Following in her mother’s footsteps
New Cavan-Belturbet Fine Gael candidate, Niamh Brady, has big boots to fill if she is to be elected come June. All things going well, if she makes the cut and is looking for advice, Niamh only has to call to her mother Madeleine's home where that pair of retired footwear will be waiting inside the door.
Nominated by the party's grassroot members late last year, married mum of two Niamh is “excited” about potentially carrying on a legacy that began with her grandfather, the late Andy O’Brien, almost 70 years ago.
A leading Fine Gael organiser and member of Cavan County Council and Cavan Urban District Council for over 40 years, Mr O'Brien served as well as Senator (1969-1987) and as a chair of Cavan VEC also.
It's no surprise then that Niamh grew up in a household where politics was a regular topic of conversation at the kitchen table, day or night.
To stand for election though was a decision Niamh came to herself.
“Yes we were reared on it. And of course at election time, we'd be out putting up posters and leafleting. I'm the third generation, there's something to that. Politics was always something in our lives. We might not have understood it as children but, as you grow up you see the work that's done, and the effort being made to do things right for your community... I want to have my part in that.”
While Madeleine was first elected to local government in 1999, her husband Terry also served on Cavan Town Council up until its dissolution in 2014.
Madeleine served as Cathaoirleach of Cavan County Council in 2018-19, and more recently, in 2021, received the honour of being appointed as one of two vice presidents to Fine Gael nationally. She is also a member of the party’s Executive Council.
“It's great to have that experience behind me, to have mum as a mentor,” adds Niamh. “Daddy being a former town councillor as well, and the O'Briens, everyone there is so involved, and my husband Cathal, he has a big interest as well. I've lots of people around me to help me.”
Like Madeleine, Niamh has a strong interest in social issues, and in education.
“Childcare places, schools, facilities for families, and safety. These are big issues that, not even running for election, I hear about everyday from the people I speak with. Everyday issues affecting families like the cost of living, that's what I'm interested in. As a mum of young children, you want to make things better for them and everyone else around you.”
When she does eventually step down, Madeleine acknowledges it will be a “bittersweet” moment.
A council seat has been in the family since 1954 and Madeleine, who was elected on five successive occasions, believes that it is “important” to have another female standing for the council.
Ultimately she states: “It's important to have new people, new thinking, new ideas, come into politics. I've enjoyed my time, met a lot of wonderful people, visited beautiful places. I was honoured on more than one occasion, and selected to the national executive as well. People you get to know and what's wonderful about it all is that everyone wants what is best for their own community.”