THE Government's first priority following Mrs Robinson's decision not to run again will be to decide on a date for the general election. Only after making this decision will the Coalition parties be able to concentrate on examining presidential candidates.
The Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, said yesterday that he saw the general and Presidential elections as two "free standing" contests. Some Government sources, however, were suggesting last night that the first issue to be resolved was whether the two could be held on the one day, now that the Government had a credible excuse for postponing the general election.
The Secretary to the Government, Mr Frank Murray, took formal advice on this very point in late January. He was advised that it should be possible to synchronise the making of a presidential order and a Dail dissolution to allow the same date to be fixed for both polls between late October and late November.
This option was still being regarded as a non runner by highly placed sources late last night, and a presummer general election is still on the cards.
With Mrs Robinson's exhortation that her successor should get a fresh mandate in a presidential election, the parties in Leinster House were warming up for a second contest at the polls in the autumn.
Former Fianna Fail minister Mr David Andrews was the only known candidate interested in a nomination for the Presidency yesterday. He is not expected to make a declaration until after Easter, however, and only then if he thought he could win the election. He would also run in the general election.
The other possible Fianna Fail candidate is the former Taoiseach, Mr Albert Reynolds. While paying a warm tribute to Mrs Robinson he declined to comment yesterday on whether he would be seeking a party nomination.
The deputy leader of Fianna Fail, Ms Mary O'Rourke, was "emphatic" that she would not be a candidate.
The Coalition parties seemed so taken aback by Mrs Robinson's decision not to seek a second term that no names of possible candidates could be offered yesterday.
Sources said that the Government had been expecting to hear her decision in late January, then in late February. The delay fostered the view that she would seek a second term.
Most Coalition strategists believe that a credible agreed candidate, possibly from outside politics, would maximise their chances of defeating a Fianna Fail contender. The three parties will separately try to come up with the names of possible candidates in the coming weeks. Some names were being trotted out like confetti last night with the likelihood of all presidential contest.
These included the Nobel prized winner, Seamus Heaney Mrs Justice McGuinness, chairwoman of the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation; Mr John Hume, leader of the SDLP, and Mr Peter Sutherland, former EU Commissioner, director general of GATT and former chairman of the World Trade Organisation.
Three of the suggested candidates on this random list have ruled out any interest in the Presidency to Government sources in recent times.
