General Election and Government Formation Megathread (see post #1)

titan18 wrote: »

Their fiscal conservatism is why I voted for them in 2016. They didn't run a candidate in my area in 2020. I don't agree with the religous stuff, but I don't care about it enough to not vote for them when I agree with a lot of the economic parts.

What economic parts? There was nothing left by 2020; they had become a single issue religious party.

L1011 wrote: »

What economic parts? There was nothing left by 2020; they had become a single issue religious party.

By 2020, they essentially only existed as a Twitter account, and the admin seemed exclusively exercised about immigration.

rob316 wrote: »

Mad, the ball is in FG court after this pandemic, I'd be calling for an election again if I was Leo. Martin is a awful and represents the old gaurd of FF.

The Express are delighted anyway. They've no idea of how politics work, and it's great that Varadkar really got under their skin over brexit.

https://twitter.com/RTENewsPaulC/status/1272525518290718723

Have to laugh at all the SF fans on social media taking shots at MM and LV for scraping in on the 6th or 8th counts in the GE as if it somehow makes them illegitimate. I'm 100% certain that SF would have much preferred to get 2 candidates over the line on the 8th count in all those constituencies where they ran just 1 candidate and polled c.2 quotas.

It would be better for Leo to continue as Taoiseach first

namloc1980 wrote: »

Have to laugh at all the SF fans on social media taking shots at MM and LV for scraping in on the 6th or 8th counts in the GE as if it somehow makes them illegitimate. I'm 100% certain that SF would have much preferred to get 2 candidates over the line on the 8th count in all those constituencies where they ran just 1 candidate and polled c.2 quotas.

Mary Lou'd was quick to point out that the shinners would be providing a robust opposition speaking with one voice... Slab's I assume!

Gooey Looey wrote: »

A group of over 50 councillors have launched a campaign to “defeat” the newly agreed programme for government.

In a statement, the group calling themselves ‘Fairer Future’ insisted the agreement will not deliver change.

The councillors from Cavan, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Leitrim, Louth, Meath, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford and Wexford said the document “confirmed their fears” that he new government will be a “continuation of status quo politics”.

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/politics/50-fianna-fail-councillors-launch-campaign-to-stop-new-government-deal-39287987.html

Interesting that John McGuinness is the only other TD involved - will the grassroots revolt develop?

bren2001 wrote: »

A year is a long time. SFs complete and utter lack of a coherent economic plan could easily be exposed as they are the main opposition party. Knives are out for them, some blows will land and it will be a difficult task in its own right to maintain thir vote let alone build on it.

FF are also shrewd, very bloody shrewd. A year is a long time for them. Albeit, I give this government 2 years before it's collapsed.

There's an election happening in September 2021 looking at this shambles. No way they get to the first Taoiseach rotation.

Hopefully it's defeated. I'd rather have SF in power than FF near anything.

An Ciarraioch wrote: »

Interesting that the Irish-language media are getting all the juicy developments today - the Donegal branches of both FF and FG plan to reject the agreement!

https://twitter.com/HMFerry/status/1272593404132823040

Donegal saying no to something. How very out of character.

frw5 wrote: »

So overall nothing changes. No burning issues are addressed, everything is put under the carpet, people didn't get what they voted for..

This does my head in. The main parties openly stated that they would have nothing to do with Sinn Fein/IRA and the public overwhelmingly voted to support that stance.

bren2001 wrote: »

Why would FF or FG collapse it if SF are in a viable position to win outright? The whole purpose of this is to shut them out.

Personally, SF are the last party I want in power.

What? Who said they would do that?

I merely stated a preference for SF in govt rather than ever having FF in govt ever again.

jonnny68 wrote: »

Jaysus what a complete and utter nightmare having FFG and the treacherous tree huggers running the country, the political version of covid 19.

i'll give them 12 months tops before it goes t*ts up and another election happens and SF run a lot more candidates and romp home.

I hope you are wrong about the Shin Feinn part. That would be really bad for the country.
I think Leo is crazy to give up being Taioseacht and giving it to Micheal Martin. He will not want to give it back in two years time..

AMKC wrote: »

I hope you are wrong about the Shin Feinn part. That would be really bad for the country.
I think Leo is crazy to give up being Taioseacht and giving it to Micheal Martin. He will not want to give it back in two years time..

That could be the point of collapse perhaps, perhaps not!
FG owe FF the Taoiseach office perhaps too, they propped Enda and Leo up for four years.
I think FG may have had no option and FF and the greens are old allies anyway.
SF are where they wanted to be too I think, the main opposition, they will get some milage out of the lifetime of this Govt, and if it collapses before it runs its course then there's bound to political capital out of the cause of that collapse.
SF are gambling on being the largest party next time around, they will be in a strong position to pick up a coalition partner if FF and FG fall out during this Govt.
Perhaps I'm being premature, the deal hasn't been ratified yet, maybe there's still hope this time around.

https://twitter.com/gavreilly/status/1272624471992664068

If you're FG, you start praying to your deity of choice that the FF or Greens grassroots reject the PFG, thus achieving a new election without having seen to have been the cause of it. They can just so "we tried, not our fault them over there caused it to fail"

https://twitter.com/gavreilly/status/1272623592166100993

The #notmytaoiseach brigade will be spitting feathers this evening