Eamon Ryan profile: Eamon Ryan's move to challenge Mrs Mary McAleese for the Presidency surprised even some of his own Green Party colleagues.
Announced unexpectedly on the News at One on RTÉ radio, his decision followed the withdrawal from the race last week of former UN official Mr Denis Halliday. The Greens had been supporting moves by the Independent TD, Mr Finian McGrath, to persuade the Dublin-born peace activist to contest an election. But Mr Halliday, who lives in New York, was always reluctant to run for the office.
Enter Eamonn Ryan, the Dublin South TD who is now seeking the 20 signatures from TDs and Senators that are required for a nomination to contest an election. The odds are against him. But Ryan has defied expectation in the past, most notably when he took the Dáil seat held for years by the senior Fine Gael figure, Alan Shatter.
Aged 41, Ryan is among the most prominent of the new TDs to enter the Dáil after the 2002 election. While he likes Leinster House, he has said that the life of a TD demands a degree of "obsession" with politics.
Regarded as one the most able figures in the Greens, he has established a reputation as a strong speaker in the Chamber and is a good television performer. "He's young, articulate, intelligent, good-looking and a family man. He'll be a very strong candidate," said a TD from a rival party.
A personable individual, Ryan sees himself as being in the "Green wing" of his party. However, he is one of those who has strived to develop an economic vision for a party long dominated by environmentalists and he is one of the better Opposition speakers on transport and energy policy.
