Election 2020: David Cullinane (Sinn Féin)

Waterford– Elected first count

Sinn Féin TD David Cullinane. Photograph: Lorraine O’Sullivan

First elected in the 2016 election, David Cullinane was Waterford's first Sinn Féin TD in more than 90 years.

The 45-year-old, who was married to fellow Sinn Féin politician Kathleen Funchion, quickly became popular throughout the course of the 32nd Dáil.

A high-profile member of the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee, Cullinane was outspoken on a number of issues including cost overruns at the National Children’s Hospital, the €1.8 million printer and RTÉ’s future financial plans.

A father of two boys, he is the party’s spokesman on communications, climate action and the environment.

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He was elected to the Labour panel in the Seanad in 2011, having previously served as a member of Waterford City Council since 2004

Persistence certainly paid off for the public representative, who unsuccessfully contested the 2002, 2007 and 2011 general elections.

In the upcoming Dáil, he intends to focus on “robust” climate action plans, increased resources for rural Ireland and a campaign for Irish unity.

Shauna Bowers

Shauna Bowers

Shauna Bowers is Health Correspondent of The Irish Times