Finian Mc Grath - Political Career

Political Career

He was elected to Dublin City Council in 1999 with the second highest vote in the Clontarf electoral area. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann at the 2002 general election where he stood as an Independent Health Alliance candidate. He joined the Technical Group, established to ensure Dáil speaking time for the Independent TDs. In March 2003, due to being a dual mandate TD, he gave up his Dublin City Council seat to Ger Drogan, who later was replaced by Fintan Cassidy, who failed to get elected in the subsequent 2004 local elections.

McGrath was re-elected to the 30th Dáil in the 2007 election, confounding predictions that he'd lose due to the loss of a seat from the constituency. He survived as he garnered a large number of transfers from the Sinn Féin and Labour Party candidates.

As an independent member of the 30th Dáil, McGrath pledged his support for the new government formed in June 2007. In so doing, he secured a deal with Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, which he made public by entering it in the Dáil record. This public announcement was hailed by many observers who had criticised other independent TDs such as Michael Lowry and Jackie Healy-Rae for keeping similar deals secret. On 20 October 2008, following the 2009 Budget, McGrath withdrew his support for the government, in protest at the abolition of an automatic medical card for the over-70s, cuts in education and the increase of the pupil-teacher ratio. After the election of Pearse Doherty McGrath joined the Technical Group, which consisted of the Sinn Féin deputies and the Independent Maureen O'Sullivan. He was re-elected in the 2011 general election where he serves as Chair of the Technical Group.

McGrath endorsed the Independent candidate Damien O'Farrell at the 2009 local elections for the Clontarf electoral area in Dublin City Council, who was elected topping the poll with 1.22 of a quota.

During the 2011 Irish Presidential election, McGrath initially agreed to support Senator David Norris for nomination for the 2011 presidential election. On 2 August, Norris publicly announced at a press conference that he was withdrawing from the presidential race. This followed the decision of McGrath, and the TDs John Halligan and Thomas Pringle to withdraw their support following revelations that Norris had written a letter to an Israeli court asking clemency for his former partner Ezra Nawi, who was then facing criminal charges. Norris withdrew his candidacy on the 2 August due to the controversy. Sinn Féin proposed Martin McGuinness for their nomination for a presidential candidate. Finian McGrath agreed along with 4 other independent TD to sign Martin McGuiness' nomination paper.

McGrath resigned as Chairman of the Dail Technical Group in October 2012, when Mick Wallace returned to the loose alliance against the wishes of many of its members.