Tipperary Council give Gareth Sheridan Presidential race nomination

Presidential hopeful, Independent Gareth Sheridan is halfway to securing a Presidential Election nomination after receiving the support of Tipperary County Council at a dramatic special meeting of the local authority on Tuesday.

A proposal was forward by Fianna Fáil's Michael Smith not to nominate a candidate which prompted uproar in the council chamber, however it was defeated 20 votes to 19 and Mr Sheridan won the council's nomination by 17 votes to three.

One Fine Gael Councillor, Mary Hanna Hourigan, broke ranks with her party colleagues and voted to allow the nomination proceed. Last week during an interview on local radio, FG whip from Templetuohy, Cllr. Willie Kennedy, said he would not dissuade any of his party colleagues if they wished to ignore instructions from the upper echelons of the party.

12 potential presidential candidates were anticipated to visit the Premier County and address the County Councillors at the special meeting in Nenagh on Tuesday seeking nominations to run in next month’s election.

Three candidates failed to arrive at the local authority offices, resulting in nine addressing the chamber - from a total of 28 expressions of interest.

Tipperary's Councillors stipulated that if any candidate wishes to be considered they must attend the meeting and speak to the chamber in person. Seven hopefuls said they would like to be considered but can't attend and were subsequently ruled out of contention. 

That group included 2018 candidate Peter Casey who succeeded in securing the nomination of Tipperary's councillors in the 2018 election.

Nine more hopefuls failed to provide the required documentation to prove their eligibility or did not respond - those included Barry 'Wheelie Rowell', known as the 'Kerry Wheelbarrow'; MMA star Conor McGregor and South Tipperary native Nick Delahanty, who chose to seek the nomination of other councils, but not own local authority.

36-year-old Pharma entrepreneur Gareth Sheridan was first to address Tipperary's councillors, having already secured the backing of Kerry County Council on Monday. 

The well-known businessman and entrepreneur, still requires a nomination from two more local authorities to have his name on the ballot paper on 24 October.

Opening his address he asked councillors not to dismiss his bid for a presidential nomination as "youthful arrogance" and said he had "exceptional life experience" as one of a handful of people who floated a company on a US stock exchange after building a successful business that helps deliver pain medication safely with less risk of addiction.

Several of Tipp's Councillors suggested he may be better suited as a candidate for election to the Dáil - but he remained adamant his focus was on the role of President - "the leader's role" he said, with particular emphasis on reaching out to the young people of Ireland from the Áras.

He said there were dozens of people around the country who would be better and more effective in the TDs role than he would. 

Mr Sheridan's nomination was proposed by and seconded by councillors Liam Browne and Seamie Morris and his celebratory address after securing the nomination he vowed to “not let you down”.

He said it is important that Tipperary sent a message that constitutional rights a enshrined in the constitution were exercised.

“I’m fully aware of the old saying that where Tipperary leads Ireland follows and I hope this continues on now and we do have independents on the ballot and we have more than a three horse race in the upcoming election”, he said.

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One other potential candidate was proposed by Cllr. Pat English, Cllr. Kieran McCarthy, the ex-Lord Mayor of Cork, who received three votes to secure the nomination.

Other hopefuls who addressed the meeting included Dr. Cora Stack, Donnacha McGabhann, Walter Ryan Purcell, Charlotte Keenan and Professor Dolores Cahill.

Sinn Féin's David Dunne asked all candidates the same five questions, asking them for a succinct 'yes' or 'no'. The questions were if they support a referendum on Irish unity by 2030; if they support the Occupied Territories Bill; if they wish to see the right to housing enshrined in the Irish Constitution; if they support Irish water supplies returning to control of the local authorities and finally if they support Irish military neutrality and preserving the Triple Lock.

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Cllr. Maureen MacGrath asked all the candidates to address the Council chamber As Gaelige and speak on what importance they place on support for expanding the language, while Cllr. Anne-Marie Shiner asked each candidate to elaborate on their involvement or work on any social justice issues.

On Monday six local authorities made the decision not to nominate a candidate in the upcoming Presidential Election.
Dublin, Cork and Galway city councils were joined by Laois, Roscommon and Longford county councils, choosing not to endorse any of the prospective candidates for the election on October 24.