Fianna Fáil opts for two-candidate strategy for Longford/Westmeath
As the local Fianna Fail organisation prepares to hold its selection convention next week, the party has once again decided on a two-candidate strategy for the constitunecy of Longford/Westmeath, which has resulted in local Cllr Aengus O'Rourke, withdrawing his nomination.
Sitting TD Robert Troy, who is expected to be ratified alongside Joe Flaherty, has welcomed the two candidate strategy and said it “proved to be the right one” at the 2020 general election as it resulted in the party taking two of the four seats in Longford/Westmeath which was “instrumental” in Fianna Fail being in a position to enter government.
With the constituency now expanded to a five seater, Deputy Troy questioned whether it was “realistic” to expect the party to take three of the five seats “in the current fractured political climate” and said “running an extra candidate just for the sake of it is not always the best option.”
Meanwhile, Cllr Aengus O'Rourke has expressed his disappointment at the two-candidate strategy being adopted by Fianna Fáil and told Shannonside Radio this week that “yet again Athlone has been sidelined.”
He said it was “with regret” that he was withdrawing his nomination and added that, in his view, it was “wrong” for the party not to have an Athlone-based candidate for the third general election in a row. “On each occasion I made a case for Athlone to have a candidate, but Fianna Fáil have decided otherwise” he said, but he pledged his support for both sitting TDs and said he would support them “in any way I can to ensure we hold the two very important seats in Longford-Westmeath.
O'Rourke was not available for further comment for this week's edition.
Speaking to the Westmeath Independent this week, Deputy Robert Troy discounted the notion that Athlone is being sidelined, and said there has been “significant investment” in the town during the lifetime of the current government. “When I was a Minister I attended more job announcements in Athlone than in any other part of the constituency,” he said, “and if you look at it objectively Athlone has had huge investment in a number of areas, including health, education and foreign direct investment.”
Deputy Troy reiterated that he takes his responsibilities as a TD “very seriously” and strives to represent “the whole county at all times.” He also pointed out that he operates a full-time office in both Athlone and Mullingar, and is “accessible at all times” to his constituents.
“Of course every part of the county would like to have their own TD, but that is not possible or realistic, unfortunately, but if I was a TD for my own area only, then Ballynacargy would be a city by now instead of being a small rural village,” he added.
The former Minister for State in the Department of Enterprise said Fianna Fáil wil would keep their election ticket in Longford-Westmeath “under review” after next week's convention, which takes place at 8pm on Monday night next in the Bloomfield House Hotel in Mullingar, but does not envisage any change in the stated strategy.