Sinn Fein Local Elections 2009 - Breakthrough?

[seanciaran]

For the record I confidently predict that Sinn Féin will be the story of this election. The party is in with a good chance of returning three MEPs throughout Ireland with de Bruin and Mary Lou dead certs and Toireasa Ferris looking good for the third seat. Meanwhile, the party's candidates in the East and North west of the country will more than likely receive an even higher vote than in 2004. The 2004 local elections returned a record number of Sinn Féin councillors but the next Dáil elections did not live up to the promise generated in 2004. But this is the opportunity for Sinn Féin to reap the benefits of all the hard work over the last 20 years. I am very confident that the republican party will consolidate gains made in 2004 and make inroads in other parts of the 26 cos. This will set SF up for a huge success in the next southern parliamentarian elections. Oh btw the real surprise of the election could well be the election of Christy Burke in Dublin central. Tá ár lá ag teacht.

[Fr. Fahey]

The People before Profit and Socialist Party candidates could pick up a lot of the vote that used to go to SF. They seem to have strong candidates in a lot of City Council and north county wards.

[kenneth]

If sf make decent gains and consolidations in the local elections perhaps it could give them the platform to do what they do best which is work for/with and forge links with the community's they represent. And hopefully this will subsequently result in an increase i electoral support for them in the next general elections. Wishful thinking on my part but not impossible

[ON THE ONE ROAD]

looking at the opinion polls say the independents and smaller groups swp libertas will be the story of the election. gormly rejigged the constituency boundries in favour of smaller parties so SF in the locals will benifit with the above imo. don't agree there dead certs to win 3 euro seats, thats wishfull thinking. one dead cert in the six counties and in with a good chance in dublin and munster

[seanciaran]

One other thing....Sinn Féin are no longer deemed "transfer repellant". I hate that phrase, but it's a fact that most of those who voted for any of the three conservative parties (Lab,. FF & FG) in past elections never contemplated giving SF any preference. Now that's all changing, so even if the party registers a mere 9 or 10 per cent of the first preferences throughout the 26 cos, SF will receive many more transfers that it has in the past.