February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
The campaign by South Dublin Green Party TD Eamon Ryan to secure sufficient support for a nomination collapsed Saturday. Ryan, who had been hoping to win the support of the Labor parliamentary party, withdrew from the race, leaving only Dana Rosemary Scallon as a potential candidate.
Scallon’s campaign looks likely to fail in similarly dismal fashion following her failure to gain the backing of six councils Monday. Scallon was rebuffed by Kerry, Longford, Monaghan and North Tipperary councils. Kilkenny county council refused a request by Scallon to hold a special meeting on the matter.
Labor TD Michael D. Higgins had made public his desire to run for the office but withdrew after the Labor party chose not to nominate a candidate.
The implications for a second term of the McAleese presidency are significant. While she has won plaudits for her dignified spell in office, in particular her powerful and emotional response to the events of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks in the U.S., criticism lingers around her perceived failure to push forward a progressive agenda.
Critics have argued that McAleese has chosen to shy away from controversial issues. They point to her predecessor Mary Robinson as having been a “crusading” president, one who dedicated her term in office to challenging conservative viewpoints and agendas.
An election would have nullified much of the sniping as McAleese could reasonably expect to win a significant endorsement from the Irish people. While Robinson broke ground as the first female president, McAleese has striven to build bridges between North and South — an issue Robinson largely neglected.
Her husband, Martin, has undertaken a risky but successful attempt to reach out to the loyalist paramilitaries in Belfast. He has met with paramilitary leaders and community activists in loyalist heartlands.
Subject to a fierce opposition campaign in 1997, when some political commentators claimed she would act as a “tribal” president, McAleese has done much to expose their analysis as off the mark. One of her first actions as president was to invite members of the Orange Order to Phoenix Park.
It would be unimaginable that she could again be subjected to such a vitriolic campaign. Former critics, such as Eoghan Harris, have since warmed to her and have applauded her even-handed and positive contribution to the North.
However, were she to secure a further seven-year term unopposed, it is likely that the unhappy rumblings would increase in volume. Her huge majority in 1997 put her critics on the back foot and exposed them to be out of touch with the sentiment of most Irish people.
Nationalist commentators point out that a partitionist mindset still dominates much of the Southern media. Petty objections to the fact that Belfast native McAleese originates from outside the state fueled much of the antipathy she first encountered when running as president. Many commentators cannot stomach the fact that a “Northerner” can be president.
Unable to point to an election victory as proof of her continued popularity, McAleese may well endure a rockier road than first time out.