General Election 2024: Final list of Clare candidates confirmed in four seat race

The Banner County looks to be a hotly contested constituency as a record number of candidates have thrown their hats in the ring.

20 candidates have been confirmed by the Clare returning officer to run in the 2024 General Election, the highest number of candidates since the 16 that ran in 2016.

Nine are women, another record-breaking increase from the last election which saw only five female candidates run.

Crucially, two of the four seats in Clare are vacant as we head to the polls, where the dominant issues are likely to affordable housing, healthcare — particularly the re-opening of an emergency department at Ennis Hospital — immigration and farming.

Independent Michael McNamara gave up his seat upon being elected to Europe as an MEP for Ireland South, while Fine Gael's Joe Carey stepped down from politics in August due to ill health.

Seeking re-election are Fianna Fail's Cathal Crowe, and Independent Violet-Anne Wynne, who was elected last time round for Sinn Fein, but has since resigned from the party.

Deputy Wynne actually topped the polls last time with the highest number of first preferences and was the first to clear the quota on the seventh count, but she left Sinn Fein in February 2022 citing "psychological warfare" while she was on maternity leave.

Her former party are fielding Shannon councillor Donna McGettigan, who put in a strong show in the local elections this summer, but she was only one of two Sinn Fein candidates elected to the council out of the six fielded across the county.

Cathal Crowe, looking for his second term, is joined on the Fianna Fail ticket by west Clare councillor Rita McInerney, who stood unsucessfully in 2020, and Senator Timmy Dooley.

Senator Dooley will look to reclaim his Dáil seat, lost in that Sinn Fein popularity surge in 2020, which he'd held for three terms previously.

With the loss of Joe Carey for Fine Gael, his sister Leonora was initially pipped as the only candidate at the party convention earlier this year. 

They've since added west Clare GP, Dr Tom Nolan, a long time campaigner on health, and former Mayor of Clare Joe Cooney, who's been a councillor for Killaloe for over ten years, a former chairman of Clare GAA (riding that wave of Liam McCarthy's return perhaps?), and was re-elected on first count in the east Clare region.

Green Party Senator Roisín Garvey will surely look to capitalise on her recent promotion to deputy party leader to help her in the fight for that fourth seat in Clare, though their only Green councillor, Liam Grant, lost his seat in west Clare to Fianna Fail's Joe Killeen.

Her former party colleague, Tuamgraney-based network engineering manager Barry O’Donovan is a last minute addition to the ballot paper for Rabharta (previously An Rabharta Glas – Green Left).

Independent Ireland’s candidate Eddie Punch, who contested the European elections, will be targeting the farmers vote which helped to propel Michael McNamara back to the Dáil last time. 

Also campaigning as Independents are Matthew Moroney, an unsuccessful candidate in east Clare for the local election, Patrick Murphy, Amanda Major and Kevin Hassett.

The Social Democrats candidate is Hilary Tonge, a co-founder of the Mid-West Hospital Campaign and development worker at WCI Clare.

West Clare-based June Dillon is the Aontú candidate, while Michael Loughrey of The Irish People, Michael Leahy of Irish Freedom Party and the Socialist Party's Caitríona Ní Chatháin round out the list of the candidates.

Final List of Candidates for county Clare (Four Seats)

Fine Gael: Joe Cooney, Leonora Carey, Dr. Tom Nolan

Fianna Fáil: Cathal Crowe, Timmy Dooley, Rita McInerney

Sinn Féin: Donna McGettigan

Green Party: Róisín Garvey

Social Democrats: Hilary Tonge

People Before Profit-Solidarity: Caitríona Ni Chatháin

Rabharta: Barry O’Donovan

Aontú: June Dillon

Independent Ireland: Eddie Punch

Irish Freedom Party: Michael Leahy

The Irish People: Michael Loughrey

Non party/Independent: Kevin Hassett, Amanda Major, Matthew Moroney, Paddy Murphy and Violet Anne Wynn

Read more General Election 2024 coverage on Clare Live