Fine Gael MEP Seán Kelly has said he will not seek his party’s nomination to run in the forthcoming election for the presidency.
The move leaves former European commissioner Mairead McGuinness as the only widely tipped potential candidate from the party to contest the election to succeed President Michael D Higgins, which is likely to take place in late October or early November.
Fine Gael sources said that no nominations have yet been submitted, but Ms McGuinness is widely expected to be a candidate.
Speaking to RTE yesterday morning, Mr Kelly said it was a crucial time for European politics and he wanted to influence affairs in Brussels on behalf of Ireland.
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The Ireland South MEP did not explicitly endorse Ms McGuinness but said she would be a good candidate and if selected, he would support her.
He said the party members would have welcomed a contest and noted nominations were open for another week.
“I think the members would like to have a contest, but ultimately you have to have more than one candidate ... so let’s see how it pans out,” the former GAA president told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland.
The Co Kerry native said that it had been “one of the biggest decisions” of his life not to seek to be elected to Áras an Uachtaráin.
When asked why he had changed his mind about running, Mr Kelly said he had never made his mind up.
“I was thinking seriously about it. And some days I would say yes, and other days I would say no. It’s obviously you’re head of state. It’s the highest political honour you can get in Ireland.
“But when I looked at it deeply. It’s largely a ceremonial role. You don’t have that much power or influence even though you can dress it up whatever way you like and I like to be involved politically.”
Asked if he was endorsing Ms McGuinness the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said that he would prefer to wait until the nomination period has come to a close.
“Mairead McGuinness, I have no doubt at all would be a fantastic candidate for Fine Gael and also has, I believe, all the qualities needed to be a very effective and excellent president for the people of Ireland,” he said.
“But as a member of Cabinet and a figure who will be campaigning for whoever the candidate is, I just want to see who else decides to make a decision in relation to it and at the end of all of that then, the party will make its decision.”
Nominations close next week (July 17th) in Fine Gael but there is little expectation among party sources that a last minute candidate will emerge to challenge Ms McGuinness in her expected bid.
Meanwhile, left-leaning parties in the Dáil are likely to nominate their own preferred candidates to stand in the presidential election rather than gather around an agreed candidate.
Opposition leaders met on Wednesday evening in Leinster House to discuss their approach to the election, but there was no agreement on a candidate.
Sources say that the opposition parties are waiting for Sinn Fein to signal whether it is interested in a joint candidate of the left or if it will run its candidate.
There was a flurry of speculation this week in Leinster House that party leader Mary Lou McDonald would stand, after she declined to rule out such a move, but the party said that no decisions had been made.
