Tánaiste confident of Fianna Fáil party’s prospects locally in next General Election
Tánaiste Micheál Martin is confident Sinn Féin’s rise in popularity will not affect Fianna Fáil’s success in Cavan and Monaghan at the next general election.
Speaking to The Anglo-Celt in Cavan last week, the party leader said it has very strong candidates in this area.
“Brendan Smith and Niamh Smyth are particularly strong candidates who work extremely hard,” he said. “Our councillors also work extremely hard.”
There are five seats up for grabs in the Cavan-Monaghan constitutency.
Fianna Fáil is expected, once again, to run a third candidate in County Monaghan - yet to be confirmed via selection convention - with Senator Robbie Gallagher the front runner.
The Tánaiste’s comments came ahead of the publication of a poll by the Business Post on Sunday that showed growing support for Sinn Féin in the past month, rising three points to 34% at the expense of the government parties. Sinn Féin has two sitting TDs in this constituency in Matt Carthy and Pauline Tully.
The Red-C poll showed Fine Gael support was down by two points; while Fianna Fáil support dropped by one point.
They sit at 20% and 15% respectively. Fine Gael has a sitting Minister in Cavan Monaghan in the form of poll topper Heather Humphreys.
The Tánaiste made reference to attending the recent funeral of the late Councillor Seán Smith, which he felt demonstrated the huge support Fianna Fáil’s have in the county at grassroots level.
“From being at the funeral of the late Councillor Seán Smith, Brendan’s brother, the crowds that turned out that day were a tremendous testament to his hard work and diligence, and that told me a story about the strength of our community-based organisation here in Cavan and the people.”
Despite his confidence, Tánaiste Martin said the party will not sit on its hands and will continue working to ensure their success in the next general election, due to be held before March 2025.
“We won’t take that for granted, we will be very competitive in this constituency,” he said confidently.