The suggestion that Dana Rosemary Scallon should contest the Presidency was met with derision and disbelief on all sides. In this newspaper Fintan O'Toole wrote: "The very absurdity of the idea is significant . . . for it arises from what must be desperation on a heroic scale," while the chairman of the Pro-Life Campaign, Des Hanafin, said: "To be realistic, that girl has no chance whatsoever of getting a nomination."
However, she had a number of unforeseen advantages. The very fact that her candidacy was dismissed meant that expectations were low, and she could only improve on them. Above all, she was the most polished media performer of all the candidates and, given that the constituency was the whole State, most people would only encounter the candidates through the media.
She had 27 years' experience in show-business behind her, much of it on television. For the past five years she has been working for a highly successful, highly professional station, the Catholic EWTN in Alabama, in the most advanced and competitive media environment in the world.
She quickly distanced herself from the Catholic activists who had sought her candidacy. Although at the beginning of her campaign she fuelled suspicions she was the candidate of a USbased conservative Catholic IrishAmerican grouping by her attendance at a church function in New York, there was no further evidence of organised backing from this quarter.
She did obtain advice from Ger Casey, of the Christian Solidarity Party, however, who identified the clause in the Constitution which allows for a nomination to be pursued through the county councils. His advice included avoiding any association with any existing Christian party or lobbying organisation, including his own. He also advised her on how to prepare for the Kenny Live television programme on which she appeared.
"She's very smart," he said. "She took out a tape-recorder during our talk and took extensive notes. She learns very quickly."
This was evident as the campaign developed. Its start was chaotic. The only point of contact for the media, or for members of the public who wanted to support her, was her PR firm, Lindsey Holmes Publicity. This specialises in the music business and had no conception of how a political campaign was run. Local radio stations were not informed when she was in a constituency, so they did not carry interviews or advertise her presence.
However, within a week a campaign office was set up staffed by her sister, Susan Stein, brother-inlaw, Colm Scallon, and family friend, Patrick Doherty. Former Irish Press journalist Eoghan Corry was recruited as political adviser to help prepare media interviews, and Paul Allen was brought on board as designer.
The campaign also lacked focus at the beginning. It was unclear whether she wanted to win votes or to convey a caring image, not necessarily the same thing. For example, the early days of her campaign saw a high proportion of visits to the sick, most of whom would not be voting anyway. It was hard not to feel disturbed at the reaction of some of the multiply mentally handicapped or acutely ill people to the sudden effusion of attention her visit brought.
But clearly she quickly realised that this was not the way to win votes, and the hospital- and hospice-visiting ceased, though she did visit the hospice in Harold's Cross on polling day. Instead she concentrated on meeting people in the streets and in their workplaces, and, especially as time went on, speaking to groups of supporters and urging them to work for her election.
Here her formidable talents as a communicator shone, as she plugged home her message in clear, simple sentences: the political parties were tainted with corruption and were not listening to people; those who felt loyal to the traditional values of religion and family had no one to speak for them; their concerns about drugs, crime and the collapse of moral values were not being represented.
Her statement that she would find it difficult, as president, to sign a law permitting abortion not only delighted her own constituency, it won her respect among opponents.
Her claim that her machine consisted of her family and friends was seen to be true on the ground. It is also clear that her family, most of whom are involved in her record company in some capacity, put considerable resources, both human and financial, into the campaign.
Although not officially seeking support from any pro-life group, her office did ask some of them if their members would help in an individual capacity, and this they did in their hundreds. But this is neither surprising nor objectionable.
The question for Dana now is: where next? She has already said she would consider standing in an Oireachtas election, and has shown herself to be a capable campaigner. Her result shows she would have a chance - a very good chance - of election in a general election in a multi-seat constituency.
Politics is not the only career open to her. She has shown herself to be a consummate media performer, capable of articulating the concerns of the conservative Catholic constituency which feels it has few champions in the national media.
Her boss in EWTN, Sister Angelica, was in Ireland just over a year ago to discuss the setting up of a Catholic television station. Nothing came of the suggestion. But by her candidacy Dana has shown she could attract support to such a venture.