Dr. Phil is hot on the heels of Senator Noel Coonan for that FG Convention nomination. She did her homework and the Tipp North FG membership has increased somewhat.
The Senator though has increased his profile of late with various successful public meetings.
The Battle is on!
Do you think IN2BS that this could be one of the consituencies where FG may be "asked" to run a lower profile campaign in the next GE, if the alternative try to run a "you scratch our back, we'll scratch yours" pact ?
I'd imagine that there's a possibility of only a possible alternative gain for one party here, given the FF would be almost definite for one, and on the local election results Lowry seems in pretty good shape for one also.
How will a dogfight between Kathleen O' Meara and either or both of the FG contenders looks for alternative cohesion ?
(This is a serious question Barry, if you get round to putting your tuppence worth in)
1,197 people agree with me.. how many agree with you ?
Hmmm.... a case could be made for FG to run a candidate while leaving Labour to take the lead. I don't think there is a suggestion that either FG or Labour would decline to run candidates completely in areas, just that they wouldn't run 2 from the same party in a place where 2 seats is completely beyond them.
Dan Sullivan. I was back but we still couldn't all have a vote.
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thats what I meant KK, but how do you think it might play with FG activists in North Tipp if they felt their candidate might be sacrificed to allow Labour take the lead.
1,197 people agree with me.. how many agree with you ?
It could sold, if there were a potential candidate for tipp north for FG who needed some time/seasoning/exposure who could take out Lowry the time after next.
Dan Sullivan. I was back but we still couldn't all have a vote.
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If there is an assumption going into the next election that Fine Gael will be in government after it, and there will be. I think enough of the old school fg voters could return to voting fg in order to have a government t.d in the constituecy, of course if it looks like it will be tight and it does look that way will more people vote for lowery in the hope that he may fall into a Mildred fox/jackie healy rae role bring boom time to thurles once more?
Will FG enter into such an arrangment?
Also call who you think the candidate will be,
Personally I can't call it between Coonan & Dr Phill, for FG Coonan seems to be in front but she's making all the running
Lowery will hardly run a second candidate?
Labour should be O'Meara I think we'll all agree on that
Will Smith run again with Hoctor, the son dosn't seem to generating much support from the ff faithfull (down in the south end of the constituency)
The Battle is really on!Originally Posted by It Needs 2B Said!
At this stage if you stand still long enough, you'll be canvassed 4 times over, went to the Tipp South convention in Cahir last week but it might as well have been in Newport or Thurles or somwhere the amount of notherners that were there
If your from the 'no fly zone' you were a serios target, its nice to feel special for once
Dr. Phyll Bugler publicly declares her candidacy in the Star today.
The phoney war is over let the games commence!
Senator Noel Coonan selected.
Over 1,000 people in attendance in Thurles on Friday night, rousing night, more like a US Presidential Convention than a normal North Tipp FG affair.
Great coverage in all the Tipp papers of the FG Convention. Front page on the Star. This is what the Nenagh Guardian had to say.
Fine Gael select Coonan at convention
Amidst scenes reminiscent of an Ard Fheis, Senator Noel Coonan was selected last Friday night as the Fine Gael candidate to contest the North Tipperary rithe thronged convention in the Munster Hotel, Thurles, which was the largest North Tipp Fine Gael convention in living memory breaking all previous attendance records.
The convention was chaired by Tom Hayes, South Tipperary TD and Chairperson of the FG Parliamentary Party who was ably assisted in the running of the event by North Tipperary Constituency Chairperson, Michael Harty and Constituency Secretary, Margaret Hogan.
The attendance was swollen by the anticipation of a battle royal between two candidates who had fought out a vigorous grass roots canvass over the previous two months. Councillor Phyll Ryan-Bugler from the Nenagh-Newport Electoral Area was standing at a General Election convention for the first time whilst Senator Noel Coonan was standing for the third time having been selected as the FG general election candidate for the 2002 General Election. The directive from the Fine Gael National Executive was for the convention to select one candidate which heightened the competition.
Councillor Ryan-Bugler was proposed by her North Tipperary County Council colleague Councillor Tom Berkery who succeeded in setting the tone for the evening by declaring that the mission of everyone present was to ensure that FG will win a seat in North Tipperary at the next general election. Councillor Berkery went on to castigate the performance of the two Government TDs in North Tipperary and stated that the electorate deserved a change. Councillor Ryan-Bugler was seconded by Michael Gleeson from Portroe who passionately made the case for a candidate from the Nenagh area and surrounding commuter area.
Thurles Town Councillor Mae Quinn proposed Senator Coonan and comprehensively set out his 14 year career in public life from his election firstly as a councillor for the Roscrea-Templemore Electoral Area in 1991 through to his election to Seanad Eireann in 2002. Senator Coonan's nomination was seconded by the Vice President of the Fine Gael party, Gerry O'Connell from Killenaule who declared that the massive attendance present signified two things; firstly that "democracy was alive and well in Fine Gael and that Fianna Fail's days as a two-seat party in North Tipperary were numbered".
The atmosphere in the Munster Hotel was now electric, it was standing room only as the two candidates addressed the convention. Councillor Ryan-Bugler was the first of the two to speak, she informed the convention of her professional and academic qualifications and made the case for a Nenagh based Fine Gael candidate whilst reminding the delegates of the theme of Enda Kenny's speech in Millstreet; "New Themes, New Ideas". Councillor Ryan-Bugler also made mention of her grand uncle John Hassett from Barnane who was a Cumann Na Gaedhael TD for Tipperary, and was warmly received by the thronged audience after she concluded her contribution.
Senator Noel Coonan began his address by reminding the delegates of his feat in the last General Election recording over 6,000 first preference votes on a day which was an electoral low-point for the party. Coonan outlined the centrality of his location in Templemore which is of equal distance to all the urban centres in the constituency. He also paid tribute to the late David Molony who was his Director of Elections in 2002 and asked the delegates to allow him to finish the job himself and David Molony started in 2002.
After a registration process which took over two and half hours to complete due to the massive attendance, one thousand voting delegates cast their ballots amidst feverish anticipation. Simon Coveney MEP for Munster addressed the convention and remarked on the tremendous recovery of Fine Gael in Tipperary North, and reminded delegates that the party was prepared to move "heaven and earth" to win back it's seat in North Tipperary at the next General Election. Also in attendance was the Fine Gael front bench spokesperson on education; Olwyn Enright TD, Councillors Gerard Darcy, Denis Ryan and Pauline Coonan from North Tipperary County Council, Councillor Tom Moylan from Nenagh Town Council, Councillors Michael Kealy and Lily O'Brien from Templemore Town Council and Councillors John Fahey, Michael O'Brien and John Crosse from South Tipperary County Council.
Scenes of jubilation greeted the announcement of the result by Chairman, Tom Hayes. The victorious candidate Senator Noel Coonan described the moment as one of the proudest moments in his political life, he paid tribute to his opponent and thanked his wife Pauline, his office team of Jacqueline and Ann Marie and his many supporters. Councillor Ryan Bugler gracious in her defeat pledged her support to Senator Coonan in the forthcoming campaign to return a Fine Gael TD for North Tipperary.
The task of returning Fine Gael into government after the next election is an onerous one, however the signs emerging from North Tipperary are encouraging for the party, one could not fail to be impressed by what was a major show of strength in Thurles last Friday night, it would appear that North Tipperary Fine Gael are preparing for the mother of all electoral battles at the next election.
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