galway Councillor Michael J. Crowe). That debate will not have gone down well among the Crowe followers and the hunch now among some of the best informed in the constituency seems to be that Michael John Crowe will be joining Ó Cuív and Fahey on the ticket.

The ‘Crowe Clan’ – Councillors Michael John and his brother Ollie – were one of the FF success stories in Galway at the Local Elections and were joined in the City Council by newcomer Councillor Peter Keane.

The city, in fact, was one of the bright spots in an otherwise dismal Local Elections for Fianna Fail, while FF were hammered in the Galway County Council contests dropping to an all-time low of six seats out of thirty, compared to Fine Gael’s thirteen.

For more, read this week's Connacht Tribune.