‘I’m a voter’ stickers handed out in two byelections
By Cillian Sherlock, Press Association
Voters at certain polling stations are being given stickers to show off their civic pride, as two byelections take place in Dublin and Galway.
Two new members of the Dáil will be selected in the byelections on Friday with voters choosing from a range of candidates to fill the seats vacated by Catherine Connolly when she became president, and former minister Paschal Donohoe, who left political life to become the World Bank’s chief knowledge officer.
The respective byelections are being held in Galway West and Dublin Central.
The candidates in Dublin Central include Sinn Féin’s Janice Boylan, who is hoping to secure a second seat in the constituency alongside party leader Mary Lou McDonald; Social Democrats candidate Daniel Ennis; Green Party’s Janet Horner; Dublin Lord Mayor and Fine Gael’s Ray McAdam; People Before Profit’s Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin; Fianna Fáil’s John Stephens; Aontú’s Ian Noel Smyth and Labour’s Ruth O’Dea.
The campaign of Gerry “The Monk” Hutch, who has been described in court by a judge as the patriarchal figurehead of the Hutch criminal organisation, has also been closely watched in the constituency.
Independents Tony Corrigan, Colm Joseph Flood, Mannix Flynn, Malachy Steenson, and John O’Leary are also running.
The other TDs in the four-seater constituency are Labour’s Marie Sherlock, and Social Democrat Garry Gannon.
The current TDs for Galway West are Fianna Fáil’s John Connolly, Sinn Féin’s Mairead Farrell, Minister of State and independent TD Noel Grealish, and Fine Gael Minister for Education Hildegarde Naughton.
In contention for the fifth seat are Fine Gael’s Sean Kyne, Labour’s Helen Ogbu, Social Democrats’ Mide Nic Fhionnlaoich, Sinn Féin’s Mark Lohan, Green Party candidate Niall Murphy, Fianna Fáil’s Cillian Keane, People Before Profit’s Denman Rooke, Aontú’s Orla Nugent and Independent Ireland’s Noel Thomas, formerly of Fianna Fáil.
Galway City mayor Mike Cubbard is among independents Neill Bairead, Patrick Feeney, Sheila Garrity, John O'Leary, Michael Ryan and Thomas Welby – with AJ Cahill running for The Irish People.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said it was “very hard to call it” when asked on Thursday about the byelections, and said Dublin Central had “historically been a more difficult constituency for us”.
Ireland’s independent electoral commission is also working with polling stations to offer voters stickers for the first time.
In a test run, An Coimisiún Toghcháin is letting voters in 17 polling stations a chance to pick up a “I’m a voter” “Is vótálaí mé” stickers as they cast their votes this Friday in the polling stations.
Art O’Leary, the commission’s chief executive, said: “Every vote cast is a small act of belief – belief in your neighbours, belief in your community, and belief that our shared future is something worth shaping together.
“These stickers are a simple but visible reminder that democracy does not belong to institutions or politicians alone – it belongs to people. To families walking home together from the polling station.
“To friends, neighbours and work colleagues encouraging each other. To citizens proudly taking part.
“In many countries, ‘I Voted’ stickers have become badges of civic pride. We’re excited to see voters in Dublin and Galway wear them with the same sense of ownership and participation.”
Polling stations are open between 7am and 10pm with hand counting of the paper ballots to begin on Saturday.
Ireland’s use of a proportional representative system of a single-transferrable vote can see multiple rounds of recounting ballots over several hours as candidates are excluded from contention.
