Election Online – The Opposition

Hi, my name is Darren Gleeson and this is my Election 2007 blog. I will be casting my jaundiced eye over the blogs from the main opposition paties- Fine Gael, Labour and Sinn Féin. My assignment partner Mike Heverin has a similar site concerned with the incumbent parties, at www. This is my first time voting, so I think it’d be good to kick off comparing the blogs of candidates in my constituency, Meath East.

Thomas Byrne of Fianna Fáil is one of the few TDs in this election campaign to have exploited the blog medium. Byrne is a 29 year- old solicitor who is running for the first-time in this commuter-belt constituency.

Unusually for a political dilettante, he pulls NO punches when analysing his rivals’ policies, or occasionally the coverage afforded to him in newspapers. Highlights include his calling

However, to label his website as a rant would be misguided. Byrne regularly updates his prospective constituents on local matters of interest, such as decsions to upgrade local infrastucutere, and a recent visit of De Nortsoide Taoiseach to Drogheda. Byrne’s campaign video features  below.

Byrne’s blog is also updated regularly.

On the opposition front, Labour’s Cllr. Dominic Hannigan is one of the few election candidates to delve into the blogging sphere. Cllr. Hannigan is also a rarity in this election campaign, as he is one of only four candidates who is openly gay. However, it must be stressed that none of these candidates are seeking to represnt constituenceis rather than indulge in activism.

Cllr. Hannigan’s blog (http://dominichannigan.blogspot.com/) has a much more ‘party-political’ feel to it then that of Thomas Byrne’s. Whereas Byrne seems to strive to portray the individual, Hannigan is swaddled in the collective. There are links to the websites of many individual Labour candidates, and there is even a link to further Labour blogs, via their party website, which is accessible here http://www.labour.ie/.

On the policy front, there’s the usual parish pump stuff, new footpaths, bus services etc. However, Hannigan seems to have broader policy objectives, particularly regarding the environment. This makes for an interesting, if somewhat worrying read, particularly when Hannigan cites a visit to a factory in the process of asbestos.

The mooting of a €2 bus fare for commuters to Dublin is also interesting, although it’s difficult to see if it would work. Hannigan is also passionate about healthcare, as his mooting of free medical cards for under 5’s would suggest. See his speech at the Labour Ard-Fhéis below: