Sinn Fein to hold Cavan convention

 

Sinn Féin is to host a convention later this evening to nominate a Cavan candidate to run ahead of the next election.

As expected, former County Councillor and local school teacher Pauline Tully will be the chosen candidate. She is set to stand unopposed, it is understood.

The convention takes place from 8pm tonight at the Hotel Kilmore in Cavan Town, where Sinn Féin Party leader Mary Lou McDonald will be guest speaker.

The convention will be chaired by Sligo-Leitrim TD Martin Kenny.

As revealed exclusively by The Anglo-Celt last month, Ms Tully announced she was making a shock return to politics following the personal intervention of Deptuy McDonald.

The local activist's return to politics is seen as a significant boost to the party's ambitions of securing two of the five seats available in future.
The Kilnaleck mother of two had consistently ruled herself out of the running, citing “family commitments” as her reason, even as recently as last March.
The party will be hoping Ms Tully's experience as a local politician will help build on the already healthy numbers obtained in 2011 and 2016 by then Cavan Sinn Féin candidate Kathryn Reilly.
In 2016 Ms Reilly polled 10% of the first preference votes in the constituency. Vocal at council level on a wide range of issues including social, environmental, health and education, Ms Tully will be expected to build on the reputation first forged when she was elected to represent the Ballyjamesduff electoral area in 1999. In subsequent elections up to the time she stood down in 2012, Ms Tully helped the party attain an increasing voter share locally, to the point that Sinn Féin topped the poll in Ballyjamesduff electoral area with Noel Connell in 2014.
A teacher of maths and history, Ms Tully is also Year Head and the Special Educational Needs co-ordinator at Breifne College, Cavan Town. She also currently hold the chair of the Board of Management of Breifne College. She will go before the Sinn Féin selection convention due to take place in Cavan in the coming weeks. If successful in receiving the nomination, she will join Matt Carthy on the party's Cavan-Monaghan ticket for the 33rd Dáil.