Labour picks Moriarty as Dublin South Central candidate

Labour has selected councillor Darragh Moriarty to run in Dublin South-Central.

One of the most left-leaning constituencies in Ireland, Labour are looking to win a seat in the constituency for the first time since 2011 when they got two TDs elected.

Moriarty has been on Dublin City Council since 2020 after being co-opted onto the seat held by Rebecca Moynihan after her election to the Seanad.

Moynihan was Labour’s candidate in the constituency in 2020 where she received 4.8% of first preferences.

Moriarty, who leads Labour on Dublin City Council, finished 2nd in the highly competitive South-West Inner City constituency in June’s local elections behind the dominant Michael Pidgeon of the Greens.

Moriarty increased Labour’s share of the vote compared to 2019 when Moynihan secured re-election, picking up 12.2% of first preferences compared to Moynihan’s 11.4% in 2019.

The constituency also saw victory for Jen Cummins of the Social Democrats, but frustration for Sinn Féin only got one of their three candidates elected in the form of Máire Devine.

Fianna Fáil’s Anmar Ali took a seat for the party, making him and Pidgeon the only local councillors that represent government parties.

“We’ll be ready whenever the general is called,” he said.

Moriarty said he was “incredibly grateful” to Moynihan as well as Labour branch members for nominating him as the candidate, remarking “sure what else would you be doing celebrating your 30th birthday,” adding “a run for the Dáil is the best birthday present.”

More recently, Moriarty led talks on behalf of Labour to form a potential left-wing alliance on Dublin City Council of Labour, the Greens, the Social Democrats and Sinn Fein, with the talks famously falling apart over the issue of Local Property Tax.

“Labour, the Greens and the Social Democrats have stuck together consistently on the issue of Local Property Tax, and we wanted that to be the basis for a centre-left coalition.”

“That wasn’t possible however, as the Social Democrats and Sinn Féin decided otherwise. We greatly regret that this breakthrough on Local Property Tax has been made without them.

“Funding vital local services matters more to us than optics,” he said at the time, with Labour and the Greens subsequently joining up with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to run Dublin City Council.

At a Dáil level, Dublin South-Central has been nicknamed “The People’s Republic Of Dublin South Central” thanks to its knack for electing left-leaning TDs.

2020’s general election saw the constituency return a Sinn Féin TD, Bríd Smith of People Before Profit, Joan Collins of Independents4Change (prior to her founding of Right2Change) and Patrick Costello of the Greens, who has since established himself firmly on the left wing of the party. 

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael failed to get a candidate elected in the area in 2020, with Fine Gael TD Catherine Bryne losing her seat on the day.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh handily topped the poll in 2020 in the area for Sinn Féin reaching nearly double the quota needed to be elected with an eye-watering 39.3% of first preferences.

Winning the seat back will be crucial to Labour’s plans of completing an unlikely political comeback after a near-decade of treading water.

Labour lost the seat in 2016; despite winning two seats there in 2011, they opted to run just incumbent TD Eric Byrne that year and lost his seat after receiving 7.7% of first preferences, down from his poll-topping 16.4% victory in 2011.

Ballyfermot-Drimnagh is the other local electoral area covered by Dublin South Central, but Labour failed to win a seat in the constituency after receiving 4.5% of first preferences.

Ballyfermot-Drimnagh saw Sinn Fein’s Daithí Doolan handily top the poll with exactly 15% of first preferences, with victories also spread out among the Greens, People Before Profit, Independent Ireland and veteran independent Vincent Jackson.

The election race in Dublin South Central has already seen a shake-up in the form of Bríd Smith announcing she will not be seeking re-election last summer, with Ballyfermot councillor Hazel de Nortúin picked to succeed Smith.