Can we have a thread to discuss the upcoming MEP Election candidates for Ireland?

[HornyHornersPinkyWinky]

European elections coming up on 7th June. Ireland has 14 seats to fill...

I know it's probably early days, but I got a shiny leaflet in the door from Barry Andrews talking about how great he is - sorry Barry but you're not getting my vote.

It got me thinking though, I have no idea who to vote for. Here's a website which lists all the candidates, if you scroll down you will see the constituencies and if you click on their faces it gives you more information about their policies etc.
https://www.europeanmovement.ie/european-elections-2024/#1708343079798-db46201b-445f

Is there anyone dead set on who they are voting for and willing to share? I'm in Dublin BTW. Actually, if I could I'd vote for Peadar Tobín, but he's in the Midlands constituency...

The best load of nonsense so far in the door is Eamon Murphy, pictured shaking hands with Sr. Theresa. He obviously hasn't heard. Lots of conspiracy foil hat nonsense, hilarious

Oh no wonder Lorna Bogue doesn't mention sex or gender on her leaflet then.

Eamon Murphy sounds like Ciarán O Riordan whose drivel just plopped on the doormat.

The WEF ☑. They want to reduce the population by 95% and enslave the remainder. The 💉 ☑ is causing cancer , heart attacks and strokes. People are dropping like flies but it's all covered up...by WEF , WHO etc. Global warming ☑ is a hoax. To destroy farming and cause Famine so the WEF etc etc.

It must be awful to live in fear like this ?
Ps I was about to sling out all the junk mail when I noticed my poll card in its midst ! Beware.

I'm still dithering about who to vote for so it was a bit of a relief to get a leaflet as straightforwardly crackers as Murphy's, at least I could just bin it. It told people to give the Aontú candidate their second vote - I wonder if Aontú are happy about that.

@Mermoose the resident teen kept it as an example of mis information in an official capacity for school ,😂.

😁

Who is Sr Theresa?

After all my efforts trying to decide who to vote for, and getting the local councillor, who does nothing from one end of the year to the other, to fix pot holes, cut grass etc, I realised last night that I can't vote anyway. I'm away next week and not back until after polls close on Friday.

Sister Theresa so called saint who was discovered to use dubious ways of caring for the sick and questionable political contacts.

Oh right. I've only ever heard her referred to as Mother Theresa.

She was an evil woman. Refused pain meds for the poor in her care as "suffering brings you closer to god" but got the best of medical care for herself.

Probably most people on the thread have seen this but anyway:
https://www.whichcandidate.ie/events/12/constituencies

Saoirse Mackin of the Social Democrats is trans. Saoirse is a candidate in Cork afaik.
There is an article about her in the Independent ( Irish or Sunday - not sure ).

https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/i-ended-up-coming-out-as-trans-to-close-friends-in-fourth-year-which-ironically-is-transition-year-local-election-candidate-saoirse-mackin/a118709999.html

Mackin is community engagement officer for Trans Equality Network Ireland (Teni), the organisation which signed the 2020 letter calling for gender critical women to be denied media and political representation.
www.michaelnugent.com/2020/12/04/amnesty-falsely-denies/

Thanks @Mermoose have requested my post be deleted - got confused in my googling

No problem @Thisisthedawningoftheageofaquarius - I requested my reply be deleted too.

As Gettalife mentioned on another thread, it's helpful to check this:
https://comeout.eu/

It's a pledge which contains this very worrying promise:
Put the safety of the [LGBTI] community above any other concerns
and always follow the “do no harm” principle, including by keeping my work out of the public eye whenever necessary"

Irish signatories:
Bríd Smith Ireland Not affiliated
Regina Doherty Ireland EPP
Barry Andrews Ireland Renew
Brian O’Boyle Ireland The Left
Cian Prendiville Ireland The Left
Pauline O’Reilly Ireland Greens/EFA
Aodhán Ó Ríordáin Ireland S&D
Rory Hearne Ireland Not affiliated
Ciaran Cuffe Ireland Greens/EFA
Grace O’Sullivan Ireland Greens/EFA
Luke “Ming” Flanagan Ireland The Left
Fergal Landy Ireland S&D
Billy Kelleher Ireland Renew
Sinéad Gibney Ireland Not affiliated
Niamh Hourigan Ireland S&D
Maria Walsh Ireland EPP

@Mermoose

Thanks for this

Ciaran Cuffe was on my potential list for a vote.

That's him gone now

Yeah I wasn't happy about voting Green but I'd thought I'd give both him and Andrews a vote somewhere. I emailed Andrews this morning and will probably email Cuffe too, I think they need to get feedback from women pointing out how undemocratic this is. Ironic but unsurprising that the SocDems who claim to be committed to transparency are happy to sign a pledge of secrecy.

Has anyone seen this pledge talked about? I can't find mention of it anywhere. Am I just really naive to be shocked that candidates would actually sign a pledge that said they'd prioritise one group over everything else and conceal their work from the public?

That's helpful. I've now got a bottom 5 and a tentative top 3 for Ireland South, any other information on anyone standing there would be gratefully received.

I don't know when I last went into a polling station with an actual physical list.

Still very tempted to drop a few holy medals into the box, just to annoy the secularists.

Not just to annoy the secularists. To suggest that not everyone has totally gone over to secularism as an unquestioned world view.

Between the Which Candidate thing and the pledge, I've got no one to vote for. I'm going to spoil my vote, rather than not vote so the one person who sees it when they open the box will know why....

I was considering voting Green Party for local and European elections. Our local Green Party councillor does a lot of work for the community. However, I've been put off by the sexist Rob O'Donnell video (Green Party candidate for Limerick local elections). Sexist behaviour has no place in politics and the fact that he'd use innuendo and the suggestion of a naked woman to get votes is disgraceful. I can't believe he hasn't taken it down yet. Not sure if the Green Party represents me if that's what their candidates consider appropriate.

Sat down and said I would go through and look at the candidates for local and European this afternoon and make a decision how I was going to vote. I've only started looking at Europeans and there are 27 candidates in Midlands-NW.
🙄how on earth is anyone supposed to keep them straight. I usually vote the whole way down the ticket, starting with my top 3, then my bottom 3 and then fill in the rest alternating between top and bottom but I don't think I can this time as I feel I'm bound to make a mistake and give someone awful a higher preference than I mean to

I'm going to have to take a list, there's no way I'll keep everyone straight otherwise and I really want to put Mick Wallace in at number 17 to avoid him getting any transfers from me.