Laois county council hosted three of the hopefuls vying for nomination to the Presidential campaign yesterday.
Sean Gallagher, Gemma O’Doherty and Sarah Louise Mulligan addressed Cllrs in a lengthy meeting.
Mr Gallagher has already received the required number of nominations from County Councils and instructed members not to nominate him.
With Marie Goretti Moylan, John Groarke and Peter Casey failing to show up, Gallagher, Mulligan and O’Doherty were the trio who spoke.
And following their presentations, Cllr Ben Brennan nominated Gemma O’Doherty with a vote on whether to put her forward or not scheduled for next week.
Sean Gallagher spoke first, and through motivational quotes and great charisma, outlined his plans if elected to the Arás.
Having grown up with a visual impairment, he aspires to put particular emphasis on supporting those with disabilities.
He said: “You can be assured I will work with every fiber of my being for those on margins.”
Gallagher has a keen interest in environmental issues, telling the council he will not be using any posters throughout his campaign.
This was well received by Councillor John Joe Fennelly who said “Any posters put up in Abbeyleix will be promptly taken down.”
Gallagher was nominated by the Fianna Fail Councillors but the nomination was withdrawn as he had already achieved the four necessary nominations.
Marlyn Monroe impersonator and “natural born entertainer” Sarah Louise Mulligan was next to speak.
Dressed to impress in green, white and orange, Mulligan gave an impassioned speech that could have secured her a place in the Portlaoise pantomime.
She listed her main interests; child abuse, elder abuse, suicide, homelessness, being a pro-life candidate “and of course, Donald Trump.”
Mulligan describes herself as an everyday Irish person who wants to be a voice for the voiceless.
She was very actively involved in the ‘No’ campaign in the recent referendum regarding the Eight Amendment and believes “any woman who finds herself pregnant should rejoice.”
Councillor Noel Touhy followed her comments about her admiration for the American President;
He said: “I never thought i’d hear the words Donald Trump and humanity in the one sentence.
“I think he is a racist, misogynist, homophobic, bigot and the worst thing that ever happened to politics.”
Journalist Gemma O’Doherty was the last to speak. She has been featured heavily in the media at the moment due to her work as an investigative journalist.
Ms O’Doherty, from Dublin, said she is deeply concerned with the cynical perception that citizens have of politics in Ireland.
She stated that she was standing for the position as President on a platform of justice, human rights, transparency, free speech and fairness and wants ‘Irish people to take pride in their country once again’.
A vote will now take place next Monday to decide whether Laois will back Ms O’Doherty or not.
The likelihood though is that Laois will go the same way as Offaly and Westmeath and choose not to nominate any candidate.
