Fine Gael MEP Se\u00e1n Kelly has said that he was “shafted” in being denied a chance to contest the Presidential Election.<\/p>\n
Heather Humphreys was chosen as Fine Gael’s candidate without a contest following the withdrawal of Mairead McGuinness from the campaign, something Mr Kelly feels did not reflect the views of the parliamentary party membership.<\/p>\n
“I don\u2019t go into contests just to make up the numbers. I think I\u2019d have had a great chance of winning,” he said.<\/p>\n
“I know from the councillors\u2019 response, I got a great response from them and the National Executive, and from the membership.<\/p>\n
“I think that from the point of view of not getting a nomination, you\u2019d have to ask yourself, why was there such a determined effort to stop me from getting a nomination?<\/p>\n
“Maybe because I would win it, and that\u2019s the way I would have been approaching it.<\/p>\n
“But it didn\u2019t happen, so I\u2019m going to get on with my life, I\u2019m not going to let it upset me too much.<\/p>\n
“It\u2019s an honour to be considered as one of, as they all said, two great candidates, but one was anointed and the other was shafted, essentially.”<\/p>\n
Listen: Se\u00e1n Kelly asks why there was ‘determined effort’ to stop him from getting Fine Gael nomination<\/b><\/p>\n
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Speaking on RT\u00c9’s News at One, Mr Kelly said there was a feeling of “utter depression” within the party.<\/p>\n
“Every phone call, message and text I got was one of utter depression, quite frankly. In particular, I think they were quite disappointed with the way the nomination process was handled,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Everybody knew that I was going to be a candidate. Within an hour of declaring that I was a candidate, Heather Humphreys declared that she was a candidate, and within an hour of that, basically it was all over.<\/p>\n
“Nearly all the members of the parliamentary party came out saying they were going for Heather, which meant that I couldn\u2019t get the 20 required to be nominated, and meant that the councillors and the members of the party couldn\u2019t have a vote on who they wanted to be their candidate.”<\/p>\n
Sense of ‘disconnect’ within Fine Gael, says Kelly<\/b><\/p>\n
Mr Kelly said that he felt there was a sense of disconnect within Fine Gael between the party leadership and membership.<\/p>\n
“I would say certainly (there\u2019s) some kind of a disconnect, in that the vast majority of members would have welcomed an opportunity to have a contest to see who they wanted to be their preferred candidate going forward for the Presidency,” he said.<\/p>\n
“They didn\u2019t get that chance, and therefore you could say that the parliamentary party aren\u2019t reflecting, in that regard anyway, the wishes of the membership.<\/p>\n
“While there might be a lot of disappointment at the moment, there might be time to correct it. But to do so, you have to start listening and responding to what the members think.<\/p>\n
“I think that\u2019s the key message. No point in saying you\u2019re going to listen, you must show it by responding. Actions speak louder than words.”<\/p>\n
Asked if he thought T\u00e1naiste Simon Harris was still the right person to lead Fine Gael, Mr Kelly said that that was a decision for Mr Harris, but that a “change of approach” may be necessary.<\/p>\n
“He\u2019s the leader at the moment, and he shall continue to be, I think, into the future. The question of who leads the party is a matter for the members of the party, it\u2019s a question for Simon himself.<\/p>\n
“But I think the key point here is that things weren\u2019t handled as well as the membership would have liked, and it\u2019s time to reflect on that, to say that, and then to respond accordingly by maybe changing approach,” he added.<\/p>\n