By all indications, Fine Gael is set to nominate Councillor and Lord Mayor Ray McAdam as its candidate for the Dublin Central by-election at a convention in Dublin this evening, as the party looks to hold on to the Dáil seat vacated by former finance minister Paschal Donohoe.
Donohoe unexpectedly announced last year that he would step down as Minister and TD in order to take up a position with the World Bank in the United States, leaving a vacancy in his constituency.
The selection convention is due to be held tonight at the Ashling Hotel in Dublin, where McAdam is expected to secure the nomination, given that no other candidates have formally declared their interest to date.
McAdam was first elected to Dublin City Council in 2009 and has since been re-elected in 2014, 2019, and 2024. He has served as the 358th Lord Mayor of Dublin since June 2025, and given his prominent position within the local area, is considered the most viable candidate for the party by most analysts.
Fine Gael is aiming to retain the seat in the forthcoming by-election, which is expected to be held on Friday May 22nd.
Several candidates have already confirmed their intention to contest the election.
Sinn Féin Councillor Janice Boylan is among those in the race. Social Democrats candidate Daniel Ennis has also declared, along with Green Party Councillor Janet Horner. Labour has selected Ruth O’Dea, a community activist and staff member for Labour TD Marie Sherlock, while People Before Profit has chosen Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin as its nominee.
Aontú has selected Ian Smyth, while a number of independents have also emerged, including the well-known crime figure Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch, who has been posting a series of online videos in advance of the poll urging citizens to register to vote, in an apparent effort to tap into a previously politically detached voting pool.
In a notable outcome, Hutch came close to securing a seat in Dublin Central in the 2024 general election despite his controversies, narrowly missing out to Labour’s Marie Sherlock at the final stage.
Independent Councillor Malachy Steenson, best known for his involvement in a number of immigration-critical protests in the inner city in recent years such as the ‘East Wall Says No’ movement, is also standing.
Fianna Fáil has yet to select a candidate. The constituency was previously held for the party by then-Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, but after his resignation from politics ahead of the 2011 General Election it was lost, and they have not managed to regain a foothold there since. Senator Mary Fitzpatrick, who has contested the constituency several times without any success, may once again be chosen.
The by-election is expected to take place on the same day as a by-election vote in Galway West, which is now required due to Catherine Connolly’s election as the Ireland’s 10th President last year, leaving yet another vacancy.
Dublin Central is regarded as a socially mixed constituency, encompassing working-class areas such as East Wall alongside more middle-class districts like Glasnevin, which will no doubt be a factor in the electoral strategies chosen by various competing parties.
It is a four-seat constituency, with the three current TDs – Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald, Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon, and Labour TD Marie Sherlock – all representing left-wing opposition parties.