Listen: AgriFocus – General Election 2024 – How important is the rural vote?
On the cusp of the General Election 2024, Francess McDonnell chats to Gary Murphy, Professor of Politics at the School of Law and Government at Dublin City University, about the rural vote and how important it could be.
According to Prof. Murphy what has struck him after observing Irish politics over the course of the last decade or so and particularly in this election is “a feeling in rural Ireland that it has been left behind”.
“If you look at the collapse since 2011 of the Fianna Fáil, and the Fine Gael vote from 2011 to now – why is that? Because people are unhappy with where their own lives are going.
“Their children can’t get a house, high cost of rent, there’s still inflation in the economy so if you’re not feeling it on the ground, your tendency is not to vote for the parties in government and that’s what’s happened to Fianna Fáil and to Fine Gael,” he said.
According to the Professor of Politics he believes some rural politicians from the likes of the Kerry Rural Independents, Michael Healy-Rae and Danny Healy-Rae, to Matthew McGrath in Tipperary, Michael Fitzmaurice in Roscommon and Richard O’Donoghue in Limerick to Matt Shanahan in Waterford “have benefitted from that dissatisfaction that rural Ireland has been forgotten by all the parties”.
“We know from the 2020 election and because the polls tell us that 20% of people who are dissatisfied with parties will vote independent,” he added.
As a result Prof. Murphy said some independents they may be on a stronger ticket in some areas than the parties that have been in government.
He also highlighted that there is also a new party contesting this election, which counts Eddie Punch, a former secretary general of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association as one of its candidates.
“I could see Independent Ireland if they have enough votes pitching to be in government,” he added.
Currently according to Prof. Murphy latest polls today (Wednesday, November 27) would suggest Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Sinn Féin remain in a “very tight race”.
The fortnightly AgriFocus podcast series takes a closer look at some of the key issues that directly impact on farmers, rural communities and the agri-sector.
