Shortall announces she will not contest next general election

Social Democrats co-founder and TD for Dublin North-West Róisín Shortall has announced she will not contest the next general election.

Fellow Social Democrats TD and founder Catherine Murphy has also announced she will not be contesting the next election.

Shortall and Murphy said, “it was time for a new generation to take over.”

In a statement, Shortall said “I am always mindful that I have been enabled to do that because the people of Dublin North West have elected me to represent them at seven consecutive elections.  I thank them sincerely for placing their trust in me and hope I have repaid that trust through my work over that time.”

Representing my constituents and actively contributing to public debate on national issues have been my priorities as a TD. I have a strong belief in the power of politics as a force for good. Politics has enormous potential to make people’s lives better and to create a fairer and more progressive country. I have worked in furtherance of those goals over the course of my career.”

She said that founding the Social Democrats in 2015 was among the highlights of her career, which started after being elected at the 1992 general election.

“Our aim was to give people a new choice in Irish politics, a new kind of politics founded on the best tradition of social democracy. A party based on equality and a belief in a strong economy, a fair society and honest politics; our ambition has seen the election of six TDs and 35 councillors – including three in my own area of Dublin North West – with the Social Democrats now a significant force in Irish politics.”

“I am very confident that the party has a strong future under the leadership of Holly Cairns TD, with a large cohort of excellent public representatives and many committed members.”

“While I have decided to step down from frontline politics, I hope to continue to work to build on progress already made in the development of the Social Democrats party. I truly believe the Party can make a major contribution to creating a better Ireland for all,” she said.

In the recent local elections, the Social Democrats won 2 seats in the hotly-contested constituency of Artane-Whitehall which makes up a large part of Shortall’s constituency.

Cairns paid tribute to Shortall, dubbing her and Murphy as “trailblazers” in Irish politics.

“I can say that I would not be in politics were it not for Catherine and Róisín’s decision to set up the Social Democrats. Their commitment to public service, belief in the possibility of a fairer society and dedication to strictly adhering to social democratic principles were, and are, an inspiration to me and many others.”

“Catherine and Róisín are now stepping back from frontline politics, but they leave behind a party with strong roots, huge promise and great potential. Having nearly doubled our number of councillors in the recent local elections, I am determined to continue to build on that success and grow our number of TDs in the forthcoming general election.”