FIANNA Fáil in Cork South West is hoping that Christopher O’Sullivan’s success in seeing off a strong Fine Gael challenge to retain his seat could land him a job as a junior minister.
Deputy O’Sullivan started with a strong first preference vote of 9,115 and benefited from 40% of transfers from Sen Tim Lombard of Fine Gael to bring him over the quota with a final vote of 11,959 in the 11th count.
He was first elected as a TD in 2020. On that occasion, he went in strong – fresh from a year serving as county mayor – and achieved a good first preference vote of 6,262, which led to him taking the second seat.
It is as Fianna Fáil’s spokesperson on coastal communities, environment, climate action and biodiversity, that Christopher could come into his own in the make-up of the 34th Dáil, according to Aiden McCarthy, the chairman of the Comhairle Dáil Ceantair.
As an incumbent, Christopher – the son of former Fianna Fáil TD Christy O’Sullivan – was well placed to retain his seat, but his success may also be a reflection of his party’s success in the polls. Judging from Fianna Fáil’s performance nationally in returning 48 TDs, it has been suggested that the electorate saw Micheál Martin as a safe pair of hands.
‘That makes the Fianna Fáil party the largest representation in both the Dáil and at local authority level,’ noted Aiden McCarthy.
It has been said that Deputy O’Sullivan has a good working relationship with his party leader, Micheál Martin, who even attended a high-profile business lunch with him in Dunmore House in Clonakilty before the election.
The TD, like others in the constituency, had speculated that Fine Gael effectively shot itself in the foot by running two candidates, especially whilst trying to regain a seat.
Deputy O’Sullivan’s political pedigree includes having served as a county councillor for 13 years before his elevation to the Dáil.
As a law graduate of UL, who has a high profile on social media, he is a recognised ‘face’ within the party on numerous current affairs programmes, and is being touted as ‘eminently suitable’ for a junior ministry role.
Historically, Fianna Fáil has always polled well in Cork South West – sometimes more than FG, who, on occasion, managed to turn its lesser vote into two seats.
It has always held at least one seat in CSW – the only exception to that rule of thumb was when Christy O’Sullivan senior failed to be re-elected in 2011. On this occasion, Fianna Fáil garnered 19.3% of the vote, down on the 23.3% of 2020 when they ran two candidates, Christopher and Margaret Murphy O’Mahony, who, in the 2016 general election, had the distinction of being the first woman TD elected in Cork South West.
Christopher, who is from Clonakilty, and lives locally with his wife Sarah, was geographically well-placed in the centre of the constituency – a town that has never been without a TD, and a voice for the community, at the level of national parliament.
Meanwhile, Aiden McCarthy explained that holding the count at Mallow GAA Complex, while not ideal, was more efficient from an administration point of view, and for the tallypeople.
‘We are now working together as a single group so there are less people tallying but the results are more accurate,’ he said. ‘I do, however, believe that the atmosphere is far better in Clonakilty because a lot more of the supporters will go there and participate. It’s like going to a match,’ he added. ‘It leads to much discussion and debate on the competitiveness of elections.’
