Fine Gael has selected Cllr John Naughten and Dympna Daly-Finn from Arigna to run for the party in the forthcoming General Election in the Roscommon-Galway constituency.
The outcome of last Friday night’s selection convention is a huge boost to their respective political ambitions, but a major setback to Senator Aisling Dolan, who had long been seen as the likely front-runner for Fine Gael in its bid to regain a Dáil seat here.
Senator Dolan lost out in a close vote to Cllr Naughten at the convention, held in the Abbey Hotel. At the commencement of proceedings, Convention Chairperson MEP Maria Walsh revealed that party HQ had directed delegates to run one candidate in the north of the constituency and one in the south. As Ms Daly Finn – an unsuccessful candidate in Boyle Electoral Area in June’s local elections – was the only candidate from the north, her place on the ticket was unopposed.
When Galway-based councillor Alan Harney withdrew, it left the way clear for a high profile ‘head to head’ between Senator Aisling Dolan and Cllr John Naughten, the latter having only recently announced his intention to seek a nomination.
The vote that followed was extremely close, with Cllr Naughten winning by 123 to 113.
