David Griffin. Photograph: Joe Buckley
FIANNA Fáil are to finalise their ticket for the Shannon Municipal District this week.
Party members will gather at Treacy’s Oakwood Hotel on Monday night to select which candidates will represent Fianna Fáil in the Shannon Municipal District for the 2024 local elections.
As first reported by The Clare Echo in August, there are four nominees for the party in the Shannon MD.
They include the county’s second longest serving politician, Cllr Pat McMahon (FF), former Mayor of Clare, Cllr Pat O’Gorman, David Griffin who is the parliamentary assistant to Kildare Senator Fiona O’Loughlin (FF) and Ardnacrusha’s Rachel Hartigan who is the youngest nominee in the county so far.
According to sources within Fianna Fáil, it is expected that only two candidates will be selected on the night. This comes as a surprise considering the area of the MD which includes Shannon, Newmarket-on-Fergus, Sixmilebridge, Cratloe, Meelick, Parteen, Clonlara, Ardnacrusha and Westbury.
A confirmed selection policy from party headquarters will not be confirmed until Monday night but the two ticket decision would favour the established McMahon and O’Gorman and hinder the chances of the challenging youthful duo of Griffin and Hartigan aged 27 and 21. Their ages are relevant considering the Soldiers of Destiny have struggled to recruit young candidates across the county this far.
