Election 2024 . Not that one, though the Trump victory is sure to influence some of what we are threatened and promised. presumably we'll have a date soon.

[DeanElderberry]

Any wise thoughts?

Regardless of who anyone votes for I am sending my usual message, please GET OUT AND VOTE.

This is our vote, we have to speak.

Some Citizens of this Island did not have that option until 1970's.

Here Here.
And be respectful of other people who have different opinions and vote differently to you.

Absolutely, I recommended it here during the referendum but my daughter has the most fantastic book called The Making of Mollie by Anna Carey about the suffregates fight to get female rights here in Ireland.
I read it myself & the sequel😊 My daughter loved it & was fascinated by the journey us women have been on to get to where we are now.
It's so important to use our vote, I hope there's a very large turn out.

https://obrien.ie/the-making-of-mollie

Lovely book for any children interested in the suffregates & the fight for votes for women. There is also a sequel.

I agree @Onehorsetown FF x FG should merge. When Eamonn McCann suggested this , decades ago , I thought oh god no....they'll walk on top of us. But he was right ; it needs to happen and now it is happening by default. FF x FF voters routinely transfer to each other. They have come out as non binary , if you'll pardon the expression. At least it means something in this context.

At least this way we can see the scale of the problem. There is an irreducible core of economic conservatives who will always vote for parties representing bankers , builders and landlords. By definition they have no interest in solving the housing crisis.
Also agree with PP who said Coveney was the real heir apparent. A very impressive performer who showed up his British counterparts during the Brexit shambles. But I expect SH will carry on , barring a FG wipe out which is not on the cards surely? MM and MLM both seem like basically decent slightly left of centre people who wouldn't be out of place in UK Labour. I've met a few very nice men and women who are languishing in the Tóraí parties. But it's only PR that prevents ppl like Leo from unleashing their inner Thatcher....

Thank you

That is exactly how I am thinking about the parties but couldn't put my thoughts into coherent words.

I always voted Labour until 2016, I can still clearly remember I even distributed leaflets, it was Joe Costello at the time.

In 2011, I distinctly remember saying to him. I know FG were going to go scorched earth on us, Labour's job is to spoke for the people.

They didn't do that, I never voted Labour again.

@Abhannmor you have explained my thought process beautifully.

FG have 11seats which were sitting TDs not running, including some longtime well known names, they are wide open.

Soc Dems have 2 seats wide open.

GP has 1.

Not sure about the other parties.

Someways it's new blood, potentially fresh ideas,

I think after Simon Coveney lost the Foreign Affairs with the Taoiseach handover, he dialled it in.

He was strong in the role, he should have been left there.

He is a loss even if the party cannot see it.

I think Coveney would work well with MN, he's a very good speaker & is regarded well internationally.
The seats & who gets what will be very interesting. Like you said 11 FG outgoing. Independent Ireland had a fantastic locals the momentum is there for them too. There is loads of actual independents who are very strong. They will be set to gain also from the anti establishment vote & those who always vote only independent.

Excuse my ignorance @Abhannmor but who is MLM you mentioned ?

Also @Trumped who is MN you speak of who would work well with Simon Coveney ?
My brain is fried trying to work out who is who. Apologies

Sorry my typo I meant Michael Martin! They are both from Cork too but possibly different constituencies. I'm surprised Simon Coveney is not more visible in FGs campaign. To be honest I think he's really needed at the moment.

He's not running in the election so I guess if he has no seat he can't be considered as Taoiseach.

I think they should have put him on more debates. For instance he would have fared much better against Peadar Toibín & Matt Carty on the immigration debate. He's an excellent speaker but they put McEntee on instead 🙈

Mary Lou McDonald. Sorry it is a bit confusing!

It would be helpful if people put names instead of initials to save confusion.

👍thank you for clarifying @Abhannmor and @Trumped.

I thought Simon Coveney was bowing out of politics so wouldn't have thought he'd be involved in any way.
He was the Fine Gael Members choice for leader iirc but Leo was the Fine Gael TD's and Senator's choice is that right ?

Yes please!
I had no idea who GG was, had to google.

That sounds right . I know he's bowing out but at the moment he is still a TD so I'm sure he'd still be canvessing to drum up support etc .
I think they missed a trick not having him in the debates as he would be the same calibre of speaker as Peadar Toibín & Matt Carty especially on the immigration debate unless Harris truely believed McEntee was the superior choice. Who knows🤷

I thought Simon Coveney was bowing out of politics so wouldn't have thought he'd be involved in any way.

Yes, he’s leaving politics now, which is a pity. He was very competent and experienced.

I have never voted FG, they don't align with me at all especially now they have gone to the woke side but Simon Coveney was a steady, reliable, very credible politician & he will be a very big loss to them, I think he would have made a very good taoiseach.

I think most people are aware but just in case

There has been a rise in far right populist parties and candidates in Ireland and abroad.
At the core of this in Ireland are activists who were defeated in the Repeal and Marriage Equality referendums. They have linked a defence of traditional Ireland to opposition to ‘mass immigration’ and many have celebrated the burning of accommodation centres for refugees. They want to reverse the changes in Irish society and return the country to a 1950s culture where everyone was white and Catholic. Here we have people like Malachy Stenson and Gavin Pepper.
Another independent in the Dublin Central constituency with Malachy Stenson is Gerry Hutch, one of Irelands most notorious criminals running on a populist platform.

On a similar populist platform have Independent Ireland and Aontu who are both socially very right wing conservative parties.
Both anti woman's right to choose.
Aontu was formed for this reason.

There is a rise in support for these types of parties and policies. Donald Trump has just been elected in America for example.

But if it's not your thing vote for any of the main parties (FF, FG, SF) or smaller left of centre parties (SD, LAB, GP) depending on how they align best with you and your priorities. It's unlikely any party will be a perfect fit.

Hopefully we will end up with a STABLE government in charge to see us through these very turbulent and quite frankly very scary times we are living in.

Coveney has the gift of seeing the big picture and frames his answers accordingly. He comes across as less right wing than Varadkar and less patronising than Harris. He was first choice for the FG members iirc. But were they impressed by his eloquence , or was it case of - 'Jaysus lads we'll never be elected with that Indian fella as leader.' ?

Simon Coveney was great and would have been a much better leader than Leo in my opinion. I was disappointed when Leo got the job.
But he's left politics now. I imagine it was very stressful and he's probably glad to be out of it all.

If protecting female only spaces & sports teams..

Repealing the Gender Recognition Act so we never have a Barbie Kardashian scandal again ..

Scrapping the vile sphe curriculum proposed by current government..

If you are a Gender critical voter Countess have provided a great checklist which I shared yesterday but I will again as it's election eve. The only parties who are worth a vote here on these issues would be Aontú, Independent Ireland, many Independents (nationalist parties also but unsure which ones but all I'd imagine)

Won't be transferring to any party who asked us women to go out & vote us mothers out of the state constitution on International Women's Day. How dare they. Tomorrow is payback time at the polls.
(SF have pledged to rerun the referendum)
The Social Democrats, People before Profit, Labour, the Greens, Fine Fáil, Fianna Gael & Sinn Féin ALL lobbied & begged us to vote yes to removing women from the constitution. Never forget. These parties are no friends to women & all are pro men in female spaces & sports teams.
No wonder so many teenage girls are quitting sports & team sports.

Thanks for that sobering post @Brownwitch . Only seems like yesterday I heard a representative of An Garda Siochána describing people demonstrating against heroin dealers as a 'rent a mob'. There was no drug problem. It was 1981. And here we are with people celebrating the election campaign of Gerry Hutch. I expect Conor MacGregor would do quite well?

Housing and health/disability services are my top priorities.
And I've no clue who to vote for.
I agree for the need of a stable government with a clear mandate, however I don't want to vote for the status quo.
I could never bring myself to vote SF.
And definitely not Aontu.
The left leaning smaller parties which were once my natural fit have abandoned me, first labour during the crash as pp mentioned above, and latterly over women's rights.
But I feel the country is in such an absolute state we need radical change.

Personally feel its pointless voting for independents.
In fact I feel so disillusioned that I may not even vote! (My grandparents would be turning in their graves though, having fought for my right to do it so that's not really an option)

This is definitely the first general election where I've been so undecided this close to polling day.

@Abhannmor Conor McGregor said he'd run for president not too long ago🤢