Waterford gives nod to former Lord Mayor of Cork for presidential race
Former Lord Mayor of Cork, Independent Cllr Kieran McCarthy.
Following presentations from 11 candidates at Waterford City and County Council’s Presidential Election Special Meeting last week, former Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr. Kieran McCarthy, received the Presidential Candidate nomination from Waterford.
The 11 presidential hopefuls made their case to Waterford's councillors during the meeting.
Each of the candidates was afforded a five-minute slot to make a presentation, followed by a 10-minute questions and answers session with Waterford Council’s elected members.
Candidates were also afforded the opportunity to issue their manifestos and details about themselves to councillors prior to the meeting.
Proposed by Cllr. Joe O'Riordan (Ind) and seconded by Cllr. Joe Kelly (Ind), the Independent Cork city councillor Kieran McCarthy received 11 votes for, 10 against, with five abstentions.
Those who voted for McCarthy were: Joeanne Bailey (SF), Declan Barry (Ind), Donal Barry (Ind), Declan Clune (Ind), David Daniels (Ind), Jim Griffin (SF), Blaise Hannigan (Ind), Joe Kelly (Ind), Joe O’Riordan (Ind), Thomas Phelan (Lab) and John Pratt (Lab).
Those who voted against were: Liam Brazil (FG), Tom Cronin (FF), Jim D’Arcy (FG), Damien Geoghegan (FG), John Hearne (SF), Jason Murphy (FF), Pat Nugent (FG), Niamh O’Donovan (FG), Eamon Quinlan (FF) and Frank Quinlan (FG).
Those who abstained from the vote were: Catherine Burke (SF), Sandra Conway (Ind), Pat Fitzgerald (SF), Mary Roche (SD) and Adam Wyse (FF).
During his presentation, Kieran McCarthy described his own politics as centrist.
He outlined three ideas for the presidency.
Firstly, he said as president he would champion Ireland’s cultural heritage.
He said he aims to construct a ‘National Voices of Ireland Cultural Hub’ to bring together various cultural bodies and voices across the country.
Secondly, he outlined his intentions to widen and strengthen links to the Irish diaspora.
“Our diaspora are resilient but sometimes they’re forgotten about. We need to champion our diaspora a lot more. They have lots of stories that can help us," he said.
Lastly, McCarthy stressed the need for the office of the President to collaborate closely with local authorities.
“We all know that a picture of the president is featured on the wall of every town hall across the country, but it has to be more than just a picture,” he said.
First to present during the meeting was anti-vaccination campaigner Dolores Cahill.
She spent a considerable amount of her presentation speaking about her reputation in the media, and Cllr Adam Wyse queried her on her anti-lockdown protests and her claims that masks lower the IQ of children.
Next to present was 35-year-old Clonmel native Nick Delahanty, who spoke about his aims to uphold Article 9.3 of the Irish Constitution, which states: "Fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State are fundamental political duties of all citizens."
Keith McGrory, a Donegal businessman in the construction sector, spoke about his experience growing up in Donegal during the troubles, and how his brother being injured in the Omagh bombing shaped his views around "peace, unity and compassion".
He said he could bring practical solutions to the housing crisis and US tariffs. He was asked by councillors what impact the president's office could have on such issues.
Catherine Morrissey Smyth spent the majority of her presentation speaking about her education and achievements as a teacher and biologist.
She said she has never run for any public office prior to the presidency.
Charity CEO and Director Lucy Anne O’Leary also presented, as did 61-year-old Gearoid Duffy.
Other than a brief reference to championing safety on public transport, David Parnell spoke almost entirely about how he would use the role of president to commemorate and protect the heritage of his historic ancestors, Charles Stewart Parnell and John Howard Parnell.
Michael Power opened his presentation by asking the elected members, "by a show of hands, who here supports peace?"
Councillors hesitated to play into the rhetorical question, and Power was asked to move on and proceed with his presentation.
He spoke in depth about peace and his ‘Bells for Peace’ campaign, which he organised alongside Bishop Alphonsus Cullinane in 2023.
The presentation from maths lecturer Dr Cora Stack left everyone in the Chamber bewildered.
Her speech was rapidly delivered and featured a barrage of information and claims.
She was subsequently asked by Cllr Adam Wyse why the information she had submitted prior to the meeting had a ChatGPT tagline. Cllr Wyse added that upon inputting her submitted information into an AI detector, it found that 97% of it was AI-generated.
The candidate erupted upon hearing Cllr Wyse's comments, and Chair of the meeting Cllr John Pratt had to intervene.
She continued her outburst even as she left the podium.
Last to present was Party for Animal Welfare candidate Gerben Uunk.
Originally from the Netherlands, he said that greyhound and horse racing should be abolished, and their designated venues converted for athletics use.
He also said as president he would explore using the grounds of the Phoenix Park for direct provision.
Two additional candidates who were scheduled to present did not make an appearance, Dr. Joseph Chikelue Obi and Lorna McCormack.
