The EU has been watching the Irish General Election “very closely”, and would be disappointed by the lack of a clear mandate for Government for any party.
That’s according to Ireland-South MEP Seán Kelly, who spoke to European Parliament Radio in the wake of the final results coming in for General Election 2020, in which no party reached even 40 seats.
After the conclusion of the counting late last night, Tuesday, February 10, Fianna Fáil marginally leads the way with 38 seats; Sinn Féin is next, with 37; Fine Gael will have 35 seats; and a number of smaller parties (including the Green Party on 12 seats) and independents will make up the remaining 50 seats.
It means that no two parties in coalition could hold a majority of seats without further support.
They’re watching very closely. You would be surprised how closely they were watching.
“They’re probably disappointed that there’s no real clarity, but at the same time they are well aware that this is probably a trend worldwide, certainly Europe-wide,” Kelly highlighted.
“You see far more fragmentation then you would have seen in the past, and there are difficulties in many countries, including Germany and others, in getting a stable government, but at the end of the day, that is what is required, and it is incumbent on those elected to provide that,” the MEP concluded.
There were mixed results for candidates who have operated in the agriculture sphere.
For Fianna Fáil, agriculture spokesperson Charlie McConalogue and former minister for agriculture Brendan Smith both retained their seats, in Donegal and Cavan-Monaghan respectively.
However, for Fine Gael, outgoing Minister of State Andrew Doyle failed to retain his seat in Wicklow.