Taoiseach and Ahern at odds over timing of key poll
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Bertie Ahern and Brian Cowen disagree over the timing of the by-election to fill the seat left by the late Tony Gregory.
The Taoiseach and senior ministers would like it to go ahead on June 5, on the same polling day as the local and European elections.
But at a meeting in the constituency headquarters on Monday night, Mr Ahern and his team decided they want to postpone the by-election in Dublin Central for as long as possible.
Mr Ahern and his organisation feel they have no realistic chance of gaining the seat and that holding the by-election together with the local and European polls on June 5 could destroy their candidate.
The former Taoiseach's older brother, Maurice Ahern, a Dublin city councillor, has said he would like to be a candidate. But party headquarters would prefer Councillor Mary Fitzpatrick, who polled ahead of Cyprian Brady, the other sitting Fianna Fail TD, in the general election.
Party headquarters want to run the Dublin Central by-election on June 5 along with the other outstanding by-election in Dublin South to fill the seat vacated by the death of Seamus Brennan last summer.
Last night a senior Fianna Fail party source said: "We would like to get these two by-elections out of the way and that would allow us two years without election distractions to prepare for the next general election."
Other senior sources said that if Bertie Ahern wants the Fianna Fail nomination for the Presidency in 2011, delivering a third Fianna Fail seat in his constituency could clinch it.
All the parties agree that if Dublin city councillor Eimear Costello, the wife of sitting Labour TD Joe, ran she would probably take the seat.
However, senior sources in the Labour Party say the idea of husband and wife TDs in the same constituency is too bizarre to contemplate even though they have no other candidate who can win.
Sinn Fein MEP Mary Lou McDonald failed to take a seat at the last general election and her prospects are no better for the by-election so she is almost certain to run for Europe.
Supporters of the late Tony Gregory will hold a meeting next week to choose a candidate from a short list of three to hold the seat for his ideals.
Dublin city councillor Maureen O'Sullivan has to chose between running for her council seat or standing in the by-election. Fergus McCabe and Mick Rafferty, two other close colleagues of the late Tony Gregory, are also possible candidates.
In the absence of Labour's Eimear Costello, Fine Gael's Pascal Donohue, who polled an impressive 3,302 first preferences at the general election, is favourite to take the seat.
- Sam Smyth
