No one 'better placed' to represent Offaly says Cllr Fitzpatrick
Former Fianna Fail man says feedback indicates groundswell of support
THE councillor who left Fianna Fail and is running as an Independent in the general election has said no one is better placed to succeed and represent north Offaly and the new constituency of Offaly.
Cllr Eddie Fitzpatrick, the Cloneyhurke farmer who is seeking a seat in the Dail as a non-party candidate, parted company with Fianna Fail after it selected another north Offaly member, Cllr Claire Murray, instead of him.
Cllr Fitzpatrick said he has has significant experience in politics, having served the communities for the last 20 years on Offaly County Council.
Cllr Fitzpatrick said he had “the added advantage of having a vast network of contacts both in the political field and in the corporate world both locally and nationally”.
He said he has served on the boards of many community based organisations as well as many government bodies and so “knows how the system works”.
The councillor said the feedback on the ground indicates a groundswell of strong support for him “which should translate into success at election time”.
“Offaly is ready for a new TD, someone who will be taken seriously and who has the experience to take on the issues at a local, provincial and national level, and that person is, undoubtedly, Cllr Eddie Fitzpatrick,” a statement issued on his behalf said.
With a general election expected to take place on November 22, November 29 or December 6, Cllr Fitzpatrick is one of eight candidates who have declared their intention to contest the three-seat Offaly constituency.
Cllr Fitzpatrick, a former Progressive Democrat, has run for the Dail twice before, once as an independent and once for Fianna Fail.
The other declared candidates are the outgoing Independent TD, Deputy Carol Nolan, Cadamstown; Cllrs Tony McCormack, Tullamore and Cllr Murray, Edenderry, both Fianna Fail; Cllr John Clendennen, Kinnitty, Fine Gael; Senator and Minister of State, Pippa Hackett, Geashill, Green Party; Cllr Aoife Masterson, Tullamore, Sinn Fein and Cllr Fergus McDonnell, Edenderry, Independent Ireland.
For the first time since the foundation of the state, the county of Offaly is a stand-alone Dail constituency.
It previously formed part of the five-seat Laois-Offaly constituency with the exception of the 2016 election when it was a three-seat constituency but included part of north Tipperary.