Mayo poll-topper says “next President must champion Irish unity”
Mayo Sinn Féin TD Rose Conway-Walsh has said the next president of Ireland must be “really up for the job” of reunifying the island and insisted she is “absolutely” that type of person.
The Erris-based deputy confirmed she has been approached by figures within her party about a potential run for the Áras, following reports this week.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Drivetime yesterday evening, Deputy Conway-Walsh described it as an “honour for anyone to be considered for the presidency of our country,” but declined to say if she would seek the nomination herself.
Currently Sinn Féin’s spokeswoman on enterprise, tourism and employment, she also plays a lead role in the Good Friday implementation committee and chairs the defence and national security committee.
The Ballycroy native became the first female councillor elected to the Belmullet area since the foundation of the State and, in 2020, became Sinn Féin’s first TD in the Mayo constituency since 1920.
She outlined the qualities Sinn Féin would demand in a candidate: “We are facing constitutional change in this country. We also need the voting franchise, presidential voting rights to be extended to our citizens in the North. There is a serious role for a president here.”
Deputy Conway-Walsh said Sinn Féin has carried out “extensive consultation” and is determined to select a candidate committed to a united Ireland.
Pearse Doherty previously stated that there are pros and cons to running a Sinn Féin candidate, but it is believed that with the omission of Mairead McGuinness, and only Catherine Connolly fully declared, the race for the Áras is wide open.
A decision on whether to field a Sinn Féin candidate is believed to be forthcoming, with a major hunger striker memorial set to take place on Sunday in Belfast, where party members will be discussing the presidential campaign. Conway-Walsh believes they will make the “right decision at the end of the day.”
Conway-Walsh is also a member of the party's Ard Comhairle.
“The person needs to be really up for the job of reunifying our country,” Conway-Walsh said.
And when asked if she herself fits that description, she replied: “Absolutely I am. I will always be that, whether I’m inside or outside politics.”
She added: “We have a wonderful island with wonderful people. We can be doing so much better. And I have a vision, regardless of what I do now or in the future, that we can make that happen, to make sure nobody is left behind.”