Government facing defeat in Euro Elections

GOVERNMENT FACING
DEFEAT IN EURO
ELECTIONS:

A SINN FÉIN candidate will take a European Parliament seat in Dublin, but a Government candidate, junior minister Brian Hayes is falling behind in the race a new poll reveals:

The Sunday Independent/Millward Brown poll of the Dublin constituency has Lynn Boylan, a member of Sinn Féin’s Executive, on 16 per cent support of the decided voters, one point ahead of independent candidate (formerly Labour Party) Nessa Childers, daughter of former Irish President, Erskine Childers, and four points ahead of junior finance minister Brian Hayes.

Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein)

Nessa Childers MEP. (Ind)

Hayes, subject to much ribald comments from his Constituency of Dublin South West has been a main spokesman for justifying the despised policies of EU/IMF austerity imposed on Ireland over the last three years which now seems to count against him gaining a seat in the European Parliament:

"Smarmy" Brian Hayes.

Some of the comments appearing today after the poll result was published:

“I’d love to get some insight into the workings of the brain of a person who carries out the act of going into a polling station and gives Brian Hayes their first preference vote, why would someone do that? Does anyone know one reason why someone would vote for Hayes?

“Does anyone know one reason why someone would vote for Hayes?”

One less Thatcherite weasel in the country?

Seriously though, we need to keep him in the country long enough to not vote for him in the next GE”.

“I would love him to get a seat as then DSW can say goodbye to the useless gobshite”.

“I hope that smug arrogant git Hayes is falls flat on his smarmy mush, cant stand the horrible little arsehole”.

“It would be tragic if Hayes loses out. Herman Von Reptile could promote him straight to the top of the United States of Europe project”.

Hayes had been thought to be a favourite for one the three seats, but today’s poll shows that he faces a fight with Fianna Fáil’s Mary Fitzpatrick, Labour’s Emer Costello and the Green Party’s Eamon Ryan for the third seat in the capital.

All four candidates are separated by four points, with People Before Profit’s Bríd Smith, sitting MEP Paul Murphy of the Socialist Party and Direct Democracy Ireland’s Tom D’Arcy on four, three and one per cent of support, respectively.

Paul Murphy, an outstanding MEP since he replaced Socalist Party Leader, Joe Higgins who was elected to Dáil Éireann in the 2011 general election, is unfortunately unlikely to retain the seat for SP.

Eamon Ryan, who lost his Dail seat in the 2011 election is making a significant comeback this time round.

The poll comes a day after the same poll found that Sinn Féin was also on course to claim seats in the South and Midlands North-West constituencies. In the South, Fine Gael (Government) looks set to carry at least one seat, but sitting TD Simon Harris could lose out. In Midlands-North West, sitting independent TD Luke Ming Flanagan is tied for third place in four-seat constituency, five points off Sinn Féin’s Matt Carthy.

The overall Party support figures show a massive drop in support for the two government Parties, Fine Gael and Labour:

Fine Gael:     27 per cent (down three)

Fianna Fáil:   21 per cent (down five)

Sinn Féin:     22 per cent (up six)

Labour:         8 per cent (down 4)

Independent and others: 22 per cent (up 6)

Undecided:    35 per cent

Labour is faring the worst of the Government coalition in these polls and is unlikely to get any seat in the European Parliament this time around. Its position in the Local Government elections to be held on the same day, May 23, 2014, is even worse losing badly in its former strongholds of Dublin City Council and Dublin South County.

In the first place, the re-drawing of the constituencies was a gerrymander in favour of rural areas where Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have more representatives and organisation in each county thus discriminating against independents or smaller parties which would not have the resources to cover such large geographic areas as is now the case. For instance, a candidate in north  Leinster now has to cover the entire Western seaboard from Donegal to Galway in order to have any chance of winning a seat.

The 8 seats allocated to the western and southern counties gives them a representation unjustified in population terms compared with Dublin, with over one third of the State’s population, allocated only three seats. Candidates based in Leinster, with more than double the population of the western seaboard, also disadvantaged in the same way.

North and South Leinster could have been allocated 2 seats each and the Western seaboard allocated 2 seats each in a north-south divide there. This would have provided fairer representation in population terms and logistically for candidates based in Leinster who would have little recognition or support west of the Shannon.