Dublin mayor says he is ‘in it to win it’ as he enters by-election race

Dublin mayor Ray McAdam said he was “in it to win it”, before being selected as the Fine Gael candidate for a by-election triggered by the resignation of Paschal Donohoe.

Mr Donohoe, who resigned as finance minister and a TD, took up the second most senior position at the World Bank, as managing director and chief knowledge officer.

At a selection convention in Dublin city on Monday, party members heard that Mr McAdam, who is a former parliamentary assistant to Mr Donohoe, was the only nomination received to be the party’s candidate.

The Cavan-born father-of-one has lived in Dublin for more than 20 years and has been a councillor for 17 years.

He told the room that Dublin “deserves the very best”, that he loves the “honesty” of the Dublin Central constituency, and said he was “in it to win it”.

“There is no constituency in Ireland quite like Dublin Central,” he said.

“Proud communities one and all. Communities of workers and carers, families and volunteers, young people with ambition, older people with wisdom, communities that have known pressure, communities that too often, have been expected to carry more than their fair share, but yet, communities that stand tall each and every day.

“This election is about filling more than a vacancy. It’s about choosing the kind of voice Dublin Central sends to Dail Eireann, a voice of noise or a voice of substance, a voice of protest alone or a voice that can actually deliver, a voice that comments on problems or a voice that works to solve them.”

Asked after how he would buck the trend of government candidates losing byelections, he said: “I’ve been written off since my first campaign in 2009.”

He added: “You don’t survive in politics in Dublin Central if you’re not out on the doors, knocking on doors, talking to people, understanding their frustrations. So they know me, they know my track record, they’ll come out and vote for me.”

Asked if he believed Dublin was safer now after 15 years of Fine Gael in government, Mr McAdam said: “I believe it is.

“I believe Dublin is a safe city comparatively to other cities of similar size and scale.

“I want to see the high visibility Garda patrols we see across the city centre expanded out into the residential communities across Stoneybatter, Drumcondra, Glasnevin, and that’s an issue that I have raised with the Gardai over the last number of years, and particularly now as Lord Mayor.”

Director of elections for the byelection, Minister of State Neale Richmond; Minister of State Colm Brophy; TDs Emer Currie, James Geoghegan and Maeve O’Connell; MEP Regina Doherty; Senator Evanne Ni Chuilinn and secretary general of Fine Gael John Carroll, were at the selection convention.

Mr Richmond paid tribute to “the great” Mr Donohoe and thanked him for his work for the constituency.

Councillor Colm O’Rourke, who proposed Mr McAdam, said he had learned how to canvass from him, before telling the room: “Let’s take our seat back in Dublin central.”

Among the confirmed candidates for the Dublin Central election are Gerry “The Monk” Hutch, who just lost out on a seat during the 2024 general election; and councillor Janice Boylan, a running mate of Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald.

She competed for the Sinn Fein nomination against Gillian Sherratt, the mother of Harvey Morrison Sherratt, a nine-year-old boy who died after years of waiting for spinal surgery.

Councillor Daniel Ennis for the Social Democrats, councillor Janet Horner for the Green Party, Ruth O’Dea for the Labour party, musician Eoghan O Ceannabhain for People Before Profit, and Ian Noel Smyth for Aontu are also candidates.

The Dublin Central byelection will take place in May, as will a byelection for the Galway West constituency, the seat vacated by Catherine Connolly when she became President of Ireland.