Fís Nua

Fís Nua (pronounced [fʲiʃ n̪ˠuə]; English: "New Vision") is a minor political party in Ireland.

Fís Nua
LeaderNone
Founded25 June 2010[1]
IdeologyGreen politics
Political positionLeft-wing[2]
Website
fisnua.com

The party was formed in June 2010, mainly by former members of the Green Party who were unhappy with that party's participation in the then coalition government with Fianna Fáil. Fís Nua intended to campaign on the issues of political transparency, environmental issues and social justice, and hoped to draw support from existing supporters of both the Greens and the Labour Party.[3][4]

The party was registered on 4 February 2011,[5] and on the following day it was announced that they would run six candidates in the 2011 general election.[6]

"Fís Nua" means "New Vision" in Irish.[4] (A separate organisation called New Vision also ran candidates in the 2011 general election.)[7][8]

The party previously had one town councillor in Wicklow, Pat Kavanagh, who was elected as a member of the Green Party, but quit that party and ran in the 2011 election as a Fís Nua candidate.[9] She then became an Independent politician.

Fís Nua has not contested any elections since 2016, including the 2019 local or European elections, or 2020 general election. As of May 2020, it remains on the Register of Political Parties.[10]

Electoral history

2011

General election

The party ran five candidates in the 2011 general election: one each in Dublin Central, Dublin South-East and Waterford and two in Wicklow.[11][12][13] At the press launch on 5 February the party announced that it would also contest Cork South-West but their candidate failed to be nominated by the deadline of 9 February.[6][14]

Although registered on 4 February 2011, the party's name did not appear on the ballot, as the Register of Political Parties in use was that in force on 1 February when the writ for the general election was issued.[15]

ConstituencyCandidate1st Pref. votes% 1st Pref. votesNotes
Dublin Central[16] Liam Johnston 48 0.1% Eliminated after first count
Dublin South-East[17] Peadar Ó Ceallaigh 18 0.1% Eliminated after first count
Waterford[18] Ben Nutty 257 0.5% Eliminated after third count
Wicklow[19] Pat Kavanagh 291 0.4% Eliminated after eighth count
Gerry Kinsella 324 0.5% Eliminated after ninth count

All candidates polled less than 5% of the vote. Peadar Ó Ceallaigh, the candidate in Dublin South-East, polled the lowest first preference vote of all the candidates in the election, and the second-lowest on record.[20]

Dublin West by-election

The party contested the Dublin West by-election held in October 2011. This was the first election at which the party's name appeared on the ballot paper.[21] The party's candidate, Peadar Ó Ceallaigh, came last of the 13 candidates, securing 40 votes or 0.1% of the total first preferences.[22][23]

2014

The party had candidates in each of the three constituencies for European Parliament elections, the Dublin West by-election for a seat in Dáil Éireann and also a number of candidates for local elections: all elections were held on Friday 23 May 2014.[24]

Dublin West by-election

The party's candidate was Daniel Boyne. He received 113 first preference votes, this being 0.4% of the votes cast; he was last of the ten candidates and was eliminated after the first count.[25]

European Parliament
ConstituencyCandidate1st Pref. votes% 1st Pref. votesNotes
Dublin[26] Damon Matthew Wise 1,147 0.3% Last of 12 candidates, eliminated after first count.
Midlands-North-West[27] Cordelia Níc Fhearraigh 1,829 0.3% Last of 14 candidates, eliminated after first count.
South[28] Dómhnall Ó Ríordáin 1,634 0.2% Last of 15 candidates, eliminated after second count.

Local Elections
CouncilLocal Electoral AreaCandidate1st Pref. votes% 1st Pref. votesNotes
Clare County Council[29][30] Ennis Damon Matthew Wise 7 Last of 27 candidates. Eliminated
Vera Moloney 30 25th of 27 candidates. Eliminated
Killaloe Niamh O'Brien 731 8th of 10 candidates. Eliminated
Shannon Karen Wise 18 Last of 16 candidates. Eliminated
Galway County Council Athenry-Oranmore Suzanne O'Keeffe 53 Last of 16 candidates. Eliminated.[31]
Sligo County Council Sligo James Higgins 38 Last of 23 candidates[32] Eliminated on third count.[33]

2016

General election

The party ran two candidates in the general election held on 26 February 2016. They were Niamh Ó Brien in Clare and Cordelia Nic Fhearraigh in Donegal.[34] O'Brien came thirteenth of sixteen candidates, receiving 1,154 first preference votes, and was eliminated on the second count.[35] Nic Fhearraigh came last of the sixteen candidates in Donegal, receiving 70 first preference votes, and was eliminated on the first count.[36] Nic Fhearraigh, who made all her election communications through the Irish language, was one of the lowest-polling candidates in the country.[37]

Controversy

The party has not been without its controversies since its founding:

  • In February 2011, the party clashed with a rival group which adopted the name "New Vision". This group was formed by a son of former Fianna Fail Minister Neil Blaney as an umbrella group for independent politicians based on four pillars: separation of bank debt and sovereign debt; overhaul of the public service; a strategy to create jobs; and what they call "the restructure" of the state's energy resources. Neither group changed their name but the latter appeared to have disappeared from public life shortly after its founding.[38]
  • Following her unsuccessful candidacy in the 2016 general election, one of the parties two candidates, Niamh Ó Brien, was convicted and sentenced to four months imprisonment on charges of dangerous driving and failure to provide an intoxicant sample, after refusing to produce documentation after being stopped by Garda patrol which led to the injury of one officer who believed her to be under the influence of cannabis.[39][40]
  • In November 2017, the Standards in Public Office Commission stated that no statements of accounts had been received from the Fís Nua, in breach of the Electoral Act.[41]
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References
  1. "Meeting on 25 / 26 June 2010 Fís Nua is formed". Fís Nua. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  2. "Reminder: 'New Political Possibilities in Ireland for all Left-Wing Parties in Partnership with Civil Society' Conference". Irish Left Review. 4 February 2011. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
  3. Donal Thornton (28 June 2010). "New political party for Ireland". Irish Central. Retrieved 7 February 2011.
  4. O'Brien, Tim (28 June 2010). "Political party to register 'within weeks'". The Irish Times (subscription required). Retrieved 7 February 2011.
  5. "Iris Oifigiúil" (PDF). Government of Ireland. 14 January 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 March 2011. Retrieved 7 February 2011.
  6. Gartland, Fiona (7 February 2011). "New party targets corruption". The Irish Times (subscription required). Retrieved 7 February 2011.
  7. McGreevy, Ronan (1 February 2011). "New Vision of informed Independents emerges at meeting held by McWilliams". The Irish Times (subscription required). Retrieved 7 February 2011.
  8. Dunne, Stephen (10 February 2011). "Fís Nua clarifies position after new grouping launched". Wicklow News. Retrieved 10 February 2011.
  9. "Kavanagh to contest election for Fís Nua Party". WicklowNews.net. 21 January 2011.
  10. "Register of Political Parties as of 27 May 2020" (PDF). Oireachtas. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  11. "Fís Nua candidates". ElectionsIreland.org. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
  12. "General Election 2011. Nominations Received, Dublin South–East". Dublin City Returning Officer. 9 February 2011. Archived from the original on 2 March 2011. Retrieved 10 February 2011.
  13. "Candidates". Fís Nua. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
  14. Jackie Keogh. "Thirteen males seeking election in Cork South-West". The Southern Star. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 10 February 2011.
  15. "Electoral Act 1992, Section 25(14)". Irish Statute Book. Office of the Attorney General. Retrieved 10 February 2011.
  16. "Dublin Central". Election 2011. RTÉ News. Retrieved 27 February 2011.
  17. "Dublin South-East". Election 2011. RTÉ News. Retrieved 27 February 2011.
  18. "Waterford". Election 2011. RTÉ News. Retrieved 27 February 2011.
  19. "Wicklow". Election 2011. RTÉ News. Retrieved 27 February 2011.
  20. "Dublin South east 2011". electionsrieland.org. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
  21. "Dublin West By Election". Fís Nua. Retrieved 12 November 2011.
  22. "Dublin West by-election". ElectionsIreland.org. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
  23. "Dublin West By-Election". RTÉ News. 28 October 2011. Archived from the original on 29 October 2011. Retrieved 28 October 2011.
  24. "Elections May 2014". Fís Nua. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 18 May 2014.
  25. "Dublin West By-Election". The Irish Times (subscription required). 24 May 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  26. "European Elections: Dublin". The Irish Times (subscription required). 26 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  27. "Midlands North West: European Elections". The Irish Times (subscription required). 26 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  28. "European Elections: South". The Irish Times (subscription required). 26 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  29. "Clare: Local Election Results". The Irish Times (subscription required). 25 May 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  30. "Clare Local Election 2014 Results". Clare Champion. 26 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  31. "Galway County: Local Election Results". The Irish Times (subscription required). 25 May 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  32. "Sligo: Local Election Results". The Irish Times (subscription required). 25 May 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  33. "Local Election Results: Sligo". Sligo County Council. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  34. "Fís Nua: All Candidates". Election 2016. RTÉ News. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  35. "General election 2016: Clare". ElectionsIreland.org. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  36. "General election 2016: Donegal". ElectionsIreland.org. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  37. Cormac Fitzgerald (29 February 2016). "The low-downs: The 11 candidates who secured the fewest votes this election". The Journal. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  38. "A Clarification about Fis Nua and New Vision. - Indymedia Ireland". www.indymedia.ie. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  39. News, Clare FM - (2 June 2016). "General Election Candidate Tells Court She Was In Fear For Her Life — Clare FM". Clare FM. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  40. "Election candidate 'lied through her teeth' at roadside incident with gardaí". The Irish Times. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  41. Burke, Ceimin (29 November 2017). "Nearly half of Ireland's political parties failed to submit accounts to watchdog". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
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