Local elections Voters in Longford will face the choice of electing one of two candidates with the same name, following a prank by a local architect.
Mr Liam Madden recently announced he would run as an Independent candidate on a campaign platform which includes a call for a full investigation into the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. He will run in the same electoral area as the Progressive Democrat candidate, Mr Liam Madden.
The architect, who has been involved in several high-profile planning appeals, says his manifesto also calls for the accession of the Austro-Hungarian empire into the EU and promises a pre-election results party at Hughie Doyle's pub in the town.
However, his decision to enter the local election race threatens to cause confusion and damage the prospects of the PD candidate, a former director of elections for the party's local Dáil deputy, Ms Mae Sexton.
The architect, who is a brother-in-law of Ms Sexton, said he threw his name into the contest for "devilment" and that he had little interest in being involved in council politics.
"I wasn't planning to take a seat in the council or anything if I was elected. I think I'd show up at one meeting and that would be it. I think the council is more like Ballymagash county council. I'm better known than the PD candidate and I think I could have taken around one-third of his vote away," Mr Madden said.
The Independent candidate yesterday announced he would withdraw from the race following a bereavement in the family. However, it is too late to withdraw his name from the election contest and officials say his name is due to appear on the ballot papers on polling day.
"I'd like to slip out of the race quietly now," he told The Irish Times yesterday. "I'm planning to put an ad on the front page of the Longford Leader at the end of this week asking people not to vote for me."
Meanwhile the PD candidate is taking the election high jinx in his stride and says the publicity may even benefit his campaign.
"I can't say that his stance recently surprised me. It's not the first time he has come to the attention of the council," he said yesterday, prior to the architect's announcement that he would withdraw from the election.
"In one way what he has done has raised my profile, because people keep coming up to me and asking if I'm the real Liam Madden," he said, laughing.
"You have to try and use this kind of thing to your advantage. But, yes, if it comes down to the wire and there are a few votes in it, it might be difficult." Despite the election rivalry between them, the PD candidate said they both got on well and saluted each other on the street regularly.
The PDs have just one seat on Longford County Council and say they can increase their representation following Ms Sexton's success in the 2002 general election.
Meanwhile, the five PD local election candidates scored their own publicity coup recently when they announced they would not place any posters up in the area, but would make a donation to People In Need instead. The candidates, PJ Walsh, Petie Prunty, Declan Fox, Brendan Gilmore and Liam Madden, donated €2,500 to the charity event and have called on other parties to do the same. However, Mr Madden said there was no sign of anyone taking up the offer.