Open warfare has been declared between the two Fianna Fáil candidates running for the European Parliament's North West constituency, following a row over territorial divides.
The Minister of State for Transport, Dr Jim McDaid, and sitting Fianna Fáil MEP, Mr Seán Ó Neachtain, both admit that they have failed to reach agreement on splitting the canvassing area in the nine-county constituency which extends from Clare to Donegal to Cavan.
Dr McDaid has accused Mr Ó Neachtain's campaign team of being selfish, while Mr Ó Neachtain says that this is another example of "interference from Fianna Fáil head office" to try and ensure that he doesn't get elected on June 11th.
Mr Ó Neachtain ignored pleas from head office not to run in the election, and successfully fought a selection convention challenge from the Minister of State for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mr Frank Fahey, last February.
Ironically, the location for that selection convention - Roscommon - is now at the heart of the dispute between the two men. Mr Ó Neachtain, a former school teacher from Spiddal, Co Galway, who was co-opted to Europe when Mr Pat the Cope Gallagher returned to national politics, maintains that he has the support of the Roscommon Fianna Fáil Comhairle Dáil Ceantair, and has already canvassed in the county. He plans to return to Roscommon later this week with his director of elections, Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Mr Ó Cuív.
However, Dr McDaid says that he had hoped to canvass in Roscommon, as the population base in the constituency had changed with the addition of Co Clare. "Clare has a population of 103,000, including a very high percentage of Fianna Fáil votes," Dr McDaid said. "If you add Galway, Mayo and Clare together, you get a total population of 429,800 according to the last census figures. This compares to a population total of 384,400 in the other six counties - Roscommon, Sligo, Leitrim, Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan."
"If Mr Ó Neachtain's team insists on canvassing in Clare, Galway, Mayo and Roscommon, that is a total population base of 484,800," Dr McDaid said. "I am then left with 330,000."
Dr McDaid said he had proposed several compromises, including canvassing in north Mayo, or dividing Roscommon between the two candidates. The election teams had failed to reach agreement and the constituency was now "wide open" to both as a result, he said.
