Laois man in race to lead Ireland's farmers set for election hustings battle

Ballinakill farmer Francie Gorman is set to face off against the only other candidate running in the IFA Presidential election at a series of debates through October.

The Laois beef, suckler and sheep farmer is going head to head with Martin Stapleton from Limerick in the contest to become the the 17th President of Irish Farmers Association.

The IFA Presidential election debates will begin next Monday, October 2, and run until Monday, October 30. In all, there will be 16 debates that cover each of the 29 IFA County Executives.

The President and Deputy President debate for farmers in Laois Offaly and Kildare takes place on Tuesday, October 24 takes place in the Tullamore Court Hotel.

There is significant momentum around the Laois man who launched his campaign in Abbeyleix in September. He challenged Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe at the Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska over the Government's record on farming.

WATCH: "Not good enough" - Laois IFA man launches into Paschal Donohoe at Ploughing 23

The County Executives of West Cork and Cork Central have the honour of hosting the first debate between candidates running for President and Deputy President in Macroom, Co Cork and Donegal will close the series at the end of October.

Two candidates will contest the Deputy Presidency of IFA. They are Alice Doyle from Wexford and Pat Murphy from Galway.

IFA National Returning Officer Brian Rushe encouraged members, farmers and those in the sector to attend a debate during October to hear from the candidates. “This will provide the members with an opportunity to assess the two candidates before they decide who to vote for,” he said.

“All our Branch Officers, County Officers and National Officers are elected by farmers. The President and Deputy President of IFA are elected directly by members. They are truly representative of farmers and they carry a genuine mandate once elected,” he said.

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Debates for the regional chairs will also take place in October, with voting on the night of each debate.

For the first time, members will receive their vote in the post and they can either return the vote by post or cast their vote at their branch AGM.

The Election Count will take place on December 12. More details on the election TAP HERE.